metanoia (Gk. μετάνοια, metánoia) — noun (fem.) a change of mind/heart; repentance—a decisive reorientation of one’s thinking and life toward what is True (and good, and holy, wholesome), going beyond one’s present way of thinking to align with reality as it is. — etymology: from meta- “after, beyond; change” + nous “mind.”

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent (Gk. μετάνοια, metánoia) and believe in the good news.” (Mark 1:15)

Welcome to Joy of Metanoia!

Here, we are a community of like-minded individuals who are oriented around applied spiritual practice, as was called for by the Lord Jesus Christ. What this means is that we encourage one another to make actual, applicable changes in our lives, based around the Truth that we discover through direct experience, learned from scriptural understanding. John 1:39—“Come, and you will see.” What this means is that our focus is not on debating the truth or on deciding which interpretation is right or wrong. Instead, we are focused on learning actual spiritual hypotheses and seeing for ourselves with direct application and practice. Matthew 7:7–8—“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” What are some examples of actual, direct practice that we follow here?

• Abiding in a relationship with God, and allowing change to come from loving contentedness in the present moment, not through sheer willpower or compulsion. Understanding that change comes from nurturement and acceptance, not from resistance to who or what we are. The qualities that you long for are fruit of the spirit, not byproducts of self-improvement. (John 15:4–5, Philippians 2:13, Galatians 5:22–23)
• Paying attention to the here and now with the fullness of our mind, body, and soul – devoting our hearts to it fully. (Matthew 25:13 Mark 13:33, Mark 13:37, Colossians 3:23)
• Continuous renewing of our mind by non-judgmentally seeing and replacing old thoughts, beliefs, and ideas with what we know are wholesome, truthful, and of God. (Philippians 4:8, Romans 12:2, Mark 1:15)
• Aligning our words and our actions to be in accordance with the teachings that we know are good and truthful and helpful, living out a good and wholesome livelihood. (James 1:22, 1 John 3:18, Ephesians 4:25, 1 Thessalonians 4:11–12, James 3:13)
• Intentional quiet time and seclusion with God, baring witness to the contents of one’s own mind and remembering that our identity is not in our thoughts, not in our body, but only in Christ alone, which is not of this world. (Psalm 46:10, Mark 1:35, Psalm 62:1, Psalm 131:2)
• Coming together as a community, lifting one another up, and supporting one another in the greatest and most important journey of our lives, the spiritual journey. (John 15:12–13, John 17:21, John 13:14–15, Matthew 23:8)
• Doing all of the above with an intentional and ongoing sense of joy, of openness, of non-resistance, and of non-judgment – so that we may be made powerful (in God) through our own weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9, James 1:2)

Around this website, we invite you to join along in this journey of actually making a change in your life towards something outside of yourself. We are excited to be with you on this journey!