Dear Middleway Urban Monastery friends, Whether we felt like entrepreneurs or not in the past two years, most of us had to figure out new ways of doing life. Whether it was work or home life, the same-old-same-old no longer fit, so we adapted. That applies also to our spiritual lives. Perhaps your soul has been awakened to new possibilities and ways of experiencing God. It's worth exploring, and we have a retreat in June that will help you do so. Check the information below and plan to come. Find out more about us and mark your calendars to come to as many of our events as you can! Middleway's Facebook Group
Workshop: Entrepreneurship - a spiritual practice Entrepreneurs are known for taking risks, unearthing new opportunities and creating value in places where it did not exist before. These are also key feature of being a spiritual entrepreneur, those who feel called to discover and release God’s love and creative energy in unique ways in the world. A workshop on June 18, 9:30 a.m.-noon, will explore the traits associated with entrepreneurship, and how these can help us discover creativity and cultivate spiritual resilience. This event highlights findings from the "Tech in Churches during Covid-19" project led by Dr Heidi Campbell, a professor at Texas A&M University, on how pastors learned to adapt to challenges they encountered during the pandemic. Together with her husband Troy Shepherd—an entrepreneur, writer and app designer—they will discuss what it means to be a spiritual entrepreneur, and how such traits can help enhance in our spiritual journey and open our hearts to finding God in unexpected places, especially during times of change. The workshop is free, but please register at https://www.middlewayurbanmonastery.org/register-for-events. Children's, adult programs Thursday evening Centering prayer is this Thursday beginning at 5:30 p.m. Adults have a 30-minute quiet, centering prayer time while children have activities and conversation about their spirituality using a variety of fun tools and topics. Adults and kids both may need this kind of quiet space at that point in Spring Break as the school year winds down, so come and see. A monastery as a destination Ever seek places of peace and comfort when you head out of town? People who visit Bryan-College Station looking for something slightly different than the expected tourist stops now may more easily find that. Middleway, with its peaceful atmosphere and access to prayer space, art supplies, inspiring books, relaxing music and more, is now listed on the Destination Bryan, website at https://www.destinationbryan.com/directory/middleway-urban-monestary/. Thanks, Destination Bryan! Common Threads to focus on exploring new opportunities The question to ponder between now and the next meeting of Common Threads Discussion Group is "How can experiencing different opportunities open us to new awareness of God?" Be watchful of how this question enters into your daily life. The next gathering will be 2 p.m. June 8. Common Threads welcomes you to bring a thread project to work on while we talk, but it isn't required. The main idea is to share each other's spiritual journey through story and active listening. Book club to share favorites at the May meeting In its nearly two years of existence, the Middleway book club has read lots of classic and current books on spirituality. Yet, like most book lovers, we know there are hundreds of possibilities for future reads. This month, rather than pick a book, we want you to come with your ideas of what would be good books to read and discuss as a group. This may form our next list of books, so be sure to pitch in with what has inspired you. The next meeting will be May 24 at 10:30 a.m. This is a hybrid meeting, so people may attend in person or via Zoom. Here's how: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86289918385?pwd=SjcwUW5NMlZnWUtlNFFYd01waVZzUT09 Meeting ID: 862 8991 8385 Passcode: 164675 Tell us what topics, events you would like to explore Our spiritual directors are planning the coming year and would like your input. As you think about where you are with God, what topics would you be interested in learning more about in a discussion group, retreat, workshop or other type of gathering? Let us know at info@middlewayurbanmonastery.org. Spiritual direction offered at Middleway A spiritual director is one who can listen to you with a holy ear and doesn't try to "fix" you with their solutions. Being listened to -- truly listened to -- is powerfully healing. Spiritual directors at Middleway are trained and vetted so we know your story will be heard and kept in confidence. After selecting a spiritual director, a person normally plans to meet with that person monthly for an hour. Our current spiritual directors are listed at https://www.middlewayurbanmonastery.org/spiritual-direction. Let us know if we can help you find a listening soul companion. School for spiritual formation, direction applications due FIND _ School for Spiritual Direction and Formation, hosted by Middleway, is forming its next cohort. Applications are accepted through June 30. Classes, which are held once a month on a Saturday, begin in September. Learn more at www.schoolforspiritualdirection.org. We need you at Middleway Middleway is 100 percent volunteer operated. Come be one who welcomes others into this peaceful place. While there, you'll be able to enjoy the hope, peace and comfort as well. Sign up at https://timecounts.org/middlewaymonastery/. After you've selected the areas you want to volunteer in, you'll be able to click the Opportunities tab, then Assignments, then Available Shifts. Current volunteers, please choose your dates for April. Middleway Urban Monastery's Guide for Life
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