Your Guide to The Labyrinth Journey

We invite you to take a spiritual journey this weekend. This Labyrinth Journey is a tool to help you connect to the heart of God. 

The labyrinth is symbolic, much like the stations of the cross, or stained glass in cathedrals. It is a 3000 year old ancient tool gone contemporary, a metaphor for life including many twists and turns. It is a journey with one path in and one path out. There are no dead ends.

You hold in your hand a map for the journey which includes instructions for each interactive station. You will be engaging with each of these stations in numeric order. The stations are not lined up numerically, however, as they require that you move about the room, changing directions as you would in an actual labyrinth. 

We do not travel through life alone, nor will we travel this Labyrinth alone. Please be aware of those who travel with you. Be respectful and courteous.

The path has three stages - the 'inward' journey, the centre and the 'outward' journey. The theme of the 'inward' journey is letting go of things which hinder our wholeness and inner approach to God. The centre of the Labyrinth is a space of meditative prayer, peace and Communion. The theme of the 'outward' journey is relationship - with ourselves, with others and with the planet - seen in light of our relationship with God.

Give yourself to your creative side. Silence your inner critic. Take your time. Imagine you are in a museum of your favorite artist. Savor each piece. Allow God to speak. Relax. Don’t try to make things happen. Simply allow them. Pushing too hard or rushing can squelch creativity. Let it bubble up and then let it marinate. 

Wherever you are in your personal journey, allow yourself to be fully present to this moment and to God. Allow Him to reveal Himself to you and to bring you closer to Himself.

Thank you for participating. Enjoy the journey.

#1 THE JOURNEY INWARD 

You are on a journey. A journey towards the centre of the labyrinth and out again. A journey towards God and out again. A journey of receiving and then giving.

Walk with expectancy.

As you journey, reflect on what you see, hear, think. Expect to discover the wonderful, the fantastic. Open your eyes wide, use your senses - this is no senseless journey.

Breathe deeply. Relax. Don't rush; savor the moment.

Be aware of others - we are traveling together. Focus on moving Godwards.

As you move towards the centre of the labyrinth confess and let go of things that hinder your relationship with God.

Shed images or projections of yourself so that you can be real with God. Let go of what other people think you should be, their expectations of you, their projections. As you journey, unmask yourself, peel away the layers. 

Grow by subtraction.

Prepare your inner self - the you of you - to meet with God.

As a seed grows towards the light, allow yourself to do the same. Trust the Creator God with your whole self. Acknowledge who you are, and who you are becoming. Show your amazing colors. Stand tall.

Can you receive from God? You may not like accepting and receiving hospitality, yet God, our host, has so much to offer us and give us: all the riches of a relationship with Him.

Through all the interference and the static of on-screen culture, God's voice is breaking through the airwaves:

"Are you receiving me? Are you receiving me?"

#2 NOISE 

Sound engineers speak of two things - signal and noise.
The signal is the meaningful part of a transmission.
The noise is all the unwanted stuff that interferes with our ability to hear and understand the signal.

Our lives are full of noise - so much information, so many messages, all competing for our attention.
We find it hard to find the signal.

Take some time to identify the noises around you one by one:
...people talking, music, traffic...

As you recognize each one, savor it and then place it to one side.

What are the noises on the inside?
...that song you can't get out of your head; thoughts that won't stop chattering; nagging worries; hurt; anger; things you have to do tomorrow...

Identify them one by one, listen to them and place them to one side.

Let God still the oscilloscope of your soul,
turn the noise off
and give you peace.
Then listen for his signal.

Be still

Be quiet

Listen

Still

BE.

# 3 LETTING GO 

Take some slow deep breaths and relax.
Begin to let go of the tensions in your body.
Feel the pressure and busyness slipping away.

As you draw breath, think of how your body is using oxygen. It is being carried to every part of your body. 

Feel the life it brings.

As you exhale, you breathe out carbon dioxide which you don't need. Trees and plants take this in. They then produce oxygen which sustains you. You are an integral part of God's mysterious and wonderful creation.

In front of you is a pile of stones and a bucket of water.

Take a stone from the pile.

Imagine that all your concerns and worries are held in the stone.

Hold the stone tightly.

Name the concerns and worries in your mind.

Hold the stone over the pool of water.

In your own time, let it go.

Watch your concerns and worries fall.

Imagine them falling into God's lap.

How does it feel to release them?

#4 HURTS 

The world is broken in many ways. We are broken in our relationships with others, God, the planet and ourselves.

What hurtful things have been said to you?
What hurtful things have been done to you?

If you were to write a word or draw a symbol to describe this what would it be?  

You might like to draw it now.

What hurtful things have you said?
What hurtful things have you done?

If you were to write a word or draw a symbol to describe them what would it be?

You might like to draw it now.

Look at your symbols, your drawings.
Do you want to take them with you?
Or do you want to let them go?
"If we confess our sins God is faithful and just and will purify us from all unrighteousness."

Jesus said if you let go of the hurtful things people do to you, so God will also let go of the hurtful things you do. 

This is forgiveness.

Think carefully.
Are you willing to 'let go'?
If you are then throw the symbols in the trash bin.
Let go of them as God lets go of the hurtful things you do.

 You are loved

You are free

You are forgiven

#5 DISTRACTIONS 

In front of you is a map

In the centre is a compass

The needle of the compass points directly north.

Also on the map are some small magnets, some 'false norths'.

Try moving these magnets around the compass.

See what happens...

The 'false norths' pull the needle away from true north.

If God is true north, 

what are the false norths distracting your focus away from God?

As you identify these false norths move them to the edge of the map.

Refocus on true north...

Begin to focus on God

#6 HOLY SPACE 

This is holy space

God is here 

You are welcome

This is your space to be with God
And God's space to be with you

Make yourself at home

Be yourself

Be real

There is no rush

Let God love you

Let God know you

Let God heal you

Let God speak to you

Take the bread and dip it into the juice 

Remember His sacrifice for you 

Receive from God

Commune with God

This is His body, broken for your deliverance.

This is His blood, poured out for your inheritance

#7 OUTWARD JOURNEY 

As you journey out of the labyrinth take your encounter with God with you.
Reflect on how this encounter might affect or change you.

John says that God became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood - think about how you might allow God to be made flesh in your life and in your neighborhood.

Freely, freely you have received. Freely, freely give...

As we meet with God and receive, think about taking the light out into the world and about what it might illuminate.

Even if you are only a bright spark, kindle. Kindle the life and the light you received from the heart of the Son. You might even get fired up. You might blaze a trail, stand up for others, seek out injustice, protest on behalf of the innocent, carry a torch for the unloved, demonstrate for love.

Demonstrate love itself.

Mary said yes and changed the course of history - took a gamble on the divine, flouted the odds, evened the score with darkness, carried the light of the world and allowed it to shine. So that we might see it, and respond.

She had a choice, as we have a choice.

Choose carefully.

Jesus was no robot - he made agonizing choices.
He stood up, stood out and was crucified for it.
“Look where that got Him,” they said. It got Him all the way to us.

So where do we go from here? As the journey seems to be ending, it is only just beginning. We are caught between a world that is passing, and a world that is yet to come. A world of the now, and the not yet...

Someone once spoke of a road less travelled.
Of a narrow path.
Today, we are going on a journey...

#8 SELF 

“You created my inmost being
You knit me together in my mother's womb
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made
Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:13,14

When you look in the mirror what do you see?

Do you, like the psalmist, see someone that is 'fearfully and wonderfully made'?

Does what you see make you want to praise or cringe?

What do you think Jesus meant when he said to love others as we love ourselves?

What is the you of you? What is your true self?

Stop to feel your pulse. Life is running through you. Life is a gift of God.

Feel your fingertips. Look at the pattern on them. Each is unique.

You are unique.
You are made in God's image.
You are loved by the Creator who is proud of you, the created.

Look again at the mirror.

Ask God to show you the real you, 

The you without image.

The you that God sees. 

Draw what He shows you on the paper provided. 

Keep it with you on the journey.

#9 THE WORLD AROUND YOU 

You are out in space. Floating, weightless, calm and secure

Seeing things clearer than ever before

Life, death, birth, turning, Movements and currents
Massive and caught up in the energy of creation

You are looking for signs of ownership but none are visible
You are looking for clues of permanence
But all is slowly changing
To who does this all belong?
Who has the right to claim its power, plunder its resources?

You are out in space, breathless and patient
Awe-struck and motionless in front of this big, blue, bright ball
This great glittering, God-filled gift
This unbounded blessing you can only call
Home

Take and hold in the palm of your hand, a small seed.

This seed contains all the information needed to reproduce its own kind.

Plant the seed in the planter box of soil.

As you do so, feel the moist earthiness of the soil.

Think of the darkness the seed experiences before it can spring to life.

On the brink of creation there is darkness

As you plant the seed you are participating in one of the greatest mysteries of the universe.

You are co-creating with God. 

Together you give birth to life.

#10 OTHERS 

Reflect on the web of relationships within which you live

Who are the other people with whom your life is connected?

Who are the people who have inspired you?

Who has encouraged you?

Who has challenged you and helped you move beyond your own limits?

Who has loved you even when at your worst?

Give thanks for each of them.

Hold them in prayer before God.

#11 IMPRESSION AND INFLUENCE 

In front of you is PlayDough. Please remove it from its container (Note: Please replace and seal when finished.)

Handle it. Shape it. Be mindful of the marks your hands are making.

 Look at what you have molded.

Everywhere you have touched it has left an impression.

What will be left of us when we've left?

When we're gone under down into darkness, the earth and memory?
When our dust and ashes have shaken themselves down and reverted to their original state will their miraculous interlude have leaned on history's rudder?

What will be left of us when we've left?

What traces will we leave?

Will the evidence be compelling?

What will the surviving witnesses say?

How will they know we were here?

Will the future be better because of what we did with our present?

How many breaths make a life?

How long does it take to make a difference? 

When can I start?

What will history say of us when we are history too?

What will be left of us when we've left?

Thank You for 

Journeying the Labyrinth

Carry this experience with you, Ponder it in your heart. 

Let the Holy Spirit continue to reveal His truth to you as you allow what He has begun in this place to marinate in the days and weeks to come. 

When you’re ready, and if you so choose, share your God-stories with others as you allow what He is growing in you to bless those around you.

You are His Masterpiece, a unique, never-to-be-repeated reflection of His Image, created with great destiny and purpose, called to carry His Kingdom on the earth. Journey onward!