Prayer - Getting Started
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Sometimes we just need a little help to get started. Check out a little reflection to help you begin the journey of PRAYER
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Catholics have used a way of praying with scripture called ‘lectio divina’ (divine reading - or spiritual reading) for ages. It is an easy way to help pray with scripture involving 4 R’s: Reading, Reflecting, Responding, Resting.
Begin SPIRITUAL READING
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Learning how to keep a spiritual journal and do ‘journaling’ is a helpful practice that many people use to become more spiritually aware of listening to God in the journey of life. Try JOURNALING
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Prayer - Going Deeper
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Imaginative Prayer is a way of praying with scripture that uses your senses and helps you get more fully into the scriptures. Try IMAGINATIVE PRAYER
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Centering Prayer is a practice and prayer seeking to become still, quiet and resting with God. Try CENTERING PRAYER
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Sometimes we don’t have words for prayer, so we borrow words from the 150 psalms that help us speak heart to heart with God. Try PRAYING WITH A PSALM
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Discernment Resources
Discernment.
Discernment means ‘sifting’ or ‘separating’.
Learning the art of discernment is helpful because it can help us when we are trying to make good and big life decisions.
We’ve created a few resources to help you. We’ve also made a discernment booklet with seven steps of discernment.
Contact Us and we’ll send you a copy.
Discernment - Getting Started
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Discernment is a process to help you make good choices and decisions. Learning the art of ‘discernment’ is a helpful tool especially when we are trying to make big life decisions.
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Listening to Your Heart is the starting point to paying attention to your deepest desires - where God speaks to us.
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St Ignatius of Loyola was famous for creating rules for discernment. But to begin he advises growing in spiritual awareness - waking up to the movements of consolation and desolation in our everyday life.
Discernment - Going Deeper
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Sometimes it takes time to become clear on what the real issue or decision is. There are too many good options.
This practice helps you recognise discernment practice leads toward two good choices.
Begin Discernment Practice 2: Framing Your Discernment Question
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A good decision is based on both facts and feelings. To do this we need to gather good quality data.
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The practice of weighing up the options pros (for) and cons (against) and bringing this to prayer is a good start but is not the end.
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This practice invites you to pay attention to your emotional responses and noticing feelings of consolation or desolation.
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As St Ignatius of Loyola teaches us: “God writes his hopes and plans for us into our deepest desires.”
This practice focusses on the important place desires in your heart have in the discernment process.
Begin Discernment Practice 6: Discernment using your Hearts Desire
Spiritual Direction Resources
Spiritual Direction.
Spiritual Direction - or Spiritual Companion - is having someone alongside your journey to encourage and help you listen to God’s inspiration and direction in your life.
We’ve created some resources to help you. We’ve also made 6 Reflection Cards to help you to prepare for and reflect on a spiritual direction session.
Contact Us if you want to begin this journey.
Spiritual Direction - Getting Started
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Spiritual Direction is an opportunity to talk about your life and prayer with a spiritual companion.
It often involves a commitment to meet monthly. The directee brings their life, prayer experiences, ups and downs to a spiritual direction session.
Together, the directee and director listen gently with the help of the Holy Spirit and reflect upon the signs of God at work in your life.
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People who seek spiritual direction are often experiencing the desire for something ‘more’.
They want to draw closer to God, find wholeness and a sense of purpose.
Spiritual direction is different from a coffee chat conversation. The focus of a spiritual direction session is on the directee and their relationship with God.
The director is helping the directee to slow down, pause, reflect, listen attentively to God and sense the next steps of faithful response to God.
There are two well known spiritual direction questions that can help a person prepare for spiritual direction.
What do you want?
Where are you hurting?
Both of these questions will lead us to God.
A beginning point can be starting the reflective practice of ‘journaling’.
People often bring something from their practice of journaling to their spiritual direction session for reflection.
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Reflective Exercises for Journaling.
Sometimes we just need a little journaling prompt to get us started. There are some quick prompts in Journaling Practice. Here are some more
Each evening, recall two moments: What today brought me life or joy? What today drained me or felt heavy?
Journaling with a Question: Once a week, write for ten minutes beginning with one question: “Where have I felt most alive this week?” or “What am I resisting?”
Letter to God: Write a letter beginning, “Dear God, this is what my heart holds today…” Do not worry about theology — write as you would to a friend who listens deeply with love.
My Week: Draw a quick time-line of your week. Notice where grace, struggle, and God’s presence were felt — or hidden. What wisdom comes from the week?
Spiritual Direction - Going Deeper
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Prayer is the food we bring to the spiritual direction session to share.
A daily practice of prayer and reflection is a great way to draw closer to God and experience.
Many people think about the idea of having a regular prayer life, but to move from an idea to a reality requires a practiced pattern and habit.
Consider what type of prayer and reflective practice you enjoy the most. Try and create a daily routine 10-15-20 minutes of an enjoyable prayer - reflection practice. Try some of the reflective practices for Prayer on this site and see what works best for you.
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St Ignatius of Loyola was famous for his guidance about discernment and spiritual direction.
He shares a helpful question for those beginning the spiritual direction experience: what is your deepest desire? This is also the same question that Jesus shared with his disciples in the Gospel of John 1,38. Let it kick start your reflective journey with spiritual direction. You can also try Discernment Practice about Desire from the website.
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Sometimes we feel prayer is getting dry or boring and we don’t feel like it anymore.
This becomes a helpful time to reflect if there are any resistances in my life that are causing me to slow down, turn away, avoid looking at my real and true self.
People often begin a journey of discovery reflecting on what they deeply desire, what they are passionate and excited about. This is positive.
As the journey unfolds, the Holy Spirit seeks to uncover our wounds and hurts - not to hurt us but to heal us.
This journey often meets resistance. Don’t be afraid. Be gentle and curious about it and enter real and honest - and even painful prayer time with God.
Vocational Accompaniment Resources
Vocational Accompaniment
Many people feel drawn to Marriage which is great.
For those feeling the invitation and call from God to consecrated single life, religious life in a particular religious family, and priesthood, there can be a real need to find someone to share questions, learn about next steps, and how to apply to a religious community or seminary.
We have a 10 month Vocational Accompaniment reflection program to help you on this journey.
Contact Us and we’ll connect you with helpful people for this journey.
Vocational Accompaniment - Getting Started
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Vocational Accompaniment is a decision to see someone regularly to talk about where you feel God is calling you and preparing for the next step.
Vocational Accompaniment is suited for those who have begun the prayer journey, and are serious about discernment and seeking spiritual guidance.
Feel encouraged to contact us if you are interested in this program which will be available from May 2026.
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If you are feeling called to marriage, you can share these feelings and desires with a spiritual director and be encouraged to find a married person you feel comfortable to share your questions with.
If you are feeling called to Single Life, Religious Life and / or Priesthood, search the internet for Vocations Directors in your Diocese or ask your Parish Priest for contact details.
Click on CONTACT and we can support you.
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Vocational Accompaniment is a program to especially support For Religious Life and Priesthood.
This program involves a journey with specific questions, reflective activities and conversations with someone who is living the life you feel called to join.
The 10 month journey, involving monthly conversations, readings, reflections, retreats and service is under development and will be available from May 2026.
