PRAYING THE TRUTH

 

(few flowers to warm up the spirits)

NEW BOOK BY FR. WILLIAM A. BARRY, SJ

 

In the present issue of LIVING FAITH, a daily devotional,  a new book by Jesuit father, William Barry, is profiled.    Several excerpts from the book are given there and we share some of these thoughts from there for you:

 

I believe that God wants a personal relationship, an adult friendship, with each of us and that prayer is the best way of engaging in that friendship.  By prayer I mean what occurs when I am conscious in some way of God's presence.  So prayer can be as simple as watching a child trying to speak words, looking at sunlight glancing off snow-covered trees, playing with your dog, feeling the wind on your face, hearing birds sing, smelling bacon sizzling in a frying pan, looking at someone you love; all can be prayer if you're aware of God's presence as you take in these experiences. 

 

Here I want to mention some recent experiences that have inspired me to write about this topic:  (we share one here)

For LENT of 2010 I decided to ask God every day:  "WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR OUR FRIENDSHIP?"   Almost as soon as I began to focus on this question,  I felt God's love for me, and then experienced some tangible examples for that love both in prayer and daily life.   I took these experiences as God's response.  Then my prayer took its usual route of distractions about worries or things to do;  when I noticed this and turned back to God, I said something like this,  "There I go again."   God seemed to reply,  "Why don't you talk to me about these distractions."   When I did, I noticed how the concerns evaporated; moreover, I often knew how to approach, in a more positive and less self-absorbed way, what I was going to do or the people I was concerned about.  When I began to talk to God about my distractions, they were no longer distractions;  they became openings to dialogue and greater transparency with God.

after a few more examples, he writes:  So, (in this book), I intend to engage in a conversation with you about what it might mean for your prayer life to engage in a friendship with God, a friendship God wants very much.   To grow in that friendship, you and God will have to tell the truth to each other.   In the process, I believe, you will find yourself slowly transformed.

(This book is called;  PRAYING THE TRUTH,  and is published by Loyola Press. Chicago, IL.)