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Thursday, November 17, 2011

The Practice of Presence


 I’ve begun reading a new book; one that Brenda at It's a Beautiful Life  mentioned recently.

The title alone – The Practice of the Presence of God (by Brother Lawrence) - is what brought me to the purchase, but I’m not completely finished with the introduction and I already KNOW this will be a book I will love and go back to again and again.
From the introduction by Hal M. Helms:
“In his early days in the Religious Life,, he often spent his entire prayer time rejecting stray thoughts and falling back into them again.  In fact, he confessed, he had never been able to pray by a rule like the others, and that after the required time of meditation he would not have been able to say what it was about.”

“His solution to this difficulty was a simple one: he developed the habit of continual conversation with God.  Whether at prayer or at work, it became his practice to focus his heart and mind on God, thanking Him, praising Him, and asking for His grace to do whatever had to be done.” 

As I said, I believe this will a book, I return to again and again.

More about Brother Lawrence:
From Amazon.com:  “A former soldier, French mystic Nicholas Herman, aka BROTHER LAWRENCE (1611?-1691), was converted to a powerful love of God at age 18 by a humble observation of nature, and his [collected] thoughts … remain among the most pure and most powerful adorations of the divine. A lay Carmelite brother, Lawrence spent most of his time in the monastery's kitchens, and his simple, earthy observations on the direct paths to communication with God continue to inspire those seeking a stronger, more potent spirituality today.”

~~~

4 comments:

  1. Sounds like an interesting book, Sandy. Can't wait to read what insights you find within its pages.

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  2. Ahhh... you are in for a treat... I am so glad that Bro. Lawrence, humble man that he was, wrote these things down so that centuries later we could be blessed and moved and drawn nearer the One we love.

    I note you mention my site today. I'm just going to post something and was going to mention you.... how being on the same wavelength is that?

    Blessings to you, dear friend!

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  3. Good morning... I was visiting another blog, and I clicked on a link in her sidebar and found..... ta dah.... a list of quotes by Brother Lawrence. Thought you'd enjoy, so here's the link:

    http://www.practicegodspresence.com/reflections/words-br-lawrence.html

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  4. Thanks for the link Brenda; it's a great resource. I've added it to my sidebar.

    Jane, so far I'm finding this book very, very encouraging and helpful. Hope you do, too!

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