Other6 - Where do You Find God? Where Do You Need To Find God?

The Other6 Website is one I stumbled across a few years ago in my on-line travels. It was (and still is) a site run by the Jesuits, an order that has become quite renowned in using current media outreach to proclaim the gospel and at all times. It disappeared for awhile, always with the promise that they were working on a new format and interface and hoped to be back soon.

Imagine my pleasant surprise when I received a tweet a few weeks ago offering a link to their new and improved site!

What is the Other6? From their website;

"Ignatius of Loyola, the 16th-century founder of the Jesuits, devised an “examination of consciousness”—a prayerful review of the day intended to help people recognize where they were finding, or needing to find, God in their lives. Other6 takes the essence of this centuries-old practice of the Examen and adapts it for today’s Internet-driven world by posing two questions: Where have you found God today? and Where do you need to find God today?

Other6, an online ministry of Loyola Press, is Jesuit and Catholic in its inspiration but pushes no particular agenda; it is meant for anyone who seeks God with a sincere heart. Our prayer is that you will find this community a help in your search to draw closer to God."

In my work with the RCIA and more recently, with families preparing their children for Christian Initiation I have used Ignatius' daily examine to help people exercise their "God Eye" that sense we have been gifted with from before we were born that is drawn inexorably to our source of life and love, God. Like any other muscle, it gets flabby and out of shape through lack of use but, with just a little practice, can gift us with the uncanny ability to perceive the workings of our Heavenly Father in every facet of our lives and the lives of others.

Ignatius knew how quickly the heart can forget, how easy it is to loose our vision and our way. The practice of seeking out God's presence not just in church on Sunday, but in every moment of those other 6 days we move through each week, is like oxygen for the soul. It has the great potential to bring us into minute-by-minute contact with our Lord and God and dramatically change the way we carry our selves through all of our days and in all of our relationships.

You will notice we have added a feed on the right-hand side of our blog listing just a few of the ways people from around the world have found, or need to find God at work in their lives. As Lent shifts into Easter and winter gives way to the glory and growth of spring and summer, I encourage you to take time out of your day to stop, look, and listen for the whispering and shouting voice of your God who wants so badly to be a part of your life, and you to be a part of His.

Peace and God Bless