Spiritual Retreat To Overcome Anxiety
Spiritual Retreat Aimed at Reducing Anxiety and Depression
Introduction:
ESV Matthew 14:23 And after hehad dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. Whenevening came, he was there alone,
There are times inour spiritual and life journeys when we need to step out of our regular livesand go to be alone with God. This iswhat a personal spiritual retreat is all about. This particular guide is for a spiritual retreat aimed at reducinganxiety and depression. Use this guideas a gentle coach to keep you on track and make the most of your time. The guide will have many suggestions aboutwhat to do. Choose the things that yoursoul tells you will help you and be led by God’s Spirit in choosing. Sometimes what we need to do will not be theeasiest thing but it can be the most healing activity.
General guidelines
I. Keep to a schedule and routine. It has been proven that have an outline ofactivities and scheduled events during the day will provide a sense of structureand this reduced anxiety. So even thoughthis is a self imposed schedule, you need to commit to it and generally keepit. This will also give your retreat asense of purpose.
Write up yourschedule now
| Ideas of Activities | My chosenActivities | Time |
| Wake up &Prepare for Day | ||
| Prayer &Meditation | ||
| Walk | ||
| Journaling | ||
| Lunch | ||
| Reading & Study | ||
| Walk | ||
| Nap or unstructuredtime | ||
| Prayer &Meditation | ||
| Journaling | ||
| Dinner | ||
| Treating Myself to“Fun” | ||
| My reflections onthe Day | ||
| Time to sleep |
II. Choice ofSpiritual Activities and Exercises to do during your retreat
I. CenteringPrayer is a method of prayer, which prepares us to receive thegift of God's presence, traditionally called contemplativeprayer. It consists of responding to theSpirit of Christ by consenting to God’s presence and action within. It furthersthe development of contemplative prayer by quieting our faculties to cooperatewith the gift of God’s presence.
CenteringPrayer facilitates the movement from more active modes of prayer — verbal,mental or affective prayer — into a receptive prayer of resting in God. Itemphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with God. At the same time, it isa discipline to foster and serve this relationship by a regular, daily practiceof prayer. It is Trinitarian in its source, Christ-centered in its focus, andecclesial in its effects; that is, it builds communities of faith.
| ChristianContemplative Prayer |
ChristianContemplative Prayer is the opening of mind and heart - our whole being - to God, theUltimate Mystery, beyond thoughts, words and emotions, whom we know byfaith is within us, closer than breathing, thinking, feeling and choosing; evencloser than consciousness itself. The root of all prayer is interior trust andcontentment in God. Though we think of prayer as thoughts or feelings expressedin words, this is only one expression. Contemplative Prayer is a prayer ofsilence trust, contentment, and peace, an experience of God’s presence as theground in which our being is rooted, the Source from whom our life emerges atevery moment.
- Sit comfortably with your eyesclosed, relax, and quiet yourself. Remember that there is no condemnation for those who are in ChristJesus. Remember that God loves youmore than you could ever imagine. Breathdeeply and slowly. Allow yourmuscles to relax.
- Choose a sacred word or phrase that best supports your sincere intentionto be in the Lord's presence and open to His divine action within you(i.e. "Jesusis Lord," "God loves me," "Jesus is my Savior,""God is my daddy," "" "God is my peace,""God’s Spirit is in me," ).
- Let these words be gently present asyour symbol of your sincere intention to be in the Lord's presence andopen to His divine action within you. Picture yourself sitting at the Jesus.
- Whenever you become aware of anything(thoughts, feelings, perceptions, images, associations, etc.), simplyreturn to your sacred words, your anchor.
II. – Prayer ofRelease
Phil 4 4Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let yourreasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do notbe anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication withthanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peaceof God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and yourminds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true,whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anythingworthy of praise, think about these things.
The prayer of release canbe done by sitting with our eyes closed and making our hands into fists withour palms down towards the ground. Sitbefore the Lord and imagine the anxieties of your heart flowing through yourarms into you hands. Feel theseanxieties making your hands heavy. Namethem one by one. Then when you havenamed every anxiety slowly and deliberately turn your palms up towards heavenand raise your hands over your head. Nowopen your hands and release these to the Lord. You may want to release each one by name. Lord I release to you …… After this exercise thank the Lord fortaking your anxieties and then go into a season of contemplative prayer.
III. Focus on the Good
At times our lives have overwhelming problems. Sometimes these areas of pain are chronic andunending. Many times we convinceourselves that there is nothing good in our lives. This is never reality. It is important to remember the good that Godhas allowed into our lives when they have been filled with chronic physicaland/or emotional pain.
List every positive event and good experience that hasever occurred in your life. Beobjective. Don’t allow your feeling toblock the reality of things. Let yourcognitive mind review your life and make an objective judgment on the good thathas been in your life.
Once you have this list read it six times. Read it slowly and try to bring back thememories of these events. Allow yourselfto move back into those moments which you judge to be most good. Rest in those moments and allow the feelingsof those times to flood into your heart.
Spend some time in contemplative prayer after you dothis.
Write down any impression you have during thisexercise.
IV. Directed Journaling
Journaling has been proven to reduce stress. It is a matter of making our inner worldcome into the outward world. It is a wayto feel heard by myself and if I journal before the face of God to also feelheard by Him.
There are many different ways to journal. If we have a lot tearing us up inside then itis best to sometimes just go with the “emotional vomit” journal in which wejust dump all of our stuff on paper. Thepurpose of this “emotional vomit” is the same as a physical vomit. It empties the system of all the stuff thatis poisoning us and allows our system to stabilize. We should just write out our thoughts,feeling, and fears. We should not worryabout grammar, style, or if it makes sense. Just let it all out.
We can also journal to answer our own questions
- What should I do right now to make things better?
- What could I do to reduce my anxiety?
- How could I be less depressed?
- What do I believe God would want me to do in thesecircumstances?
- What would my most wise, mature, and stable self tellme to do right now?
- Imagine yourself five years in the future and you meetyour future self. Get a clear picture ofthis in your mind. You find out theyhave successfully resolved the issues you now face. Ask them to tell you, “How did you doit?’ What do they tell you?
Other Questions:
- What can Ilearn from this?
When faced with a challenge or difficulty, see what you can learn from it. - What can Ido today to grow myself?
Even small improvements made each day can have massive impact on our lives overtime. - What shouldI stop doing today?
Just for today, find one bad habit you can commit to stop doing. All bad habitsare eliminated by consciously eliminating them from our lives, one day at atime. - What kind ofimpact do I want to make today?
People who leave lasting legacies choose to impact others positively, every dayof their lives.
- What am Igrateful for today?
Being grateful for what we have, rather than focusing on what we lack, is thekey to well being and abundant living. - How will Imeasure success today?
Are your criteria for success empowering you or setting you up for failure? Setachievable success goals and over time you will build an amazing life. - How do Ichoose to feel today?
Many people allow external circumstances and people to determine how they feel.Taking back control over your feelings gives you a confidence in living that ispriceless.
The key to good journaling is that it is allowing usto know our feelings, our thoughts, and our answers to the issues that face us. It allows us to find the most sane, stable,and spiritual self that lives inside of us.
V. The SerenityPrayer
Stand and pray this prayer six times. First face the north, then the east, then thesouth, then the west, then look down, and finally look up. Do contemplative prayer after this exercise.
| The Serenity Prayer | |
| God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him Forever in the next. Amen.--ReinholdNiebuhrInloving memory of Fr Bertram Griffin -- 1932-2000 Requiescat in Pace |
|
| Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths.Proverbs 3, 5-6 |
VI. Meditation
To Meditate Is to Be
Filled With God By Peaches Lukens
The Hebrew word for meditation is"hagah", meaning "to ponder". In Christian meditation, thegoal is not to empty the mind, but to fill it with God. We take in a smallportion of God's Word slowly as though we were savoring fine food. Letting itbe absorbed into both mind, heart and spirit. The Words of God have power andlife them just as food does. We allow the Holy Spirit of God to nourish us fromwithin and speak to us in a unique way when we slow down, become still andlisten.
Before you begin this practice. Find ashort passage in the bible that you would like to take in on a deeper level.Open your bible to that passage and lay your bible in your lap or before you.Keep a journal and pen nearby.
"Teach me and I will bequiet." Job 6:24
Find a quiet place and position yourselfbefore God in humility and reverence.
"Peace. Be still". Mark 4:39
Our minds are abuzz with thoughts andactivity. We quiet the mind and relax the body in order to better receive God'sWords to us today.
* Sit with your back erect, butcomfortable. Rest your hands in your lap (on top of your open bible if youcan).
* Close your eyes. Breathe in throughyour nose slowly and exhale out your mouth. Do this 3-4 times.
* In your mind, begin repeating thephrase, 'Peace. Be still'. These are the words our Lord used to calm the sea.We will use them to calm the body and mind. Repeat the phrase over and over.When you catch yourself thinking of other things, simply return to repeatingthe phrase. You will meet resistance and hear yourself say that you can'tfocus. Do not fight with yourself. Simply return to the phrase and the mind andbody will soon comply. Stay with this for 20 minutes. You may find it takes 15minutes to quiet yourself. Persevere.
"My Word that goes out from mymouth; it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire andachieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11
The words of God have power and they setout to accomplish something within us. They challenge us to repent, lift us torejoice, prompt us to change. ReceiveGod's personal word to you.
* Read the passage you have chosen outloud and very slowly. Read it through two times. Lean into it. Do not try to graspit or grab it. Let it come to you. Let God come to you. Sit quietly for atleast a full minute.
* Reflect. Read the passage again outloud and slowly. "What are you saying to me Father through thesewords?" Be attentive to any word, image or verse that seems to stand outfrom the others. Note what comes to you in your journal and take time to"ponder" why God has highlighted these particular word(s). Do notrush through this. God has something to impart to you and you don't want tomiss it.
*Respond. Read the passage again evenslower. "How do you want me to respond to what you are saying,Father?". Converse with God within or through journaling about how youfeel led to respond to what He has spoken to you.
* Rest. Read the passage one last time.Now rest in what God and you shared.
Stay with this passage for a week. Cometo it daily and take it in deeper by following the practice listed above. TheWord will change you. If you desire to memorize scripture, this is an effectiveway. By taking the word in slowly and consistently for a week, it will come toyour remembrance almost effortlessly.
Here are a few passages to begin with:
James 1:2-8
2 Corinthians 10:1-6
Hebrews 12:11-12
2 Corinthians 2:14-17
Deuteronomy 30:19-20
The Goal of a Spiritual Retreat
- Tonurture your soul
- Togain perspective
- Togain self knowledge
- Tobe comforted by God’s presence
- Togain God’s wisdom
- Togain God’s power
- Toenjoy the fellowship of Jesus Christ
- Tobe filled with the Holy Spirit
- Togain the strength to repent
- Togain the strength to persevere
- Torest in God
- Toknow God
What did you gain from your spiritualretreat? What theme did God seem toreinforce as you came before His face?