Session 3: Encountering God

Icebreakers then opening Prayer. Prayer suggestion: Taise chant:

Come and pray in us, Holy Spirit.
Come and pray in us.
Come and pray in us Holy Spirit
Spirit come, Spirit come.

[Some suggestions to set the mood for prayer and deeper conversation: begin this session after opening prayer with a meditation on where they have encountered God in their lives. Set the mood with music, can also have a slide show of different faces of Christ and/or images of God from paintings slowly fading in and out in the background.]

Begin with giving each student a long strip of paper (butcher paper cut into long strips will do) for a life timeline. Have them note on it major events and stages in their lives. Then begin the meditation, asking them to think back and try to remember:

1. Where and when have you had a special experience of God's Presence in your life? [Some examples usually cited: death of a family member, experience in nature, in church, some kind of trauma or particularly joyful experience, etc.] Recall how you felt, where you were.[Give some time to enter into this journey.]

Then:

2. What has been your vision of/concept of God at different times of your life [ex. as a young child, as a grade schooler, etc.]

After some time of quiet meditation, ask them to begin placing these concepts and experiences in their timeline.

Small groups: share with each other one of your stories of God's presence, or one of your concepts of God. Be prepared as leaders to share one of your experiences to get things started as needed. Allow them to add to their timeline as in sharing, often they will be reminded of a similar experience.

Large group: Any stories you would like to share? Where did you first find God? Later? (list on paper or board) What was your vision of God then?

After break, we will look at how our early experiences of God shape our "God language."

Our God Language

Look back on your timeline. Think about what brought you joy as a child. Was it nature? Music? Art? People? Often what moves us and brings us great joy is our own special "God Language," how God communicates with us. A musician for example might experience something beyond words when playing or listening to music. An artist or poet even, when engaged in a peak creative experience, may not be able to put the experience into words, and may have a sense of the infinite in their work.

Children are naturally contemplative. The contemplative experience is one of WORDESSNESS, a pure experience of God.

AWE, in its purest form, is a gift of the Spirit, and is a contemplative experience. We must become as little children to enter into the kingdom of heaven. To experience God in our lives, we must make room for God, for experiences that bring us to that feeling of awe, to become like we were as little children again. Not childish, but child-like in our openness to the experience of God in our lives. Uncomplicated and trusting in the goodness of God. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.

The Sunset Story

Share in groups or pairs your experience of awe of God in your life. [You may also want to discuss some of the thoughts brought up by the Sunset Story.] "The desire for God is written in the human heart..." (CCC#27)

You may also want to leave some time for journaling here so they can look back on this later as they grow in their experience of God, during their retreat for example.

+Closing prayer. Suggestions: end with a psalm that expresses joy and awe such as Psalms 139, 63, 66, 96, 100 or 104. Or close with a song based on these joyful psalms.