Living Mindfully in Christ: Praying from the Heart
An 8-week class to help you find God in your busy days
Dates: Tuesdays, September 24 to November 12 (a full day retreat October 26)
Day/Time: Tuesdays from 2:00 to 4:00 pm or 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Where: Trinity Episcopal Church, St Charles
Maximum Enrollment: 8 in each class
Minimum Enrollment: 6 in each class
Who: Are you overwhelmed with busyness? Do you worry? Have your prayers become perfunctory or hurried petitions between activities? Do want to learn to manage your worry or create space between activities so you can rest in God’s love? Then this class is for you if you are a teen between 16-19 years or adult of any age, including couples and multi-generational families.
What: This experiential 8-week class will lead you in prayers of the heart and reinforce self-awareness to non-judgmentally manage the thoughts and emotions that keep us trapped in the busyness of everyday life
What to Expect in Class: The class combines mindfulness with cognitive behavioral tools. There are no PowerPoints – just experiencing and guided discussion. Each class devotes the first half hour to discussing your experiences with your daily home practice. The second half hour focuses on learning tools to develop awareness of thoughts and emotions. This is followed by a half hour of meditation. Participants spend the last half hour in guided discussion about what you’ve learned and experienced. Check out the working syllabus.
Companion Text: Participants will be required to read and pray Lectio Divina on
self-selected reflections from The Dance of
Life: Weaving Sorrows and Blessings into One Joyful Step by
Henri Nouwen and edited by Michael Ford. The book is out of print but readily available
on Amazon through third party vendors at a reasonable price. We will teach Lectio in the first session.
Group Leader: As a clinical therapist, Sandra Miller,
MSW, LCSW, has taught meditation and mindfulness to individuals
since 2012. She started leading Mindfulness-Based
Cognitive Therapy groups for people with clinical depression
and anxiety in 2016. She has practiced meditation since 1981, including insight
meditation and centering prayer.
Sandra took semi-retirement in August 2018 to focus on her passion, adapting Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy to help Christians live more fully in the mind of Christ. She piloted this class with two in-person groups at Trinity Episcopal Church in St Charles during Lent this year. She is teaching an online version of the class at MeditationChapel.org, a collaboration of Contemplative Outreach and WCCM, and an in-person class at St Martin’s Episcopal Church. Learn more about how Sandra thinks through her blogs.
What Participants Say About The Class: Wes M. writes, In essence, this class has helped me to practice prayer not as a Christian duty and empty ritual of faith, but rather as a life-affirming relationship with a loving heavenly father who wants to share his presence and healing with me. I have learned to bring both my joy and sorrow, my celebrations and failures, and my fears and deepest longings to him in a contemplative, nonjudgmental way that is more honest and open. Prayer has become a means for actually experiencing his unconditional love and grace in my life. Read more of what participants are saying about the class.
Register Now: Registration is first come, first served. Complete the online brief registration form or get a registration form from the church office.
Cost: The class is free; however, a free will offering will be accepted to help cover costs of transportation, photocopying and other incidentals.
Questions: Email Sandra Miller.