Uphill idealist

Prayer is a nonlocative, nongeographic space that one enters at one's own peril, for it houses God during those few moments of one's presence there, and what is there will most surely change everything that comes into it. Prayer, its opal walls polished to transparency by the centuries of hands that have touched them, is the Tabernacle realized and the wayside chapel utilized. Ever traveling as we travel, moving as we move, prayer grips like home, until the heart belongs nowhere else and the body can scarcely function apart from them both. Prayer is dangerous and the entrance way to wholeness. Phillis Tickle The life of prayer is a land of great adventure and discover, only it's not necessary for you to pack a suitcase or acquire a passport. However, cultivation of a prayerful life is something that many folks find daunting. I have often felt frustrated by the challenge of consistent prayer, for it calls for pause and pausing can be challenging. In the last few months, I...

Lent is a season where out of devotion to God so many of us give something up. Some of the most popular things to give up are: Chocolate, junk food, TV, and Internet surfing. While letting go of habits that are not particularly healthy for us can be good and teach self-discipline, what if during lent we considered adding a habit or practice that would be helpful to our spiritual health and wellness? Last week I finished reading a book called, The Sacred Echo by Margaret Feinberg . The Sacred Echo discusses the challenge and promise of a life devoted to prayer. Margaret tells stories from her own life honestly shares her own challenges in pray and her relationship with God. She suggests that a chronically disrupted prayer life can be symptomatic of our own misdirected perspective and attitude towards God. If we subconsciously perceive God to be angry or vengeful or disinterested, we will not be very likely to pursue a relationship with God. Margaret says this in regard to times of sile...

Image from SamanthaKrieger.com I've been reading and interesting book written by Margaret Feinberg called "The Sacred Echo" . The sub title of the book is, 'Hearing God's voice in every area of your life'. Here is a picture of Margaret and the cover of the book. So may times when I pray, I find myself struggling to focus on what I'm praying about due to the many things that pop into my mind. Things like grocery lists, calls to make, shelves to dust and many other various 'to do's' often time succeed in distracting me from my intended purpose, praying. Margaret's words have a way of comforting and challenging the prayfully distracted individual. She confirms that I'm not the only person on the planet that struggles in focusing on prayer and offers some helpful advice in working out the distractions. Today I had the opportunity to share some conversation and prayer with some high school students and we spent most of the time talking abou...