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| The following are excerpts from the book The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence:
The most effective way Brother Lawrence had for communicating with God was to simply do his ordinary work. He did this obediently, out of pure love of God, purifying it as much as was humanly possible. He believed it was a serious mistake to think of our prayer time as being different from any other. Our actions should unite us with God when we are involved in our daily activities, just as our prayers unite us with Him in our quiet devotions.
He said prayers consisted totally and simply of God’s presence. His soul was resting in God, having lost its awareness of everything but love of Him. When he wasn’t in prayer, he felt practically the same way. Remaining near to God, he praised and blessed Him with all his strength. Because of this, his life was full of continual joy.
We must, Brother Lawrence remarked, trust in God and surrender completely to Him. He will not deceive us. Never tire of doing even the smallest things for Him, because He isn’t impressed so much with the dimensions of our work as with the love in which it is done. We should not be discouraged if we fail in the beginning. This practice will eventually cause our efforts to become a pleasurable habit that we can do without thinking.
He often calls men blind, complaining that we are content with too little. God has infinite treasures to give us, he says. Why should we be satisfied with a brief moment of worship? With such meager devotion, we restrain the flow of God’s abundant grace. If God can find a soul filled with a lively faith, He pours His grace into it in a torrent that, having found an open channel, gushes exuberantly.
Those who have the wind of the Holy Spirit in their souls glide ahead even while they sleep.
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| yo holler. just wanted to remind yall that "cult of sincerity" is out. i just watched it and it's bomb. the humor is witty and the themes are real. my friend, brendan, is one the directors and producer. these homeboys went to nyu film and have made over a hundred short movies, but this is their first full-length feature. there is also charity involved, so mos def check it out for free at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnsLBEuqsYE. peace, homies.
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| i was reprimanded for having "bible study" with one of my prison patients. i'm at the county hospital, which means that some of my patients are county prisoners in the prison section of the hospital. as such, every time i need to examine or speak with these patient, i need a prison guard to unlock the room and stand watch to make sure the patient doesn't harm me, which i appreciate tremendously.
so i've been talking to one of my prison patients, who happens to be muslim, about the koran and the bible, ever since i noticed those two books at his bedside. i'm not sure what he's in prison for, but he has been so kind to me as long as i've had him as a patient. he tells me that the bible never states that jesus is God. so yesterday, as i was updating him on his medical plan, i shared with him john 10:30-33. as i was sharing, the prison guard tells me that my time was up and that this was not "bible study time." i acknowledged him but continued since i was not yet to the part where jesus claimed to be God. before i could get there, the guard told me again and said that that was my final warning. so i left the room. the guard then proceeded to lecture me on how i was only allowed to provide medical treatment and not have bible studies with the patients because they are very busy (which very well could be true, but the floor was quiet at the time and i was in the room no longer than 10 minutes). he was quite angry with me and asked for my name. the next day he reported me to my attending, who told me me to obey the guards. he encouraged me to provide whole-person care, but apparently i can talk about jesus to all patients who desire to, except for the prisoners.
strange.
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| med school is not very conducive to reflection. the curriculum is so fast-paced that we have barely any time to sit back and process things. we see dying and suffering people in waves and we are left with very little time to figure out how we should digest or respond to such situations. ("reflection and processing times" are not a major part of the curriculum.)
and then there's the issue of how it affects your spiritual life. you get so consumed by the busyness that you often forget about the Lord. and even if you realize how far you've strayed, you struggle to find time to deal with the spiritual issues. when you're not running around in the hospital, trying not to screw things up as an idiot med student, you're fervently trying to catch up on studying, which you know, subconsciously, will never happen. quality breaks are far and few between.
but then i hear about Godly men, whose days are far busier than mine, yet they regularly spends hours in prayer to begin each day. and then i realize that busyness for me is just an excuse.
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