Practice God's Presence during Holy Week
Practice God’s Presence during Holy Week
Palm Sunday – April 5, 2020
On Palm Sunday we remember that Jesus rode into Jerusalem to begin the last week of his life. He must have looked triumphant as people hailed him “King!” It was a reception that could have led to a coronation; yet, the reality did not match the appearance. He was moving not toward an earthly throne, but toward a cross.
Progress in the spiritual life is difficult to measure. The usual tracks and markers don’t work. Appearance doesn’t always match reality. Movement takes place slowly, over time, as we give greater attentiveness to the presence of God within us, to those around us, and to the created world in which we live.
For some people, that attentiveness comes naturally in the created world. Brilliant sunsets, vast sandy beaches, and mountain vistas consistently make it onto our lists of ways we sense our connection to God. They bring us to awe and wonder.
Others find their connection to God through other people or social settings. Laughter and good conversation press us to experience God in delight.
Many people find that certain songs, poems, or works of art inspire their awareness of God’s lyrical magnificence.
Still others experience God when gathered around a Eucharistic Table or singing songs of faith or hearing a stirring exposition of Scripture. Formal religious expressions help them attend more readily to the presence of God.
For all of us, the awareness of God’s presence is stirred by different settings. We are each unique in that way. In whatever way the attentiveness comes, it signals an inner shift that usually happens in underground ways, in ways that nudge and shape our hearts. As we live more deeply into the Spirit, we honor people differently. We do our work with soul. We bring heartfulness to tasks that seem insignificant.
Brother Lawrence was a monk who lived many centuries ago, virtually anonymous, known only for a single brief account of his life. The account gives a short glimpse of his daily life, lived in moment-by-moment awareness of God’s vigilant presence. For Brother Lawrence the spiritual life was distilled down to the essential core elements: Love all you can and experience God’s presence in all moments great and small. By living momently in love, you begin to notice God’s presence in everything, no matter how large or small, significant or mundane.
The gift we receive from Brother Lawrence is especially relevant during these days in which our attention is consumed with the coronavirus, physical distancing, and our anxiety about life. Brother Lawrence shares with us the simple gift of his life lived in the conscious presence of God. His plainly spoken message is clear to us during our days of anxiety and tension: practice the presence of God!
Brother Lawrence said that he was always guided by love. He was never influenced by any other interest, including whether or not he was saved. He was content doing even the smallest chore if he could do it for the love of God. He even found himself quite well off, which he attributed to the fact that he sought only God, and not His gifts. He believed that God is much greater than any of the simple gifts He gives us. Rather than desiring them from Him, he chose to look beyond the gift, hoping to learn more about God Himself. Sometimes he even wished that he could avoid receiving his reward, so that he would have the pleasure of doing something solely for God.
For some years, Brother Lawrence had been quite disturbed because he wasn’t certain that he was saved. Even so, he maintained the attitude that he had become a Christian because he loved the Lord, and so he would continue to love Him, whether he was certain of his salvation or not. This way, he would at least have the earthly pleasure of doing everything he could for the love of God. (Later, this uncertainty about his relationship with God left Brother Lawrence.)
After that, he did not dwell on thoughts of heaven or hell. His life was filled with freedom and rejoicing. Lifting all his sins up to God, he tried to show Him how undeserving of His graces he was. But the Lord continued to bless him.
[Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God, (Springdale, PA: Whitaker House, 1982).]
For Reflection:
o On Palm Sunday we remember that Jesus came into Jerusalem and wept out of his deep love for the people of the city.
o God loves us and gives us gifts. Today I consider the many gifts I’ve received from God. I’m especially aware that God’s gifts surround me during these difficult days of dealing with the coronavirus.
o Brother Lawrence recognized that God is greater than the gifts God gives to us.
Palm Sunday – April 5, 2020
On Palm Sunday we remember that Jesus rode into Jerusalem to begin the last week of his life. He must have looked triumphant as people hailed him “King!” It was a reception that could have led to a coronation; yet, the reality did not match the appearance. He was moving not toward an earthly throne, but toward a cross.
Progress in the spiritual life is difficult to measure. The usual tracks and markers don’t work. Appearance doesn’t always match reality. Movement takes place slowly, over time, as we give greater attentiveness to the presence of God within us, to those around us, and to the created world in which we live.
For some people, that attentiveness comes naturally in the created world. Brilliant sunsets, vast sandy beaches, and mountain vistas consistently make it onto our lists of ways we sense our connection to God. They bring us to awe and wonder.
Others find their connection to God through other people or social settings. Laughter and good conversation press us to experience God in delight.
Many people find that certain songs, poems, or works of art inspire their awareness of God’s lyrical magnificence.
Still others experience God when gathered around a Eucharistic Table or singing songs of faith or hearing a stirring exposition of Scripture. Formal religious expressions help them attend more readily to the presence of God.
For all of us, the awareness of God’s presence is stirred by different settings. We are each unique in that way. In whatever way the attentiveness comes, it signals an inner shift that usually happens in underground ways, in ways that nudge and shape our hearts. As we live more deeply into the Spirit, we honor people differently. We do our work with soul. We bring heartfulness to tasks that seem insignificant.
Brother Lawrence was a monk who lived many centuries ago, virtually anonymous, known only for a single brief account of his life. The account gives a short glimpse of his daily life, lived in moment-by-moment awareness of God’s vigilant presence. For Brother Lawrence the spiritual life was distilled down to the essential core elements: Love all you can and experience God’s presence in all moments great and small. By living momently in love, you begin to notice God’s presence in everything, no matter how large or small, significant or mundane.
The gift we receive from Brother Lawrence is especially relevant during these days in which our attention is consumed with the coronavirus, physical distancing, and our anxiety about life. Brother Lawrence shares with us the simple gift of his life lived in the conscious presence of God. His plainly spoken message is clear to us during our days of anxiety and tension: practice the presence of God!
Brother Lawrence said that he was always guided by love. He was never influenced by any other interest, including whether or not he was saved. He was content doing even the smallest chore if he could do it for the love of God. He even found himself quite well off, which he attributed to the fact that he sought only God, and not His gifts. He believed that God is much greater than any of the simple gifts He gives us. Rather than desiring them from Him, he chose to look beyond the gift, hoping to learn more about God Himself. Sometimes he even wished that he could avoid receiving his reward, so that he would have the pleasure of doing something solely for God.
For some years, Brother Lawrence had been quite disturbed because he wasn’t certain that he was saved. Even so, he maintained the attitude that he had become a Christian because he loved the Lord, and so he would continue to love Him, whether he was certain of his salvation or not. This way, he would at least have the earthly pleasure of doing everything he could for the love of God. (Later, this uncertainty about his relationship with God left Brother Lawrence.)
After that, he did not dwell on thoughts of heaven or hell. His life was filled with freedom and rejoicing. Lifting all his sins up to God, he tried to show Him how undeserving of His graces he was. But the Lord continued to bless him.
[Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God, (Springdale, PA: Whitaker House, 1982).]
For Reflection:
o On Palm Sunday we remember that Jesus came into Jerusalem and wept out of his deep love for the people of the city.
o God loves us and gives us gifts. Today I consider the many gifts I’ve received from God. I’m especially aware that God’s gifts surround me during these difficult days of dealing with the coronavirus.
o Brother Lawrence recognized that God is greater than the gifts God gives to us.
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