I have been taking September to have some much needed R&R at the beach with friends and family and to work on some other projects. But the beach days are almost over and I’ve been sitting here on the deck overlooking the ocean this afternoon writing some new posts. I will be back with you next week with a new series on Why Cheaters Cheat (hint, it’s not about the sex!) and then gearing up for our next Sex After Betrayal Intensive in October!
In the mean time, below is a prayer that is used at a local Bon Secours Monastery. This prayer can be prayed while walking their labyrinth but I think it is also a great prayer for the process of recovery and healing from betrayal.
God of many paths, I stand before this labyrinth today, metaphor of my journey to you. In the Western world I have been taught that “the shortest distance between two points is a straight line,” and being an impatient person, I am uncomfortable with waiting. I have often modeled my journey to you on the straight line. But you, God of infinite patience, have shown me that there is another path, a curved path. On this path, my anticipation in heightened as I approach the center, only to be led out again to the periphery. But this path more closely resembles life itself. On this path, if I just put one foot in front of the other, it may seem at times as if I am not approaching my goal, while in fact, I am drawing closer all the time. But you are a God of surprises and mystery, and I don’t control the path. The labyrinth is a symbol of my surrender to mystery, trusting, not knowing for certain, that the path which curves in and out again ultimately leads to the center which is You.
– Prayer for a Labyrinth Walk by Jean Sonnenberg, Bon Secours Labyrinth, Marriottsville, Maryland.