“I have a difficult time making the time for a second sit.”
This is one of the biggest struggles I hear from people when it comes to their silent prayer practice.
I suggest that your first sit be the first thing you do before you begin your day.
Set your alarm 20 minutes earlier if you must.
This sit prepares you for the day.
You and God partner to begin your day.
Eventually your reservoir runs dry.
You begin to run on fumes.
When is the best time for a second sit?
Let me offer a few suggestions.
I like to sit right before lunch.
During the work day I make my way to my car and sit in the driver’s seat.
If it is a bit chilly, I run the engine for a few minutes, turn off the engine, then begin my sit.
If you are not able to sit before lunch then I suggest a late afternoon sit or even one right before you drive home from work.
I also suggest a sit in the evening after dinner. (Just don’t do it too late if you worry you will fall asleep.)
I especially like an afternoon sit for my second sit.
This sit seems to refresh and restart me.
It reconnects me to God.
It fuels me for the remainder of the day.
(Learn to trust the ebbs and flows of your life to determine when you should take your second sit. )
Do not underestimate the power of a second sit!
P.S. Need help with your second sit. Contact me about my coaching. I might be able to help
Go Further:
Open Mind, Open Heart 20th Anniversary Edition by Thomas Keating and Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening were the first two books I read as I began my Centering Prayer practice.
The Heart of Centering Prayer: Nondual Christianity in Theory and Practice by Cynthia Bourgeault
Be Still and Listen: Experience the Presence of God in Your Life by Amos Smith
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Do you struggle with creating a long-term, sustainable Centering Prayer practice? What is getting in the way? Contact me. I might be able to help.
Check out my newest Centering Prayer video: Self Doubt and Centering Prayer.
I frequently up date my Resource page. Feel free to peruse.
The Gift of Life by Thomas Keating, Mary Anne Best, Susan Rush: This course will explore the gift of life in all its phases, even those of diminishment and death, as phrases of evolution and transformation in and through Christ. It is based on the recent DVD series with Fr. Thomas Keating, The Gift of Life: Death & Dying, Life & Living.
A Simple Immediacy: Desert Wisdom for Advent by Cynthia Bourgeault: The Desert Fathers and Mothers of the fourth and fifth centuries are arguably the first Wisdom School in Christian history. At first in trickles and then in waves, they fled into the deserts of Egypt and Syria to escape the increasing imperialization of the Christian Church and to live in a simple immediacy with the Risen Christ. In the process, they generated an extraordinary body of practical teachings on the spiritual practices underlying this life of deeper awareness and mystical union.
Contemplative Practices: 5 Ways of Consenting to the Divine – Learn methods practiced by Christian mystics for centuries to consent to the action and presence of God within, including Centering Prayer, The Examen, Lectio Divina, Christian Meditation, and the Jesus Prayer.
Drawing from the wisdom of monastic life, modern psychology and best practices in personal productivity, the Monk Manual provides a daily system that will help you find clarity, purpose, wisdom, and peace in the moments that make up your life.
