Practicing The Presence

Practicing the Presence We all live our lives in the presence of God. In fact, we cannot not live our lives in the presence of God. In Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, C. S. Lewis wrote, “We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito.” Yet we become so preoccupied with the to-do list and so overwhelmed by the pace of life that we forget to look for God sightings in our day. In her book The God Hunt, Karen Mains suggests that practicing the presence is like going on a “God hunt.” It is a way we keep our soul awake to God. And God can jump out at us any time at all and say, “Boo. Here I am.” The question is—are we paying attention? The discipline of practicing the presence is often attached to the seventeenth-century French monk Brother Lawrence. He longed to maintain an ongoing conversation with God no matter what he was doing. In The Practice of the Presence of God he said: I make it my business to rest in His [Christ’s] holy presence which I keep myself in by a habitual, silent, and secret conversation with God. This often causes in me joys and raptures inwardly, and sometimes also outwardly, so great that I am forced to use means to moderate them, and prevent their appearance to others. Practicing the presence is a way of living into a deeper awareness of God’s activity in our lives. Through many small pauses we begin a habit of turning our heart toward God. Through these acts of attention we express our intention to live in union with Christ. Before we pick up the phone we might say, “Lord I am here. Help me listen.” As concerns cross our desk we might hold up a hand and turn the concern over to God before we move on. Breath prayer and the Jesus prayer are other ways of staying present to God in the moment. However, it is important to remember that practicing the presence is more about personal relationship than strategy. Practicing the presence of Christ is simply a way we love him and stay connected to him throughout the day. Reflection Questions Where do your thoughts go when they aren’t focused on work or diverted by amusement? What do these thoughts reveal about your concerns and priorities? How aware are you of the possibility of meeting God during your work day? What is it like for you when God shows up at an unexpected moment? How easy is it for God to get your attention? When are you best able to hear God’s still, small voice? What would it look like for you to intentionally seek deeper intimacy with God? Spiritual Exercises Dedicate some task you are doing to the Lord. Talk to him about the task before you begin and again when you are done. • Do you become any more aware of God in the process? How? Offer all of yourself to God for the day ahead. • Throughout the day ask yourself if you are still living your intention to be in God’s presence. • Do not be discouraged when you stray from your intention to live in his presence; simply begin again. God loves for you to turn your heart back to him. When a song comes to mind during the day, pay attention to it. Could this song be a word of God to you? If it is, tell God what it means to you to have him come near you in this way. Practice the presence in interruptions. The intention to live in the presence of Christ is a way of saying, “I am here.” Throughout your day—perhaps every time you are interrupted—tell God “I am here.” Remind yourself that you are in the presence of Jesus, who had time for people who questioned and interrupted. Remember that some of Jesus’ most gracious miracles occurred when he was interrupted. • What is it like for you to offer yourself to be present to God during interruptions? Spend some time talking to someone who has lived their life attending to the fixed hours of prayer. What can you discover from them about living in a rhythm of prayer that draws you into the presence of Jesus? Decide to stop several times throughout your day to pay attention to God and practice his presence. Set a clock to remind you. Spend five minutes reading Scripture, praying or just being with Jesus. • What is this like for you? Develop some prayers that help you stay awake to God. For instance, find a verse or prayer that is your waking prayer, your in-the-shower prayer, your dressing prayer, your cooking prayer, your driving prayer and so on. Let these prayers lead you into deeper encounters with the God who is there. Resources on Practicing the Presence The God Hunt by Karen Mains Invitation to Presence by Wendy Miller Living Presence by Tilden Edwards Practicing the Presence by Brother Lawrence “People in a hurry never have time for recovery. Their minds have little time to meditate and pray so that problems can be put in perspective. In short, people in our age are showing signs of physiological disintegration because we are living at a pace that is too fast for our bodies.” —Archibald Hart Rest DESIRE to honor God and my human limitations through restful rhythms DEFINITION Entering into rest depends on honoring our God-given limits. By paying attention to the physical, mental and spiritual needs of the body, we learn when and how to rest. SCRIPTURE “My soul finds rest in God alone.” (Psalm 62:1) “Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders.” (Deuteronomy 33:12) “Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.” (Psalm 116:7) PRACTICE INCLUDES setting aside unhurried time to rest and be refreshed rather than work restful activities: curling up by the fireplace, walking on the beach, taking a catnap, calling your parents, talking to your kids, making love to your spouse, going on a picnic setting margins in the day for moments of recollection and rest taking vacations and days off refraining from activities that drain: doing taxes, cleaning closets and so on develop an intentional rhythm of rest and work in your life GOD-GIVEN FRUIT keeping company with Jesus by curbing your addictions to busyness, rush and hurry freedom from the compulsion to take your identity from what you do honoring the way God created you by living a healthy and intentionally rested life resting every day, every week, every month and every year of your life taking regular retreats for silence and time alone with God take time to delight in God, family, the seasons, meals and all good gifts of creation

Practicing The Presence

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