I am excited to share my interview with Nikki Rach.
Nikki is a sojourner along side of you. She shares from her personal walk in hopes that the resources she discovers and creates can be a blessing to you on your own journey. The Bible Meditation Podcasts are an invitation into her daily quiet time. She invites you to come and walk together.
Learn more about Nikki at NikkiRach.com.
Now on to our interview.
Rich:
Tell us a little bit about your podcast: The Bible Meditation Podcast. When did it start? Why did you begin your podcast? What can we expect to hear?
Nikki:
I started the Bible Meditation Podcast on September of 2017 because I was realizing the value of meditation in my spiritual journey but could not find a daily resource with a Christian emphasis. So I started this as a Scripture based version of the HeadSpace App.
Mon- Fri listeners will find a 10-12 minute guided meditation which takes us through a passage of Scripture, using our senses to engage our mind and experience the passage. I am essentially inviting people into my personal spiritual journey in hopes of filling a void.
Saturday podcasts offer a 20-25 minute teaching session about some aspect of the contemplative life. Often this will include interviews with thought leaders on various topics.
Sunday podcasts provide a reading of the passages selected in the Lectionary Reading. This is given as a way to help people prepare their heart and mind for worship.
Rich:
Tell us a little bit about your web site. Your site indicates that it focuses on four inward spiritual disciplines: meditation, prayer, study and fasting.
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Nikki:
My personal journey has been heavily influenced by Richard Foster’s book “Celebration of Discipline”. As I launched the website, I narrowed my focus to the four inward disciplines from that book. There is a table with resources on meditation, prayer, Bible study and fasting. The most active resource is the podcast, however the site offers rich resources and links to other information available online or in print.
Rich:
What are some unexpected fruits that you have experienced as a result of your podcast?
Nikki:
When I first started the podcast, I did not intend to interview people on Saturdays. Instead I was simply gong to teach or share selected passages from books. But as I have begun to include interviews I have had the opportunity to meet some fantastic people offering a unique ministry. It has opened my eyes to a whole new dimension of spirituality I was pretty much unaware of 12 months ago. This adventure has led to a new depth within my own walk.
Rich:
What is prayer? How do you pray?
Nikki:
Prayer is being attentive to the presence of God here, now.
Since the start of Lent, mid-February, I have been practicing Centering Prayer for 20 minutes twice a day. Then after my sit, I journal for about another 10 minutes. This hour a day in silence, being attune to God, listening to God, creating space for the Spirit to work in imperceptible ways has helped to usher in a new level of healing to my life.
Rich:
Do you have any existing or upcoming projects that you wish to share?
Nikki:
I will be offering a contemplative retreat at the beginning of November. This will combine contemplative practices, Lectio Divina resources, Spiritual Direction, and time away at the beach. People can get more information by contacting me through my website: NikkiRach.com
Rich:
What is (are) the best place for people to find you to learn more about you and your work?
Nikki
Website: NikkiRach.com
Facebook Group: Spiritual Disciplines for Today (this is a closed group, but I will add someone who requests to join us)
Twitter: @MeditationBible
Email me directly at: Nikki.Rach@NikkiRach.com
Nikki, Thank you for taking the time to let me interview you.
Contemplative Light offers courses on contemplative practices (Christian Meditation, Centering Prayer, The Examen, Lectio Divina, The Jesus Prayer), the Christian mystics (ancient and current) and spiritual writing. Peruse their wonderful offerings.
Contemplative Discernment by Fr. Carl Arico, Pamela Begeman, Gail Fitzpatrick-Hopler: A contemplative practice of discernment is not about decision-making, although this may be an eventual outcome. Rather, contemplative discernment is receptive in nature, a process of opening to receive clues about who we are in God. We focus on ever-deepening levels of relationship and trust in God’s will for us. We learn how to listen deeply to our motivations and sort through and purify any mixed motivations. As this relationship deepens, we learn to allow the love of God to motivate our actions and manifest through us. We discover what it means to truly pray “not my will, but Thy will.”
Embracing Living: The Welcoming Prayer by Contemplative Outreach, Mary Dwyer, Therese Saulnier, Cherry Haisten, Jim McElroy: The Welcoming Prayer is a method of consenting to God’s presence and action in our physical and emotional reactions to events and situations in daily life. If Centering Prayer (or another daily prayer) is practiced for one hour of the day, the Welcoming Prayer is for the other 23 hours. It is a “letting go” in the present moment, in the midst of the activity of ordinary life.
Practicing the Presence of God by Pamela Begeman, Mary Ann Brussat, Gail Fitzpatrick-Hopler, David Frenette: We live in a world of complexity, fragmentation, noise, and haste. We sometimes find ourselves overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of tasks, appointments, and commitments facing us. How can we experience God in the midst of the busyness, responsibilities, and activities of our daily lives? By practice. By living more in the present moment. By practicing the presence of God in the present moment.
