“The Lord is here” - 3 November 2006

 

 

 

I guess if you haven’t figured it out already Brother Lawrence’s ideas of habit and discipline are neither a quick fix nor an easy route to knowing Jesus more fully.  Yet it strikes me that there is something here to learn from…

Firstly, there seems good Biblical reason to take his example seriously, 2 Corinthians 10:5 speaks of “[taking] captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

Secondly, the more we recognise God with us, and enjoy him, the more we will be tuned into him and his agenda and not our own.  So our actions will be less motivated by duty i.e. “I’m a Christian so I ought to do this…” and more by the heart.

It’s about being rather than doing.

We’re often so busy as Christians with meetings and activities but I wonder how much of our energies really go towards carving out the moments just to be?  How much of your energy goes towards that?

As Br Lawrence put it “All things are possible to him who believes, they are less difficult to him who hopes, they are easier to him who loves, and still more easy to him who practices and perseveres in these three values.”

If you want to look more closely at some of Br Lawrence’s writings you can check out:

http://www.ccel.org/ccel/lawrence/practice.toc.html

Throughout today continue to come to God – confess where you’ve dulled your experience of him; seek and enjoy his presence before, during and after your activities.  Ask God to help you develop this pattern day by day.

Finally, I want to leave you with this quote to reflect on:

“The practice of the presence of God strengthens us in hope…  Hope breathes into the will a distrust of things seen, and sets it aflame with the consuming fire of divine love.”