A Gregorian Rant
So, how’s your prayer life? How’s your relationship with God? Are you on speaking terms these days? And if so, how? What’s it like? And what does God think of all this?
We often take it for granted that God is listening to us all the time, and then we get frustrated when the thing we “pray for” doesn’t happen the way we think it should. But prayer is far from sending our list to a Celestial Santa Claus waiting to grant our every wish. Prayer is communication. Prayer is not only “telling” but it involves listening too. Just like in a telephone conversation, no one wants to be on the line with someone who talks the whole time and never listens and the same is true with God and our prayers. So, do you ever take time to listen to God?
So, I’ll ask you one again, how’s your prayer life? How is your relationship with God? Are you listening to what God might have to say to you, or are you too busy telling God how to do things? And what might we do to get better?
One thing that people have found to help them in their relationship with God is to meet with another person on a regular basis to talk about what is going on in their prayer life. Although this is called “Spiritual Direction” it is not the best description of what takes place. Far from “directing” the person to do this or do that, the Director listens and makes comments as a Spiritual Friend. In fact, in Celtic Tradition this person is called an Anamcara – a friend of the soul – which is much closer to how the relationship works.
As you may know, I am beginning my final year of a training program in Spiritual Direction. Several of the class members live in the Camarillo – Thousand Oaks area and are glad to serve as an Anamcara, someone to sit with and talk about your relationship with God. I am happy to work with you too as we talk about how you and God are getting along.
Another possibility is the “The Spiritual Journey” a seven month course offered through Stillpoint: the Center for Christian Spirituality. This course supports participants exploring their personal spiritual lives in a small group setting, deeply enriching their relationship with God and recognizing the ways that God is present and working in their lives. A trained facilitator guides members in developing their skills in deep listening and personal discernment. If you would like additional information about this program or Spiritual Direction please speak to me (more information on the last page.)
As with any relationship, the best ones are those we work at and this is true of our relationship with God. These are just a couple of ways that we can work to strengthen our relationship with God and to strive to know God better and listen to what God has in store for us.
Faithfully yours,
