Life was moving along as usual . . . the deadlines and pressures of working in the Silicon valley at the end of the Covid pandemic. My life patterns consisted largely of a brief morning time of scripture and devotional reading in the morning, going to work to face the deadlines and pressures one faces in a large Architectural firm, and then going home to unwind by watching various shows on streaming platforms.  This was a M-F repeating pattern punctuated by attending a Sunday worship service, with occasional involvement.  

Then it happened unexpectedly - a cardiac arrest.  The miracle alongside the near-death experience was that it happened at work when our entire office (normally working from home) was present.  After being given CPR by four co-workers, I was kept alive long enough for the paramedics to come and give me 3 shocks and onto the emergency hospital where I remained for 5 days.  After a 4-1/2 month rehab period, I returned to work for about 4 months, but was unexpectedly laid off.  A month later, my car was totaled in an accident, so there I was - with compromised health, no job and no car.  It was at this time that my wife had read about the residency program at Iona House, and encouraged me to consider it.  In a short time it became clear that while 3 doors had closed, the door to Iona House was unexpectedly opening.  I thought to myself, "wait, I'm way closer to retirement than entering some residency program, how can I go live with a group of much younger people than I?"  However it became clear that to not move through this door that God was seemingly opening would be a much higher risk than remaining in my current state.  

After making the decision to become part of the Iona House cohort, in my first week I had strongly sensed the love of God as I took in the beauty of freshly fallen snow just before a small service on the Day of Epiphany.  Also, I had begun to make friends in the residency and community at large which I could see as blossoming into lifelong  friendships. I felt there was a unique opportunity to face challenging relationships back home with the help of others, and also be a help to others dealing with difficult issues.  

The Iona House environment fosters rhythms and practices that offer an opportunity to shape, refresh and awaken a greater awareness of God and others.  The daily rhythms of prayer, work, silence, feeding the animals - even things as mundane as taking out the trash - provide a context for all of life to be lived in a meaningful way in reference to Christ.  The weekly discussions and materials were intellectually and spiritually enlightening, sometimes rather challenging, but always aimed to bring about growth, both individually and for the group.  There is a great opportunity to interact, not only with the Iona residents and staff, but with other guests as well as a wonderful local Christian community that provides a warm, humorous and supportive ecosystem to the residents.  I felt I was part of something very special - and still do.

Life continues to be a journey, post Iona House, with many hardships and challenges.  Practicing some of the spiritual rhythms, like silence and solitude, can help to provide clarity on difficult decisions. Yet as I aim to seek God's presence - which can provide much love and comfort, I have found God also to be a purifying fire, and must be vulnerable enough to confront all the impurities pouring out of my soul.  This is the way of transformation.

For a long time I had been drawn to monastic spirituality. Perhaps it came from reading stories of the ancient desert fathers who seemed to reach some sort of spectacular, almost godlike holiness. Maybe it was the appeal of a simplified life in a world growing ever more complex. Or maybe, in some ways, I simply wanted to run away from my problems. Whatever the mix of motivations, I felt drawn to Iona House because of its ongoing monastic rhythms of an entire way of life centered around Christ.

What I found, though, was not the extraordinary. I found the mundane. The sameness. At times, even boredom. There was nothing spectacular in my own life or in the lives of those around me. My problems did not go away. My sin did not cease. If anything, the stillness and structure exposed more than it hid. The things I once leaned on; status, influence, charisma, held no weight there.

And yet, the only word I can use to describe my time at Iona House is “content.” Somehow, in the midst of the prayers, the quiet work of moving rocks from one place to another, the daily confession of sin before God, the digging of holes, the proclaiming of psalms, the feeding of animals, the feasting with those I live with, work with, and inevitably sin against—only to seek forgiveness again—God was doing something deep within me. He was forming contentment.

I still want to be great, but I think God has begun to reform my imagination around what greatness looks like.  And it’s measured by the slow cultivation of a life oriented toward God, rooted in prayer, humility, self-giving love and service. Iona House has helped reshape that vision for me, not through spectacular moments, but through the quiet faithfulness of a life given to Jesus.

My first encounter with Iona House was during a time of personal and professional loss. After my visit, I left with more hope and certainty of my love for Jesus. During a second stay, I began quietly (and not-so-quietly) contemplating the residency. On paper, my life appeared good: I was living in Oakland, earning a decent salary in brand marketing, serving at my local church, and nurturing my friendships and hobbies. In reality, my life still lacked deep and genuine fulfillment. The residency was an invitation into an adventure with the Lord: to lose my life for the sake of Christ in order to find it.

Through prayer, wise counsel, and tears, I applied and was accepted. Upon arrival, thrill and excitement shook hands with lament and worry over the death of my old way of life. Yet gradually, by being hidden with Christ at Iona House, I stopped dwelling on what I'd given up, and began to see the new things the Lord was doing. To trust the process. Over the course of 5 months, through the rhythm of prayer and work, alongside the friendship of Ryan, Elizabeth, and my fellow residents, I found the deep and genuine fulfillment I’d been longing for. As St. Augustine famously wrote, ‘You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.’

In the end, everything done at Iona House, whether it’s daily prayer, tending to the animals, chopping firewood, raking wood chips, cultivating the garden, building shelves, cooking meals, or showing hospitality to strangers, is not simply a means to an end.

It is a means to the Omega. 

Iona House is built on a semi-monastic / monastic-inspired model echoing the ancient Celtic monasterium. The ongoing communal life at Iona House is made possible by the presence of residents, who inhabit the daily rhythms, offer care and stewardship to the campus, and serve as the lay staff of Iona House. These residents at Iona House are not life-long vowed monks. They are ordinary lay people who desire to spend a season of their lives living into a communal rule of life alongside others.

It depends on a number of factors. There can be as few as two and as many as six. The number of residents is determined by the number of qualified applicants and available suite space on campus.

Ultimately (targeting 2027), we will have NEW Resident House built at the heart of the Abbey which will have room for up to 12.

Residents must be 18 years or older. We are looking for committed Christians who desire to be submitted to the Great Tradition of Christianity - that which has been believed and practiced since the beginning. To be considered, a person must be in good enough health to engage the physical work aspect of the residency and must be emotionally capable of handling life together with other residents. Residents must have the financial capacity to sustain themselves during the Residency without a paying job.

Residents must be willing to submit themselves to living according to a biblical lifestyle echoing Great Tradition of Christianity.

Like everything at Iona House, we offer Residency as a gift, meaning there is no fee. Iona House is a community operating within an economy of generosity and gift giving. As such, we gift the cost of housing (rent, utilities, home insurance, and even some meals, etc.) to Residents. The invitation of Residents is to invest themselves in the mission Iona House.

Residents are expected take financial responsibility for their own food, health insurance, and incidentals. We are working on trying to secure a grant to add additional financial support to those who are Fellows within Residency Program allowing those with financial constraints the opportunity to experience the Residency Program. Stay tuned and pray with us for this to become a reality.

The Iona House Residency is a full time experience. To be considered for the residency program each candidate must be committed to being present and engaged during the full duration of the residency. This means that a person cannot be working, in school, or have other commitments that will intrude on the residency experience. The residents are a vital part of the ongoing life of Iona House.

Each week the Residents are given a personal day (on Monday) in which they are able to take care of personal needs, visit friends / family, and be free from responsibilities at Iona House. In addition to the personal day, Residents have limited-responsibilities (animal feedings, guest check-in) on Sundays.

Residents participate in the life of All Saints Church (allsaintsplacerville.org), which is the community in which most of our staff, leaders, and volunteers worship (and led by Fr. Ryan & Elizabeth Jones).

Please complete the written application in the link below.  You will receive confirmation that your application has been received and we will then review your application and be in touch to discuss next steps.  Because there is much sensitivity involved in running a resident program, the decision of who to invite to experience the residency is a prayerful matter discerned by the cofounders / directors of Iona House. Not everyone who applies is able to be accepted into this program.