Are you ready to enlarge your capacity to hold
contemplative presence –
to listen, be present and be with life as it really is?
with God, yourself, and others?
If so, please join me, Kim Isaak…
Befriending Your Soul part 1 is a 10-week learning community where we practice body based skills, which are trauma-sensitive ways of being with our whole self, that help us welcome our thoughts, feelings and body sensations with love, kindness, compassion and empathy. The process will we learn is known as Inner Relationship Focusing.
We will go slowly to build safety and trust in our body, Along the way we will discover Love and Grace meeting us just as we are, right where we are. We will find ourselves quite naturally making ourselves at home in God’s love. In the process we notice that we can be changing and transforming through Presence rather than trying hard.
Next learning community begins:
Date: Thursdays, Sept. 5th – Nov. 7, 2024
Time: 1-3 PM Central Time Zone, Daylight Savings Time
Location: ZOOM
Cost: $324 with code: BEFRIENDING324
Please connect with me via email if cost is prohibitive and we can discuss scholarships available.
What will we be learning?
- Trauma sensitive ways to listen to how you carry your thoughts, feelings, emotions, and physical sensations in your body.
- How to simply and relationally connect to the Christ who lives in you.
- How to return to Presence in very practical and easy to practice ways.
- How to deepen in the relational skills of listening and accepting what you notice in your experience which includes your body, mind and spirit in ways that do not overwhelm your nervous system.
- How to come into a compassionate and empathic relationship with everything you find in yourself.
- What grace feels like in your own body.
- How to embrace mystery without feeling overwhelmed or spiritual bypassing.
What difference will this make in your life?
- Living more in touch with the wisdom of your body, soul, mind and emotions.
- Living more at ease in your body and in the world around you.
- Experiencing lasting transformation from the inside out.
- Being more aware of your needs, wants, desires and boundaries.
- Deepening trust of the Spirit who lives in you.
- Increasing authentic, wise love for yourself, God and others.
- Living less reactive to other people’s responses to you and more curious about the way your body is responding.
- Becoming a wise listener and more relaxed companion to your directees, clients, parishioners, friends and family.
Who is this course designed for?
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Those who find it easier to extend compassion to others rather than yourself.
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Those who are weary of trying to fix or change themselves, especially those who are trying to get rid of their shadow self.
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Those who feel stuck in learning to listen to or be with uncomfortable feelings.
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Those wanting to grow in whole body wisdom and discernment.
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Those who feel disconnected from their body yet don’t know where or how to begin to connect with it.
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Those finding themselves reacting in new situations with an outer intensity that doesn’t seem to match the situation.
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Those whose feelings of shame keep popping up in old and new ways.
- Those who are finding it difficult to pray, listen to God, and be honest about their needs.
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Those longing for greater authenticity, love, and freedom in relationship to themselves, God, and others.
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This course is geared towards those who offer care to others: Spiritual Directors, Chaplains, Therapists, Life Coaches, Counselors, Mentors, Pastors, Teachers, Medical Professionals, and First Responders.
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All people who desire to grow in their ability to listen and extend compassion and empathy are invited to join us.
What is the ZOOM learning experience like?
We meet weekly for 2 hours.
Participants come as they are and offer their presence with their screen on as able.
Class size is small 8 – 12 participants.
The pace allows for questions, sharing of experience.
Participants freely decide if they want to share or not share.
We form as a community where inner safety, trust, and authenticity are valued.
We give respectful attention to each person in the group.
Class time involves guided attunements, sharing of experience, in conversation rooms, brief teaching with ample room for questions and curiousity, demonstrations, and shared partnerships in breakout rooms.
We keep in confidence what we hear from others.
We honor the boundary of class start and end times.
How much time will this course take each week?
class time = 2 hours
reading & videos = 15 – 30 min
focusing partnership = 30 – 45 min
What if it is hard for me to feel safe in a group?
Each person will learn to notice what feels safe for them and what feels uncomfortable.
Participants will never be asked to push past safe and they will be empowered to find their own right boundaries and stopping place.
We will respect and honor one another’s boundaries.
There is no forced sharing and it is perfectly fine to share very little.
What if I cannot attend every session live?
Classes will be recorded and shared on our private learning platform. These can be viewed at a later time.
While the content is easy to catch up on, the incremental body learning is what builds the inner capacity to turn towards whatever you find in your body with compassion and empathy. If you miss a class you are strongly encouraged to still find time to meet for focusing partnership.
If you know that you will miss more than 2-3 classes over the 10-week course, you might be better served by taking the course when you can be more present.
When will this course be offered again?
Check back for dates.
Next cohort will likely begin Jan 2nd – Mar 6th, 2025.
Thursdays from 5 – 7 pm Central Time USA
Email Kim if you want to be notified when registration opens.
Can you tell me more about the teacher, Kim Isaak?
- apprenticed in spiritual direction with Rev. Jean Leih, 2002 – 2013
- offering lay leadership to a renewal and retreat ministry in a local church, 2002-2006
- completed Ignatian Exercises, 2003
- retreat facilitator, 2003-current
- assisted Jean Leih in establishing a spiritual direction and formation ministry, Restoration Ministries and serving as a founding board member, 2007-2022
- completed a Master’s in Spiritual Formation and Leadership from Spring Arbor University, 2009-2014
- ongoing spiritual direction supervision, 2009-current
- certificate in spiritual direction from Restoration Ministries, 2013
- licensed for pastoral ministry, 2013
- appointed Executive Director of Restoration Ministries, 2015-2022
- completed Supervision training with Together in the Mystery, 2017-2018
- certified as Centering Prayer teacher through Contemplative Outreach, 2018
- completed 9 month extended unit of Clinical Pastoral Education through Good Samaritan Society with an emphasis on hospice, end of life, and community pastoral care, Robbinsdale, MN, 2019
- introductory trauma healing training from the Center for Mind-Body Healing, 2020
- certification in Inner Relationship Focusing, 2021
- trauma informed integration of the Ignatian Exercises and Polyvagal Theory with Tracy Busse, The Companioing Center, 2022
- completed year-long Untangling parts course work with Ann Weiser Cornell and Barbara McGavin, 2022
- certified Inner Relationship Focusing Teacher and Guide, 2023
- completed Level 1 training in Internal Family Systems with Frank Rogers, 2024
What do past participates have to say about this course?
I am amazed at how the practice of focusing is helping navigate in my daily challenges. Even if I am not in a formal practice, I feel the need to pause a while before responding or reacting to certain situations, particularly meetings or dialogue that is a bit heated. it is helping a lot.
~ Daisy, spiritual director
It is so healing to be witnessed as I stay with parts I have pushed aside for so long. I let myself be with whatever came up. What a helpful way to accept myself right as I am. The body stores so much more than I am aware of.
~ Laurie, spiritual director, centering-prayer teacher
As I continue to Focus, I continue to be surprised by what my body has to say if I take time to listen attentively with unhurried curiosity. It is a storehouse of things I don’t know about myself – yet! Approaching myself from this posture seems to free me to be open to what my body wants me to know. My body is not here to condemn me, but to encourage me to be who God made me to be. I’m grateful to be growing in listening to it.
~ Linda, spiritual director, non-profit leader
One thing that really stood out to me was that our emotions are not as overwhelming when we use our body to sense them and give them space.
~ Debbie, spiritual director, supervisor
In Befriending 1, I learned things I had never even considered before. I tend to want to fix challenges and am very busy. Finding ways to slow down, listen to my body, and accept what it is telling me has led to more self-trust, a deeper awareness of what my body is carrying, less beating myself up, opportunities to experience God and the Holy Spirit in new ways, and more grace for myself and others.
~ Kristi, professor
This class was a game changer for me. I have been living my life for decades in a state of high stress and anxiety. Always feeling like I was going to drop the ball somewhere. I felt frantic most of the time. This class has taught me to slow down. Identify what is going on inside me. To name it. To allow those feelings to “be” and not “do” anything but sit with them and acknowledge them. There is power in that. It will calm you down. I felt seen and heard, it gave me a clearer perspective on things that are going on in my life. I feel like I can handle what life is throwing at me because of the skills I have learned in this class. The skills I have learned took me a long time to feel comfortable with, just sitting still for me is difficult. But I felt like a weight was lifted from me after the class or a weekly call. After 10 weeks, I feel lighter, lfe isn’t weighing me down. I can allow myself to take time to breathe and trust the process. I am now looking ahead with anticipation of what God has in store for me.
~ Amy, business administrator