WeSpace Group — Joshua, Paul, Donna, Dalmo and Cindy

Our lovely and loving group was initiated in September 2021. At the end of our eight-week introduction, five of us continued. For two years we enjoyed an intimacy of sharing in a safe and loving environment, developing an unexpected deep trust, exploring the mystery of communal meditation, and growing in Whole Body Mystical Awakening. One of our original members decided to leave in October 2023, and we have been graced with a new member in February 2024.

We have stayed true to using WBMA as the core of our prayer practice, as there is no other venue that offers this unique and beautiful prayer experience. Recently we have ventured into practicing a collective WBMA meditation – trusting each other and the Divine in a new way of being vulnerable to and with each other.

Our small group shares a deep trust and acceptance of each other, present from the very early days of our coming together. As we near three years together, we have grown as individuals, strengthened by the prayer and trust we share with each other.

Each member wrote about their experience in WeSpace:

Our WeSpace group is a trellis around which my integral spirituality has grown and continues to flourish. I first came to ICN via studying Ken Wilber, whose integral framework for making sense of the world has continued to resonate deeply with me. I began to realize that, in my Christian walk, I had gone through phases of constructing, deconstructing, and reconstructing, but I still longed for a community with whom I could authentically express all the many gifts that come with that faith trajectory. Our WeSpace is where such a community found me!

In this circle of earned trust (and unearned grace), we get to practice speaking forth to each other what Holy Spirit speaks into us. Here I've witnessed what, with my pentecostal background, I could only call miracles, prophecies, words of knowledge, intercession, repentance, healing, adoration, and more!

In 2021, I heard the Spirit's call to plant myself in a more conservative/traditional local church. This has helped me learn from organized religion's unique gifts, lovingly address some of the allergies I had developed toward that traditional stage, and share with my brothers and sisters the fruits God nurtured in me in my post-church/pre-return era. I couldn't have done that if I didn't have a chance to refill my cup with the living waters God pours out in our WeSpace gatherings. Being able to consistently come back to communal integral practices like the Whole Body Mystical Awakening meditations has been crucial in keeping me grounded in the new ways of being and becoming that Jesus has brought to me.

There are drawbacks to having it all happen online. Sometimes I wish I could give my WeSpace friends a big hug, or invite them over for dinner and a long evening of conversation. That's not in the cards for us right now. I'm so grateful, still, that the supreme intelligence of the universe has brought us together, across miles and time zones, to share in each other's walks. — Dalmo Mendonça, Oklahoma

Our WeSpace group has provided an environment for some of the deepest connection I have ever experienced in my 42 years on earth. Our meetings have been a sandbox for mystical playdates with other inner children, a rest stop where we give and receive empathy to kindred spirits on life’s highway, and an anchor that keeps me from drifting too far away from human togetherness. Participating as a vessel in the sharing of divine gifts – messages from God to God through God – is a profound experience that I wish everyone could have! — Paul B, Nebraska

Our WeSpace Group has been life-changing, I have developed deep friendships and grown much deeper in my spiritual practice. I look forward to every meeting and always walk away with a sense of peace after practicing with our Group.
— Joshua Eagleson, Illinois

When I joined a WeSpace group in 2021, I had never heard of Paul Smith, integral theory, nor whole-body mystical awakening. Resonating prayer was uncomfortable but intriguing. Over time simple but profound “synchronicities” started to occur (and continue!), and our group became an accepting, trusting, intimate, supportive presence in my life. The Divine reaches across time, space and generations in such a powerful and real way through the people and processes of ICN. — Cindy P, Virginia

WeSpace Group — Anne S, Annette C, Annette H, Pete A, Shawn G

The WeSpace group we are highlighting this month has been meeting since April, 2020. Five of the original members continue to meet. They share a belief it is “the Spirit’s call to evolve” that brought them together and keeps them together.

In addition to their profound sense of God at work in their midst, there are several characteristics the group has identified that contribute to its longevity. Inclusiveness is an important value: when discussing whether to meet on Memorial Day, one member texted, “I prefer it when we can all be together” and was answered with texts agreeing with her. Flexibility has also been important when the schedule needed to be changed to include everyone. Humility: no one attempts to be “the leader,” leading is shared. Honesty: each member brings their authentic self to their gatherings, no one pretends to be having a good day if they are not.

Each member wrote about their experience in WeSpace:

“I remember the first meeting how nervous I was to join with a group of strangers, including one Paul Smith whose book I admired so much! And, we would be sharing about our spiritual lives… Fast forward several years and I know that the seeds Paul and Luke planted that day, and the love they brought to the process, have produced a rich harvest. For me, our WeSpace group has become a familiar spiritual home, a regular tutorial on how to live a deeper mystical life, a vessel in which we sail together on a pilgrim voyage into the unknown mystery of God. We laugh a lot! We share grief and successes and frustrations. We try to make sense of Reality, and occasionally even make some progress there. We work to uncover the reality of God’s love for us, always present in our lives, but often disguised and hidden. What is next? Who knows? What we have to do to find our is to keep turning up, and keep opening to God, with each other, and with love.” — Pete Armstrong in UK

“I can’t remember what led me to the ICN website but I do remember how thrilled I was when I started reading it. Almost instantly I felt that I had found a home and a group of people who understood and accepted my spiritual Journey. When I learned of the WeSpace groups and was assigned to one it was the answer to prayer and it became the core of my spiritual family over time. The wisdom I have received from Paul, Luke, my WeSpace friends and others is profound and I can’t imagine being separate from ICN. Every time I interact with any part of ICN I have a deeper experience of the holy, of universal goodness and of . support. I only hope that I give back half of what I receive.” — Annette Cook in SC, US

“What brought me to WeSpace – One day I was talking with a friend about my spiritual activities, telling him about this local group Emmaus I was attending. Knowing my desire to connect with like-minded souls, he told me about this organization he’d recently learned about and urged me to check it out. So I did. The first circle of WeSpace sharing grabbed me instantly. Why? Because of the diversity of backgrounds and the breadth of experience participants shared. This was the first time in all the years of wanderings that I landed in a group such diversity united on something intangible and seemingly significantly accepting of differences. Why I stay – I landed in a true safe place to share and question, and who wants to give that up?” — Shawn Gutshall in CA, US

“I am not one to join groups, nor one to stay once I’ve said “yes.” The ICN WeSpace group I’ve been in for four years has completely transformed my biases about the meaning of groups. It has cracked open my heart to the understanding of how healing community is created: deep listening and sharing of spiritual struggles and growth in a circle of non-judgment and loving respect. Our gathering is truly guided by the Spirit – manna from the Divine, a wellspring of wisdom from the Divine Feminine. And yes, we all have great senses of humor – a sign of the living God from my point of view! This group sustains my spirit and I truly love everyone – each a precious gem and gifted in their own unique ways. I am so grateful for our meetings.” — Annette Hulefeld in ILL, US

“I joined a WeSpace group because a dear and trusted friend, Connie Wilson, was one of ICN’s early members. I admired Connie’s spiritual journey and knew mine was not progressing. I had exhausted the trauma treatments offered by the mental health community and was still not at peace. I had not been successful at any of the “quiet mind” meditations I had tried, most likely because of my ADD and disinterest in routines. I found the early meetings challenging. I had several mystical experiences that were important in my life, but I did not have the “open line” to God that Paul, Luke and other members of our group had. I cried a lot in the early sessions and always felt acceptance, support, love and hope for my healing from the beautiful souls in my group. Healing has come and continues. I talked a lot in Catholic school when I wasn’t supposed to and I was in trouble with my teachers and parents. From age 7 I had to go to confession frequently and confess my disobedience. I was quite convinced I would go to hell if I died. Many fears arose from this belief, but the worst outcome was the belief that lodged in my heart -- God did not love me. As an adult I came to believe, in my head at least, that God loved all of God’s creation, including me. But, it was my experience in Whole-Body-Mystical-Awakening that allowed me to believe, in my heart, not just in my head, that God loved me! It has made all the difference in my healing, in my relationships (ask my husband!), in my life. I am indebted to Luke and Paul. And, also to my beloved WeSpace friends. As we have nurtured our connections with one another, we have simultaneously nurtured our connection to God.” — Anne Sheehan in AZ, US