The Freedom of Easter

Posted on April 15, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

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The Glory of Easter

Posted on April 14, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

Don’t let current events dull your heart.
Embrace the glory of Easter.

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The Friendship of Easter

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

Hippolytus of Rome was one of the most prolific writers of the early Church. 
His legacy of words reaches to our own time.  

Because of Christ’s death and resurrection (as Hippolytus points out),
we are friends with God. 

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The Life and Love of Easter

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

Bernard of Clairvaux was part hermit, part zealous reformer.
But he’s most remembered for his eloquent writing.  This prayer
puts deep truth into simple words.

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The Timeless Wisdom of Easter

Posted on April 11, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

This is the beginning of Holy Week. Each day, I’ll share an Easter prayer written by a wiser (and much older!) mind than mine.

We’ll start with Edward Bouverie Pusey, an Anglican clergyman and professor of Hebrew.

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Praying with Others

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

 

The Bible offers this intriguing description of prayer:

Psalm 141:2 (ERV)
Accept my prayer like a gift of burning incense.

Picture your prayers as burning incense, gently wafting up to heaven.

When you’re praying with others — whether you’re the one speaking or the one listening — tend the spark. Don’t let your fire go cold. Keep the incense burning.

 

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Praying and Not Praying

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

 

It’s a prayer meeting.
Someone else is praying aloud.
And all too often, my mind wanders.

 

        • I make a mental grocery list
        • I ponder a problem at work
        • I plan what I’ll wear tomorrow
        • I daydream of sunnier days

I’m not praying. 

James 5:16 (NIV)
The prayer of a righteous person
is powerful and effective.

Not praying? It lacks power and accomplishes next to nothing.

 

 

 

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They’re Praying, I’m Praying

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott


When someone is praying in public, i sometimes listen and add my mental “Amen” to their words.

Other times, their words send me down a different line of thought. It’s like I step into my private prayer closet and have a personal conversation with God.

That’s OK — as long as my heart’s in the right place. God can listen to more than one conversation at the same time.

Psalm 34:15 (ERV)
The Lord watches over those
who do what is right,
and he hears their prayers.

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Personal and Corporate Praying

Posted on April 5, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

 


Jesus said to pray in private.

 


Matthew 6:6 (TLB)
Go away by yourself, all alone,
and shut the door behind you
and pray to your Father secretly.

Godly prayer starts in private. It doesn’t end there.

“Corporate prayer does not dispense us from personal prayer.
The one sustains the other.”
Brother Roger (1915-2005)

 

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Praying in Public

Posted on April 3, 2022 by Shirlee Abbott

 

It’s a big event. You’re asked to say grace for the meal. What happens?

 

 

        • I panic
        • I scribble some notes on a napkin
        • I repeat a memorized prayer

If praying in public puts you in a panic, your focus is on the people around you and not God. You’re turning it into a performance, not a prayer.

Matthew 6:5 (CEV)
When you pray, don’t be like those show-offs who love to stand up and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners. They do this just to look good. 

It’s not about looking good. It’s about God.

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