Contemplative prayer is an interesting thing. It is different. Looking back on the last 10 weeks covering the preparation period and beginning the Spiritual Exercises, I am finding this type of prayer to be very powerful. I came across a very good quote in a book I was reading which helps to describe it. It's a quote from St Isaac the Syrian, a 7th century Christian scholar and ascetic and hermit. He said,
"Stillness is a deliberate denial of the gift of words for the sake of achieving inner silence, in the midst of which a person can hear the presence of God. It is standing unceasingly, silent, and prayerfully before God"
I think this describes the process very well. It is a discipline; and some days it is easier than others. But to deny ourselves words for the sake of hearing God is powerful and I have found that God constantly meets me, and surprises me and there is a deepening awareness of "gift" as I contemplate different aspects of faith.
On Sunday I was leading worship and started by stopping. Encouraging people to take some time to become aware of the God who is already present. Sometimes the problem is that we are absent. It doesn't take too much time to stop and become aware and experience the Father who runs to us as we make our way home.
Thursday 26 November 2009
Saturday 21 November 2009
Cryptic Blog Entry #2
Well last night there were 2 new moons at the same time which was really spooky. As with reading, seeing it, I was briefly swayed towards team Jacob but I just can't sustain it - it is Edward all the way. This is not the feeling in the whole household as I have a near and dear one who is team Jacob, and even more so since last night. The house is divided.
(To make more sense of this you possible need to read Cryptic blog entry 1!)
(To make more sense of this you possible need to read Cryptic blog entry 1!)
Tuesday 17 November 2009
Lessons from Qoheleth
What has become clear is that retreating in daily life can seriously effect one's blogging ability(?)/time(?).
One of the scriptures that I've been reflecting on in the last week or two is in the book of Ecclesiastes; Qoheleth (the Teacher) is reflecting, philosophically more than religiously, on the absurdity of life and how, therefore, we should live. The verses I was particularly drawn to are in chapter 3.
"What do people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end."
It's this tension we live in - God has placed eternity in our hearts - there is the pull to something more - we recognise a connection, some greater calling on us as human beings, but in spite of this we can never understand the full extent of what God is doing. Now I believe in "the prophetic in the every day" - where God underlines something from a common or garden experience that illustrates something that he is speaking to me about. So I had a couple of examples of this in the last week.
The first one - I was at a conference staying in a hotel beside the sea. I was taking some time out before dinner to do my daily contemplative prayer - it was dark but I could still see the waves crashing on the beach - which is something I love - so kept the curtains open. As I was meditating I looked out of the window and saw the moon begin to rise above some clouds on the horizon, a huge, pink, full moon - it was an amazing sight. I heard the invitation to be attentive to this, to watch it unfolding. And as I watched I was aware of people driving cars, I could see the lights fanning out in front of them on the road; people going about their everyday lives, rushing home from work; I was aware that some people were sitting behind the closed curtains of their hotel room or inside their houses, perhaps making dinner, distracted by other things; who weren't aware of the beauty of what was unfolding in the sky above them.
Secondly - a few mornings ago I was driving over the bridge, under a steel grey Scottish, November sky, and in the middle of it was a huge complete rainbow, with a lighter reflected rainbow next to it. The thing was that it was at the back of me and I couldn't glimpse the whole thing - just glances as I drove; a partial view in my wing mirror; another in my rear mirror - but the symbol of God's love and grace was right there - I just couldn't see it all at once.
Two examples of God's work continuing on while we can only see a glimpse or where the cares of the day crowd in on us and we miss God doing something amazing. But the comfort is that God is in control, that the Creator is always at work directing his creation.
One of the scriptures that I've been reflecting on in the last week or two is in the book of Ecclesiastes; Qoheleth (the Teacher) is reflecting, philosophically more than religiously, on the absurdity of life and how, therefore, we should live. The verses I was particularly drawn to are in chapter 3.
"What do people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end."
It's this tension we live in - God has placed eternity in our hearts - there is the pull to something more - we recognise a connection, some greater calling on us as human beings, but in spite of this we can never understand the full extent of what God is doing. Now I believe in "the prophetic in the every day" - where God underlines something from a common or garden experience that illustrates something that he is speaking to me about. So I had a couple of examples of this in the last week.
The first one - I was at a conference staying in a hotel beside the sea. I was taking some time out before dinner to do my daily contemplative prayer - it was dark but I could still see the waves crashing on the beach - which is something I love - so kept the curtains open. As I was meditating I looked out of the window and saw the moon begin to rise above some clouds on the horizon, a huge, pink, full moon - it was an amazing sight. I heard the invitation to be attentive to this, to watch it unfolding. And as I watched I was aware of people driving cars, I could see the lights fanning out in front of them on the road; people going about their everyday lives, rushing home from work; I was aware that some people were sitting behind the closed curtains of their hotel room or inside their houses, perhaps making dinner, distracted by other things; who weren't aware of the beauty of what was unfolding in the sky above them.
Secondly - a few mornings ago I was driving over the bridge, under a steel grey Scottish, November sky, and in the middle of it was a huge complete rainbow, with a lighter reflected rainbow next to it. The thing was that it was at the back of me and I couldn't glimpse the whole thing - just glances as I drove; a partial view in my wing mirror; another in my rear mirror - but the symbol of God's love and grace was right there - I just couldn't see it all at once.
Two examples of God's work continuing on while we can only see a glimpse or where the cares of the day crowd in on us and we miss God doing something amazing. But the comfort is that God is in control, that the Creator is always at work directing his creation.
The passage continues
"So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labour, for these are gifts from God."
I guess that brings us back to the whole attentive, grateful and prayerful thing again - being conscious of the everyday things that we do - working or eating or drinking - God has made even these beautiful and we should do them with pleasure, recognising the bigger work of God which goes on always whether we witness it or not.
Tuesday 3 November 2009
Living the Day Well
Well I have completed my 6 week preparation phase before beginning the Spiritual exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola - (see here if you want more info on what that is but it is basically a retreat in everyday life - a period where you put aside time for around 9 - 12 months to particularly seek God and to contemplate the movement of God in your life). I'm actually now in the first week of the exercises proper and this week the focus is on the mystery that is "sin".
It was really good to recover the discipline of spending time each day in prayerful contemplation of scripture. It is very much praying with what God gifts to you rather than the more familiar prayer as thanks and asking for stuff. Spending time coming to a place of stillness and allowing God to bring something to my attention from the scripture passage and then just staying with that and allowing God to unfold some meaning, revelation, something fresh; is very powerful.
The preparation phase left me in an interesting place. An accumulation of passages left me with a strong sense of slowing down, of wanting to be much more aware of the day. The bible talks about God's mercies being new every morning, Jesus asks us to focus on one day and not to worry about what tomorrow will bring. Each day is a gift and we can live distractedly or attentively. We can live in a blur of activity, eating, driving, at meetings etc. or we can live aware of the food we have and how it tastes, aware of the countryside, the colour of the leaves, the light, the sky, as we drive along. Partly I think it's a result of the stilling and the contemplative nature of the exercises. The "examen" asks us to be aware of the different feelings during the day - to pay attention to what brings life and movement towards God and what brings desolation and a movement away from God. In one of the passages I was praying with, Deuteronomy 30.15-20, God invites us to choose life and the sense I got was very much of God's joy and exuberance and gift. God invites us each day to choose life and whatever situations we face we can ask "What is God's invitation in this?"
So I am seeking to live each day more attentively, more prayerfully and more gratefully. I'll let you know how it goes.
It was really good to recover the discipline of spending time each day in prayerful contemplation of scripture. It is very much praying with what God gifts to you rather than the more familiar prayer as thanks and asking for stuff. Spending time coming to a place of stillness and allowing God to bring something to my attention from the scripture passage and then just staying with that and allowing God to unfold some meaning, revelation, something fresh; is very powerful.
The preparation phase left me in an interesting place. An accumulation of passages left me with a strong sense of slowing down, of wanting to be much more aware of the day. The bible talks about God's mercies being new every morning, Jesus asks us to focus on one day and not to worry about what tomorrow will bring. Each day is a gift and we can live distractedly or attentively. We can live in a blur of activity, eating, driving, at meetings etc. or we can live aware of the food we have and how it tastes, aware of the countryside, the colour of the leaves, the light, the sky, as we drive along. Partly I think it's a result of the stilling and the contemplative nature of the exercises. The "examen" asks us to be aware of the different feelings during the day - to pay attention to what brings life and movement towards God and what brings desolation and a movement away from God. In one of the passages I was praying with, Deuteronomy 30.15-20, God invites us to choose life and the sense I got was very much of God's joy and exuberance and gift. God invites us each day to choose life and whatever situations we face we can ask "What is God's invitation in this?"
So I am seeking to live each day more attentively, more prayerfully and more gratefully. I'll let you know how it goes.
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