Week 2: Making space for silence in your life For the first few weeks back in the United States after living in China, I’d lay awake with my eyes wide open unable to settle. When the morning came I’d struggle to rustle out of bed. You may be thinking it must have been jet lag, or because I didn’t sleep till late. Truth be told, it was just too quiet. Too still. The night sounds…
Week 1: Keeping Prayer Simple Routines are part of life. We are creatures of habit. The minute babies are born parents begin a sleep/feed schedule to form a desired habit. As adults, we easily slide into habits that reflect what we value; for better or worse. Wherever we are in the habit of doing, the actual practice of forming habits is also necessary for spiritual discipline and growth. I’m excited to exercise toward a new…
The heart of the matter. You don’t start a workout regime without a goal, teachers don’t start the school year without a syllabus and construction managers don’t begin a building project without blueprints. If we are set out to discover how to live a life of prayer in our bustling daily lives, then we need a goal. The goal of praying from the heart boils down to… …fostering a habitual and constant connection with God…
On the brink of entering the Promised Land after forty years of wandering, God commanded Joshua and the twelve tribes of Israel to collect stones from the Jordan River and to stack them as a reminder for future generations of where they had been and of God’s constant and present provision. I’d like to believe looking back at those old markers kept the Israelites grounded, reminded them of what was true when they were faltering…
I am not much of an adventurist. I don’t take many risks and honestly, I’m scared of more than I’d like to admit. I don’t ski because I fear heights. To ski, you have to jump off the lift to go down the mountain. I can never let go. I’d rather ride the lift around until I accidentally plop into a mound of snow. In summary, anything involving letting go without control is not my…
