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Mid-Life Spirituality is a Call Into Deeper Places“Spirituality is not a separate compartment of life…on the contrary the whole person is in relationship with God…a dynamic relationship in constant development or transformation.” Joyce RuppAre you under the impression of not being your true self? You question your authentic identity? You feel a stranger living within you and waiting for an opportunity to reveal himself? On the hand,you may also feel a deep emptiness in your soul? Mid-life is a call into deeper places “…to explore the vast interior of our psyche (soul) where many treasures are waiting to be found deeply in the unconscious. It’s an opportunity to pay attention to what you have become, to question your motive for living - the where to go of your indefinite journey and it's mission. "Knowing your spiritual identity: Rather than facing outwards or away from yourself, consider facing inwards!" You might feel the need for time out, alone, in solitude, close to nature to find some peace for reflection and contemplation of life in this magnificient universeto journey deeper and to move “ beyond what you know. “Go into the stillness and solitude within you to find your true Self “ You’re not alone in that journey going deeper – God waits for you there… welcoming, comforting you, guiding you and loving you deeply; He’s eager to reveal the treasures waiting to be discovered. Remember my analogy of the caterpillar in the chrysalis? The darkness in the tunnel, the night... those might be but a few images that might illustrate the journey inward into your inner world. Mid-life - the path into a journey of transformation - that we know to be a call of renouncements, a call to difficult acknowledgements, of limitations, of errors and a time for healing. It can also be a time of wonderful discoveries ...this is a call home… a call to discover our true Self…evaluating our goals, our hopes, our dreams, our beliefs, our behaviors and our experiences for the opportunity of a greater life. “God loves you; you’re never out of His sight; he cares about every detail of your life; he gave you the capacity to enjoy all kinds of pleasure; he has good plans for your life; he forgives you; and he is lovingly patient with you.” The Purpose Driven Life – What on Earth Am I Here For? By Rick Warren,p.78 The path of mid-life spirituality, as Joyce Rupp - the author of Dear heart Come Home - The Path of Midlife Spirituality calls it, will most likely be a journey in the dark, at times it’s the mystery of the unknown… and this can be scary. God’s assistance and love awaits me there; He's my strength and my light; my fears of the dark will lessen. The more I trust in Him, the more I will feel the assurance of his guidance along the journey. “Mid-life is a time during which things are shifting, moving, taking a different form or shape. The mid-life journey is a gradual unfolding, a time of choices and decision-making, where the person we are choosing to be is eventually revealed to us. This coming home to our true Self is not something we can hurry or force to happen quickly.” Joyce Rupp in Dear Heart Come Home – The Path of Midlife Spirituality” p.16 Each mid-lifer has his or her own obstacle course. We need to overcome our fears, our refusal to accept the truth with patience. We need to reclaim our shadow of repressed emotions, values, incidents etc...accepting the death of our ego illusions that confronts us.My prayer to God As a child of God, created for God’s pleasure, created out of love and not out of obligation, I wish to make every moment of my life - from the moment of my awakening until the moment of shut-eye - a gift of worship. I will make of every moment a gift for my God, a prayer of gratitude and love knowing that He finds joy in my presence, knowing that He is my guidance and my comfort in my journey overcoming struggles. May my life make my God smile! The Sources Dear Heart Come Home - The Path of Midlife Spirituality by Joyce Rupp The Crossroad Publishing Company, 16 Penn Plaza, 481 Eighth Avenue, New York, NY 10001 Copyright 1996 This text printed in 2006. Your Sacred Self - Making the Decision to Be Freeby Wayne W. Dyer Copyright 1995 HarperCollins Publishers. 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022. p. 4 The Purpose Driven Life - What on Earth Am I Here For? by Rick Warren Copyright 2002 Zondervan, Grand Rapids,Michigan, 49530 www.zondervan.com
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