STURGIS - A short trip to Sturgis may be the first step in a journey to deeper spirituality.

Visitors to the First United Methodist Church, 1755 Ballpark Road, are greeted by what looks like a flat, large circular design painted on concrete. But the image is much more than that. It is a prayer labyrinth, a tool used since the Fourth century to symbolically represent the pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

"It is actually a very ancient tool for spiritual growth," said the Rev. Keith Nelson. "In the Middle Ages, the prayer labyrinth became especially popular during the time of the Crusades, when Christians did not feel comfortable to travel to Jerusalem for pilgrimage."

He said at that time, the church established what it called pilgrimage cathedrals. "So people would make the trek to that cathedral, and many times at the cathedral they would have a labyrinth. The idea was to walk the labyrinth, symbolizing your journey to Jerusalem, your journey to draw near God."

A prayer labyrinth is a circular path. It's not a maze. It is one path that goes to the center. The same path is followed back out, he said.

"If you look at the labyrinth, you'll notice that at different points you'll be close to the center and then pretty soon you'll be out to the outside of the labyrinth. It takes you back and forth, so it's not that you are just slowly going closer and closer to the center," he said.

Eleanor Richards of Sturgis said walking the labyrinth mirrors life. "We are headed in a direction and we think we are going to get some place, and we have to turn around to find ourselves seeming to go the other way," she said.

Nelson said that the labyrinth has a number of different metaphors and analogies to life, including the path itself.

"In our walk of faith, there are times that you feel quite centered and quite close to God," he said. "And then maybe an hour or two later, or a moment or two later or even a day or two later, suddenly something has happened to you and you feel distant. So there's that back and forth, which the labyrinth portrays very visually and you experience while you walk it.

"Another neat thing about the labyrinth is as you are walking inward, you do have that reality that no matter whether I am closer to the outside, as I keep walking it I am moving to the center. Because that is ultimately where you want to go is at the center in God's presence. That's the beauty for me, the reminder of it. No matter where you are in the journey, just like the journey of life, you keep walking with the intent of drawing closer to God and you wind up in that place."

Nelson said he brought a large plastic labyrinth to the church for members to use during two previous Holy Weeks. The idea to build a permanent labyrinth coincided with building a memorial garden.

"It's just been an open grass area, and a year ago a dream developed of having a little bit more of a memorial garden out here. Sculptor Dale Lamphere, who is a member here, and his brothers wanted to donate a sculpture in honor and memory of their parents," he said. The sculpture is called Christ in the Garden.

Nelson said Richards was a chief motivator in the project. Richards said she learned about labyrinths in the mid-1990s through author and labyrinth pioneer Lauren Artress.

"Then I didn't hear about them much," she said. "In the last number of years, there's been a re-emphasis on labyrinths as a way of connecting with God, a tool for healing, wholeness and centering yourself."

She said Artress has helped with the resurgence of labyrinths. The author's Web site, www.veridatas.net, contains a list of labyrinths around the world and across the country, and the Sturgis church is among them.

This labyrinth was drawn by Paul Campbell and Cathie Bishop, who are facilitators trained by Artress. The 42-foot medieval labyrinth is painted concrete. Labyrinths have been created in other materials as well.

"There is one in Grand Rapids that they mow into the grass," Richards said. "In the winter, they go out and shovel it into the snow." Theirs is a simpler pattern, she said.

Labyrinths are non-denominational and are open to all people. In addition to churches and cathedrals, labyrinths are found in parks, schools, medical facilities, spas and even prisons.

They are used worldwide as a way to quiet the mind, to recover a balance in life and to promote meditation, insight and self-reflection.

Nelson said the labyrinth was dedicated on Sept. 9, and it already has had a number of visitors.

Church member Glea Beck of Sturgis said she walks it regularly. "It really centers you and helps you to get your mind in center," she said. "It's a very good thing."

There are no set hours to walk the labyrinth. As long as the path can be seen, visitors are welcome to walk it. Beck said even the moonlight or the parking lot lights are enough to guide walkers.

The church just celebrated its 125th anniversary in April. "The memorial garden and the labyrinth are just another piece of looking to the future - how we can be of service and help people get connected with God in our community," Nelson said.

Three stages of the labyrinth

There is no right way to walk a labyrinth, but the journey is divided into three stages. It is a single path, but the journey is different for everyone.

1. Entering the labyrinth is the releasing or purgation stage. The experience begins with letting go or releasing worries or concerns as you embark on the path.

2. Reaching the center of the labyrinth is the receiving or illumination stage. This is where insight, clarity and focus are found as you receive a prayerful and meditative state. You may stay in the center as long as you wish.

3. Returning to the outside of the labyrinth is the union stage, where empowerment and ownership take over. You follow the same path out, and you return to your world energized and enriched.