FRIDAY FAVORITES FOR PRAYER AND WRITING

Posted on by Lisa Deam

Welcome back to Friday Favorites! The new year has gotten off to a bit of a rocky start, but we hope you will still find joy in Jesus, in your faith, and in community. We find community partly through listening to one another and sharing our experiences, and with that in mind, we hope you’ll enjoy the roundup of posts below.

Love,

Lisa and Prasanta

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Pray Every Day: Isaiah 10 via Mary DeMuth (on this podcast, Mary prays us through the Bible every day; today, listen to Isaiah 10)

Keep Your Lights Up via Aarik Danielsen (a plea to leave your Christmas lights up for as long as you need)

The Gate of Heaven Is Everywhere via Fred Bahnson (perhaps the contemplative tradition is what’s missing from American Christianity)

Yeats’ The Magi (and a poem of mine) via Malcolm Guite (to mark Epiphany, listen to Malcolm read Yeats’ poem)

On the Streets Where They Lived via Eleanor Parker (the more you learn about the history that’s all around you, the more companionship you will find)

Resolved to Write a Nonfiction Book This Year? Let’s Do the Math! via Ann Kroeker (you can write your book this year)

Saturday Prayer

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant me the fullness of your grace, that I, running to obtain your promises, may become a partaker of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.†

Source: The Divine Hours

Friday Favorites for Prayer and Writing

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

Each Friday I share some of my favorite finds related to praying or writing. If I think it could help you pray or write better, then I’ll include it below.

Do you have someone else’s article or post to share? Join the Contemplative Writers Facebook group, comment on today’s post on my Facebook page, or follow me on Twitter (@edcyzewski) to nominate your favorite articles, blog posts, and books by Thursday at noon each week.

The Contemplative Outreach Newsletter

How You React to Facebook Likes Is Linked to Self-Esteem

5 Incredible Apps to Maximize Your Attention Span

On the Theology of Sleep

3 Office Realities That Make It Nearly Impossible to Focus

Don’t forget! Pray, Write, Grow and The Contemplative Writer are both $.99 right now.

 

Keep the Contemplative Writer Sustainable

The Contemplative writer is ad-free and never shares sponsored content, but it is a lot of work to maintain. We rely on affiliate links from the books we share and the generous donations of our readers. An automated monthly gift as low as $1 per month or a one-time gift of $5 goes a long way to sustaining our mission to provide contemplative prayer resources for our readers.

Learn how your support, through a one-time gift or small monthly gifts can keep this website running: Support Us Today

Featured Article: What Is the True Cost of Technology?

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

Former blogger Andrew Sullivan writes in New York Magazine about the consequences of our society’s addiction to social media, the internet, and technology. He doesn’t mince words, and for the most part, I think he’s right on target.

This article is a long read, but I’ve picked out a few quotes to consider before you go on to read the rest:

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Yes, online and automated life is more efficient, it makes more economic sense, it ends monotony and “wasted” time in the achievement of practical goals. But it denies us the deep satisfaction and pride of workmanship that comes with accomplishing daily tasks well, a denial perhaps felt most acutely by those for whom such tasks are also a livelihood — and an identity.

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Has our enslavement to dopamine — to the instant hits of validation that come with a well-crafted tweet or Snapchat streak — made us happier? I suspect it has simply made us less unhappy, or rather less aware of our unhappiness, and that our phones are merely new and powerful antidepressants of a non-pharmaceutical variety.

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If the churches came to understand that the greatest threat to faith today is not hedonism but distraction, perhaps they might begin to appeal anew to a frazzled digital generation. Christian leaders seem to think that they need more distraction to counter the distraction. Their services have degenerated into emotional spasms, their spaces drowned with light and noise and locked shut throughout the day, when their darkness and silence might actually draw those whose minds and souls have grown web-weary. But the mysticism of Catholic meditation — of the Rosary, of Benediction, or simple contemplative prayer — is a tradition in search of rediscovery. The monasteries — opened up to more lay visitors — could try to answer to the same needs that the booming yoga movement has increasingly met.

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Read the rest here.

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Scripture Meditation: The Fear of the Lord and Contemplative Prayer

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; those who act accordingly have a good understanding; his praise endures forever.” 
Psalm 111:10

While Jesus tells us to not be afraid, and Paul says that God has not given us a spirit of fear, the Psalms have a way of putting us in our place. Those who are wise rightly fear the Lord, even if God does not come to us with thunder and fire.

The gentleness and meekness of Jesus is much like the same approach of Moses, who veiled his face after seeing God’s glory. God does not seek our worship or reverence through intimidation, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t fear the holiness and power of God.

A healthy “fear” of the Lord keeps us humble and helps us see God’s love and mercy with greater clarity and gratitude.

 

For Reflection

meditation-for-september-27

 

Book of the Month: The Way of the Heart

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

Week Four: Finding God in Silence…

way-of-the-heartPerhaps you’ve hoped, prayed, and waited for God to speak or you’ve spoken many words in your pursuit of God. Henrí Nouwen writes that God is present in the silence and that our pursuit of silence may be one of the surest paths to God.

While acknowledging the place of speaking and teaching, Nouwen reminds us that our words can often get us in trouble. James assured us that the tongue is a restless evil that the Desert Fathers and Mothers sought to overcome by “fleeing” the use of many words.

Out of this pursuit of silence, they found freedom to speak less but with greater insight and awareness of God.

 

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“Silence is the way to make solitude a reality. The Desert Fathers praise silence as the safest way to God.”

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“The Word of God is born out of the eternal silence of God, and it is to this Word out of silence that we want to be witnesses.”

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“Speaking gets us involved in the affairs of the world, and it is very hard to be involved without becoming entangled in and polluted by the world.”

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“Sometimes it seems that our many words are more an expression of doubt than of our faith. It is as if we are not sure that God’s Spirit can touch the hearts of people: we have to help him out and, with man words, convince others of his power.”

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“In order to be a ministry in the Name of Jesus, our ministry must also point beyond our words to the unspeakable mystery of God.”

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Read more in The Way of the Heart.

 

Reflection

featured-book-september-26

 

Saturday Prayer

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

Grant that I, Lord, may not be anxious about earthly things, but love things heavenly; and even now, while I am placed among things that are passing away, hold fast to those that shall endure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Source: The Divine Hours

Friday Favorites for Prayer and Writing

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

Each Friday I share some of my favorite finds related to praying or writing. If I think it could help you pray or write better, then I’ll include it below.

Do you have someone else’s article or post to share? Join the Contemplative Writers Facebook group, comment on today’s post on my Facebook page, or follow me on Twitter (@edcyzewski) to nominate your favorite articles, blog posts, and books by Thursday at noon each week.

I Used to Be a Human Being (A reflection on our addiction to information)

Save Your Soul: Stop Writing (A blogger questions the wisdom of a popular author and, regardless of whether you agrees, offers a helpful reflection for us to consider)

Can the Church Rescue Us from our Smartphones? (I could fill a book with all of my disagreements with Russell Moore, but this is a timely reflection)

The Word Changing Magic of Tidying Up Your Writing

 

Keep the Contemplative Writer Sustainable

The Contemplative writer is ad-free and never shares sponsored content, but it is a lot of work to maintain. We rely on affiliate links from the books we share and the generous donations of our readers. An automated monthly gift as low as $1 per month or a one-time gift of $5 goes a long way to sustaining our mission to provide contemplative prayer resources for our readers.

Learn how your support, through a one-time gift or small monthly gifts can keep this website running: Support Us Today

Featured Article: Are You Addicted to Your Screen?

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

The lure of social media, games, and binge-watching a series on Netflix can be one of the most disruptive forces in our pursuit of prayer or writing. The practice of scrolling through social media does not restore our minds or spirits in any way, even it’s enjoyable to catch with a friend.

Most importantly, we can invest significant parts of our weeks in practices that aren’t just preventing us from mindfulness, prayer, writing, or exercise. We could also end up more stressed, sleep-deprived, and distracted than we were to begin with. This article on limiting screen time is directed at parents, but I think it applies to all of us:

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“Rather than making rules based strictly on screen time, figure out what your kids are actually doing when they’re on the computer or their phone, says Devorah Heitner, who founded Raising Digital Natives and is the author of Screenwise: Helping Kids Thrive (and Survive) in Their Digital World.”

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“If you’re concerned about compulsive use, current research suggests that online games seem to be the technology most likely to “potentially result in problems,” says Daria Kuss, a psychologist and member of the International Gaming Research Unit at Nottingham Trent University in the U.K.”

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“One way to help everyone curb overuse is to create tech-free zones, says Rosen. Those can be geographical, like banning technology at the kitchen table or bathroom. Removing smartphones and tablets from the bedroom is also helpful.”

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Read the rest at NPR.

 

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Scripture Meditation: The Freedom in Surrender

Posted on by Ed Cyzewski

“And Mary said,“My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…”
Luke 1:46-47

After hearing news that I suspect no one can fully comprehend, Mary responded with words of praise for God. The word to “magnify” is sometimes translated as extol or praise, as we don’t often speak of “magnifying” someone these days.

Mary saw her role in the salvation plan of God as a reason to praise God. She didn’t have to bear the burden of seeking her own glory, defending her own name, or exalting her own plans.

There is great freedom in our surrender to God’s direction for our lives.

As we limit ourselves to the actions that draw glory to God, we shake away the many ambitions and fears that can drag so many down. May we find the joy of Mary as we surrender ourselves to God’s loving direction.

 

For Reflection

meditation-for-september-20