Prayers for Lent, Day 16: Give Up, Take On, Pray

         In a lifestyle so governed by cell phone reminders, social requirements, social media interactions, job intensity, crazy traffic, bad weather, home maintenance, laundry,  grocery shopping, meal providing, school events, exercise, sometimes church, sports tv, Xbox, online shopping, all while wearing headphones for music and streaming videos and all too rarely a full night's sleep ~ it's no wonder we have difficulty turning off all of the external stimulants of life (and perhaps a few imbibed) and finding a truly quiet moment.  How about our children? 

Guardian of my Soul and Spirit,

         The outside noise is filling me on the inside and shutting You out. I'm so easily distracted by all of the demands and opportunities of "outside" life. Please call me back from the brink of spiritual implosion. For today, I will give up 15 minutes of external stimulation and take on sitting alone, quietly, with no agenda but breathing in and breathing out. Yes, I know there's lots of other stuff to do but I will let the thoughts come in and go out.  I will let go of the thoughts that want to stick around for analysis. When the timer goes off to signal the end of the time, I will pray for the willingness and follow-through to look for guidance on meditation and the development of an interior/spiritual life.  I need the space, quiet, freedom, and connection with You to help assuage the craziness of the "outside." I know it will feel awkward at first but maybe if I just try on the 15 minute thing for awhile, it will help me cope better with the other 1,425 minutes in my day.  amen.  



Evelyn Underhill 
English Mystic
1875-1941

          Evelyn Underhill was one of the most widely read authors on Christian mysticism, religion, and spiritual practice in the early years of the 20th Century.  She began her writing with satirical poems moved to novels of heroic mystical journeys, and onto readable treatises on mysticism and The Spiritual Life.  Prominent in the Anglican Church, she was the first woman to give lectures to Anglican clergy as well as the first woman to lead spiritual retreats. Recognized as a theologian, Underhill sought to reconcile the spiritual realm with everyday realities that are in opposition to the Divine but redeemed when revisited with a lens of divine radiance.  Not at all proclaiming reclusiveness as a path to spiritual wholeness she said: "It seems so much easier in these days to live morally than to live beautifully. Lots of us manage to exist for years without ever sinning against society, but we sin against loveliness every hour of the day."

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