Posts Tagged ‘prayer’
What is Prayer?
A major question for many people is not the how of prayer, but the what. In their minds, some people may connect prayer with memorized lines they were taught in childhood, or a thing religious leaders said in church worship. But what exactly is prayer? The answer to this question is not the same for…
Read MoreThe Pattern Prayer
“I’ll pray for you,” people often say. But what do they mean by that? What is prayer, anyway? Prayer is a common term, but any room even of like-minded folks picture it in scores of different ways. Little children may imagine saying sentences out loud to an Old Man in the sky; older adults may…
Read MorePrayer and Gratefulness
Prayerfulness is what counts in life, not individual prayers, says Benedictine Brother David Steindl-Rast. In Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer, he says prayer is an attitude of the heart that can transform everything we do. We can’t be saying prayers all the time, of course, but we ought to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17),…
Read MorePrayer for Generous Living
Attributed to St. Ignatius Lord, teach me to be generous, To serve you as you deserve, To give and not to count the cost, To fight and not to heed the wounds, To toil and not to seek for rest, To labour and not to look for any reward, Save that of knowing that…
Read MoreRecovery, Symbols, and Gratitude
It’s been two-plus weeks now since coming home from hip replacement surgery. Needless to say that’s major surgery. I was hugely grateful that my immensely popular surgeon (whose operations are routinely booked several months in advance) slipped me into a cancellation, after a year of increasing pain. Each day is an improvement in minor but…
Read MoreGPS
Printed maps are mostly a thing of the past. These days, many people depend on their “GPS” – Global Positioning Satellite – to get to their destination, particularly if it’s to a place they’ve never been before. A lot of folks depend solely on their GPS for guidance anywhere. So I was intrigued when I…
Read MoreCovenant Prayer by John Wesley
I am no longer my own, but thine. Put me to what thou wilt; rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing; put me to suffering. Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee, exalted for thee or brought low by thee. Let me be full; let me be empty.…
Read MoreJames 5: A Community of Stewards
Daily devotions often bring surprises. Take James, chapter 5, for example, which I encountered recently as if for the very first time. In verses 13-20, James describes the basics of Christian community. Pray in your suffering, he says. Sing songs of praise. Pray for the sick. Confess your sins and pray to be forgiven. Pray…
Read MoreA Wesleyan Perspective on Christian Stewardship
Introduction Stewardship is at the heart of the Wesleyan revival, and John Wesley considered it an integral component of Christian discipleship. Careful reading of Wesley will demonstrate that he had much more to say about the necessity of stewardship in the Christian life than “a heart warming experience.” Stewardship was a consistent theme of his…
Read More