I, Jessica L. Morris, have spent the last 25+ years working in the field of higher education advancement.  My intention when I started in that field was to get a job that would allow me to continue partying and misbehaving as I had while I was in high school and college.  Needless to say, I received a rude awakening when confronted by the realities of being a grown-up.

Fortunately, at the age of 29, I was blessed to find my way to recovery from my main addictions – food and alcohol.  After many years of searching within myself, I finally did the one thing I always knew, deep down inside, that I was meant to do – write a book.  That book was Dewdrops: A Daily Devotional, and was published in October 2014 by Aperture Press.  Writing Dewdrops was the catapult to the next season of my life – attending seminary to learn more about the Higher Power (…who I choose to call God) that had saved me from myself.

While studying the academic side of the Bible and all things theology, I stumbled upon an introductory class called “Individual Spiritual Direction.” Almost immediately, I knew I was going to be adding a Spiritual Direction Certificate to my master’s degree.  Doing so added some extra time to my studies, but I did not care, as studying and practicing spiritual direction had become more fulfilling than anything else in my life.  In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, I successfully defended my master’s thesis: Personal Eschatology: The End of My World as I Know It, and completed all my practice hours and course requirements in spiritual direction. On May 9, 2020, with no pomp and circumstance, I became an official recipient of a master of arts in theological studies and a certificate in spiritual direction from Moravian Theological Seminary (Bethlehem, Pa.).  The sense of accomplishment I felt upon receiving these academic “titles” is far from what I had expected. Instead of being proud of myself, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the path God had chosen for me. Instead of feeling like I now have all the answers, I knew more than ever before how much I do not know!

After six years of part-time studying, I am still working full-time in higher education advancement. While it has never been my dream job, it has supported my needs for more than 25 years, and has offered me opportunities I would not have had otherwise. It also offers me the ability to work part-time as an independent spiritual director, as I start my own “business” in helping others navigate their own spiritual path.

When I created this web page to continue to share my thoughts with others via blog entries and, of course, to continue to advertise my book, Dewdrops, I never imagined where I would be today. Since 2017, this platform has given me an outlet for sharing my unpublished works, as quickly as they appear on the blank pages before me; and now I am able to add space for my practice of spiritual direction.   What a gift to me that God has been showing me the way before I even knew it!  I hope you will peruse my website to find out more about spiritual direction, and/or start following my blog.

Of course, my dream is to continue writing (maybe full-time someday) and practicing spiritual direction. In the meantime, my book is still available for purchase in paperback or on Kindle via Amazon.  Feel free to treat yourself to a copy or buy one to give as a gift to someone else.  The book is for people in recovery or not in recovery.  I hope it helps you to read it as much as it helped me to write it.

You can find Dewdrops on Amazon by clicking on the image below:

August 2022: Interviewed on Evancynical:

E*van*cynical - someone who has been let down by the evangelical church. Join us as we dive deep in to the stories of real, everyday people and how the church has let them down and where they are now in their spiritual journey. Join other "Cynics" at patreon.com/evancynical

Search for Episode 37 - August 30, 2022

Episode 80 – Johnny Walsh Returns! – evancynical's podcast

The man that started it all, Johnny Walsh returns to chat where he is on his spiritual journey since we recorded the very first episode of Evancynical. 

1. Episode 80 – Johnny Walsh Returns! 01:19:09
2. Episode 79 – Josh Scott 01:07:43
3. Episode 78 22:04
4. Episode 77 – Why Did Jesus Die? 01:21:55
5. Episode 76 – Minisode – Am I a Cynic? 12:34

EDUCATION:

• Caron Treatment Centers (Wernersville, PA)
  • Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), 1 unit
• Moravian Theological Seminary (Bethlehem, PA)
  • Master of Arts, Theological Studies
  • Spiritual Direction Certificate
  • Recipient, The Henry Gerdsen Memorial Prize
• Elizabethtown College (Elizabethtown, PA)
  • Bachelor of Arts, English Literature