Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. He was transfigured before their eyes. His face became as dazzling as the sun, his clothes as radiant as light.
Matt. 17: 1-3
I receive a daily email message from a Contemplative Outreach online group that I am part of. The audience of this group is those who have an established centering prayer practice. This above verse was part of the message that also included a few paragraphs to reflect upon from Thomas Keating’s book, The Mystery of Christ.
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I immediately began to think about my centering prayer practice. Isn’t this what happens each time I sit with God during my silent prayer practice? Let me explain. Silent prayer is simply a daily practice when I reconnect with God and let my true self shine.
During silent prayer I sit and ever so gently let go of all thoughts, emotions, sensations. I do my best to ever so gently let go of all the barriers and obstacles that are between God and I. When I do this, I sit naked before God. I now let all of God’s presence sit with and shine directly upon me. I let God do whatever God wants to do within me. I let God work in me.
Perhaps this means God will fill me with love, healing, wisdom, confidence, insight, mental or physical strength. Or perhaps God will simply fill me with more “contemplative eyes”. By this I mean, the ability to be more open, the ability to not be so quick to judge things as right versus wrong but to just let things be. To consider new things. To hear an opinion different from mine. To simply say “Yes” to life and all it has to offer. Truthfully, I really do not know. It is not up to me. It is completely up to God. And I am ok with that. That is exciting!
When I get up from my silent sit, I get on with my day. I continue to do my best to ever so gently let go and continue to connect with the presence of God that is all around me. I also do my best to continue to let go and let my true self shine. When I let my true self shine, I reflect back to God that which God has already shined on and in me.
Go Further:
The Mystery of Christ: The Liturgy as Spiritual Experience by Thomas Keating
Intimacy with God: An Introduction to Centering Prayer by Thomas Keating
The Path of Centering Prayer by David Frenette
Healing the Divide: Recovering Christianity’s Mystic Roots by Amos Smith
Be Still and Listen: Experience the Presence of God in Your Life by Amos Smith
One on One Coaching with Rich
Does this sound like you?
“I am bored with my life?”
“I am not doing the things that I want to do in all areas of my life:”
-career, personal, family, community.
I feel unfulfilled, like I am just going through the motions everyday.
I have dreams and goals, but I am afraid to show up and take action on them.
I don’t want years to pass and be disappointed when I look back on my life.
Integrating Centering Prayer practice with your everyday life addresses all of these thoughts.
Do you want to obtain the freedom to become your true self, the person I’m created to be?
How do I create a long lasting and sustainable centering prayer practice?
I am currently taking on clients for Centering Prayer One on One Coaching sessions.
I will work with you to setup a program designed to meet your specific needs.
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Contemplative Discernment by Fr. Carl Arico, Pamela Begeman, Gail Fitzpatrick-Hopler: A contemplative practice of discernment is not about decision-making, although this may be an eventual outcome. Rather, contemplative discernment is receptive in nature, a process of opening to receive clues about who we are in God. We focus on ever-deepening levels of relationship and trust in God’s will for us. We learn how to listen deeply to our motivations and sort through and purify any mixed motivations. As this relationship deepens, we learn to allow the love of God to motivate our actions and manifest through us. We discover what it means to truly pray “not my will, but Thy will.”
Embracing Living: The Welcoming Prayer by Contemplative Outreach, Mary Dwyer, Therese Saulnier, Cherry Haisten, Jim McElroy: The Welcoming Prayer is a method of consenting to God’s presence and action in our physical and emotional reactions to events and situations in daily life. If Centering Prayer (or another daily prayer) is practiced for one hour of the day, the Welcoming Prayer is for the other 23 hours. It is a “letting go” in the present moment, in the midst of the activity of ordinary life.
Practicing the Presence of God by Pamela Begeman, Mary Ann Brussat, Gail Fitzpatrick-Hopler, David Frenette: We live in a world of complexity, fragmentation, noise, and haste. We sometimes find ourselves overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of tasks, appointments, and commitments facing us. How can we experience God in the midst of the busyness, responsibilities, and activities of our daily lives? By practice. By living more in the present moment. By practicing the presence of God in the present moment.
Prepare to be immersed in the 1st Century A.D. context of the life, work, teachings, and actions of Jesus. Check out Simply Jesus by N. T. Wright. It is based on his book Simply Jesus. Enjoy an article I wrote about one of the lectures on the Beatitudes.
This course is a short course based on Prof. N.T. Wright’s latest book, Simply Good News. Tom Wright will guide you through the chapters of his book through videos that suggest what some of the main points are. You will instantly get into the heart of the idea of ‘good news’ as it was understood by the 1st Century writers of the New Testament. You will be brought into their world in order to make more sense of what ‘good news’ means in our world.
Christian Prayer Methods: Prayer is a core Christian practice, but for many, this means “saying prayers” or asking God for various favors. In this course, we will review a variety of methods of prayer that have been used for centuries in Christianity. Whether you’re a beginner who is just learning how to pray, or a more mature Christian who has been at it awhile, this course will offer specific guidance, encouragement and support for practicing several time-tested methods of prayer.