Tag: freedom
Finding God in the Gulag: Discovering Freedom in Captivity
by andyotto | Apr 29, 2024 | Essays, The Lighter Side, The Tough Questions | 0
Walter Ciszek, a Jesuit priest, endured solitary confinement and harsh conditions in Soviet prisons for 23 years. His trust in God’s will and his commitment to living a life of love helped him find hope and inner peace.
Read MoreSeeking What I Already Have
by andyotto | Feb 20, 2023 | Awareness, The Tough Questions | 0
We are all seekers, longing for inner peace and purpose. What if we already had what we were seeking all along?
Read MoreConforming God to My Unfreedoms
by andyotto | Sep 26, 2022 | Discernment, The Tough Questions | 2
We sometimes try to conform God to our decisions, rather than the other way around. In his Spiritual Exercises, Ignatius explains how we often make a means an end in itself. We need both internal and external freedom.
Read MoreInner Furniture
Within each of us is “inner furniture” that inhibits our full life in God. They can be past hurts, stereotypes, bad memories, religious wounds, and even our images of God. We find many examples in the Gospels of people who are blind to the layout of their inner rooms.
Read MoreAccepting Impermanence and Experiencing Heaven Now
The things in our life are all passing. They are gifts to help us in our journey to a union with God. When we accept impermanence, we discover heaven on earth. When we let go of ‘shoulds’ and illusions and expectations, we find salvation.
Read MoreIn the Flow
by andyotto | Apr 26, 2021 | Discernment | 0
When we listen to the deep desires of our hearts we are in the flow of God’s love and God’s dream for our lives. But how do we know a desire is ‘of God’?
Read MoreForgiveness is a Means to Freedom
Forgiveness is a way that God seeks to lift the burdens from us that prevent us from the freedom to love and live fully.
Read MoreYou Have No Purpose (In the Way that You Think)
by andyotto | Feb 22, 2021 | Discernment | 4
God’s will for us is not some predetermined blueprint that negates our freedom. Let’s examine how the Ignatian tradition understands discernment and purpose. Hint: There’s a bigger Dream for the world. And Disney Pixar’s Soul helps reminds us of this, too.
Read MoreWhat is Ignatian spirituality?
by andyotto | Feb 8, 2021 | Ignatian Basics | 0
An overview of five important contributions of the Ignatian spiritual tradition.
Read MoreFilling an Empty Well
by andyotto | Jun 8, 2020 | Awareness, Scripture Reflections, The Tough Questions | 1
For many of us these days our energies are focused in fewer places than normal, which means those...
Read MoreGod’s Freeing Boundaries
by andyotto | Feb 17, 2020 | Scripture Reflections | 5
My wife Sarah preaches on how God’s boundaries are ways we are freed from our own destructive devices.
Read MoreThe Dignity of Choice
by andyotto | Apr 1, 2019 | God In All Things | 3
What does a homeless man choosing the colour of his donated gloves and a child choosing which snack to eat have in common? The dignity of choice.
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This guide will offer you a process and framework for discerning a particular decision using the approaches and prayer methods in the Ignatian tradition.