Jeff Campbell

The first half of my life was spent searching.

And after decades, I found myself in the last place I ever expected to be: A middle-of-the-road evangelical church. I had always been captivated by the person of Jesus. For a while, it was very good.

Until it wasn't.

A series of difficulties and challenges lead me into a pit of anxiety and depression. The folks within my community did the best they could with where they were at. But it was not helpful to me at that time.

I began to deconstruct my faith. I heard some wise speakers talk about the importance of contemplative activities. I couldn't find much, though. So few of these thinkers were expressing much about how you actually do it. The few that did seemed awfully territorial about the whole affair, or to find out how to do it right, I would need to come up with money that I did not have. As it got more difficult to handle the depression and anxiety, this situation worsened. I could barely manage the every day details of life.

An unlikely series of events landed me at a Rite of Passage retreat in the desert. Here, I encountered God again. I was exposed to meditation up close and personal. I was introduced to the idea that so many mystics saw past the differences between this faith tradition and that one.

As I built my spiritual practice, I slowly got my life back. And I found myself with a living, rich, mature faith. Since that time, I have become passionate about supporting others in building their practice, regardless of financial means. I have done this through small groups, retreats, and the website https://faithingproject.com/