In this episode, we talk with Melissa Hendrickson and Chris Westhoff. Together, we facilitate the Sabbath Life School of Spiritual Direction. We talk about our own personal journeys discovering spiritual direction, the ancient work of sacred presence, and why we do our training program the way that we do.

Melissa Hendrickson is certified as a leadership coach through the International Network of  Children’s Ministry and as a spiritual director through The Sabbath Life School of Spiritual Direction.  Melissa is the creator of Holy Formed and desires to walk alongside people as they tell their stories, encounter Jesus, and live flourishing lives. 

Christine Westhoff is the founder and president of The MESH Objective and the author and creator of Reframing the Prophetic book and course. She and her husband, Craig, work with churches throughout the world to build, equip, and strengthen pastors and leaders through spiritual direction, coaching, and teaching.

Learn more about The Sabbath Life School of Spiritual Direction.

Make a booking for a personal retreat at The Abbey of the Heights.

Music: "Joy Birds" by Eric Baird (©2020 Eric Baird), used with permission. 

Welcome to the first episode of The Sabbath Life podcast. For our first episode, we talked with Jackie White to share the story of how the Abbey of the Heights came to be. We share the inspiration that led to opening the Abbey as an urban Christian retreat space in April 2021. Jackie serves as the hospitality coordinator of The Sabbath Life, so when you submit a booking request, she's the one you connect with. She's also the one responsible for all the furnishings, decor, and the visio divina art on the walls from the very beginning. In addition to her work at the Abbey, Jackie is a mom to two emerging teenagers and one rambunctious golden doodle, an Etsy artist, and a trained therapist.

We talked about the conversations between us and the neighbors that moved the Abbey from a crazy idea to a reality, about the crafting of sacred spaces in a bustling downtown neighborhood, and what it is that makes Christian hospitality unique and so needed in this particular cultural moment.

Here's where you can submit a booking request to the Abbey of the Heights through Jackie. And here's where you can visit Jackie's Etsy shop.

Music: "Joy Birds" by Eric Baird (©2020 Eric Baird), used with permission.