Centering Prayer?
I've been reading a book called
Sacred Pathways written by Gary Thomas and have thoroughly enjoyed it. Here is a quote of one of the things I have enjoyed from his book:
"The purpose of centering prayer is not to cultivate feelings or create a 'spiritual experience'; it is sumply to rest in and enjoy the blessed presence of God. For those who question this, we need merely to look to the human example. The deepest kind of love is often that wich allows you to rest in another's presence with out saying or doing anything, just enjoy being together. If a husband can feel this way with his wife, or a sister with her sibling, or a mother with her infant, why can't Christians enjoy this with the God?" (p. 199)
What I've enjoyed is how he has gone through different styles of how we worship the Lord. We each have certain ways and things that draw us closer to God and he goes through each one. I found this quote in the chapter on "Contemplatives." I really enjoyed how he connected this with the human experience. When he wrote the part about the parent with a child I totally pictured myself cuddling my youngest daughter this morning and simply enjoying being there with her. Nothing else on my mind but enjoying our presence together. Then I connected that situation with God and imagined how amazing that is to be in that place.
In truth, centering prayer is not something that you do. It's more of something you don't do. You stay focused on God and use words to redirect yourself back to Him. I know that my own mind races too fast to control at times--especially when I need to focus on something specific. It's like that moment in the movie "Up" where the group of dogs see a squirrel and totally lose track of their conversation. We use the word to bring us back to the focus on God's presence because that is why we're praying this way: to simply enjoy the presence of our God, our Lord, our Creator, our Savior, our Spirit. We are simply seeking to be in His presence and allow Him to speak to us and guide our prayers.
It's like seeking a big, warm hug from our Father in Heaven. He created us. He planned for us. He loves us. Like his kiddos, we can seek to be in his presence and just enjoy that.
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| Best friends can hug... |
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| Little kids can hug... |
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| Father and son can hug... |
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| Even monkies can hug! |
Let's go get a hug!
Centering Prayer?
What I've enjoyed is how he has gone through different styles of how we worship the Lord. We each have certain ways and things that draw us closer to God and he goes through each one. I found this quote in the chapter on "Contemplatives." I really enjoyed how he connected this with the human experience. When he wrote the part about the parent with a child I totally pictured myself cuddling my youngest daughter this morning and simply enjoying being there with her. Nothing else on my mind but enjoying our presence together. Then I connected that situation with God and imagined how amazing that is to be in that place.
In truth, centering prayer is not something that you do. It's more of something you don't do. You stay focused on God and use words to redirect yourself back to Him. I know that my own mind races too fast to control at times--especially when I need to focus on something specific. It's like that moment in the movie "Up" where the group of dogs see a squirrel and totally lose track of their conversation. We use the word to bring us back to the focus on God's presence because that is why we're praying this way: to simply enjoy the presence of our God, our Lord, our Creator, our Savior, our Spirit. We are simply seeking to be in His presence and allow Him to speak to us and guide our prayers.
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