find someone to serve, some opportunity for service above and beyond what is called for in your job or daily work, serving the Church or God’s poor (and not only the materially poor).
I loved reading The Way of the Pilgrim. It helped lead me to contemplative prayer.Aside from the obvious (frequenting the sacraments and regularly examining the conscience) I’d highly suggest the book Way of a Pilgrim, which discusses the use of the Jesus Prayer (it varies, but generally comes out as something along the lines of: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”). That prayer, used for prayer of the heart (contemplation) is absolutely phenomenal! You can pray it anyone, without any aids or having to keep track of anything. All you have to do is bask in the glory of our risen savior!
After that I’d suggest readings by one of the great saints with whom God has chosen to bless us. Anything from the desert fathers of the early Church to the early Western monastics (remember, Roman Rite Catholics and Eastern Rite Catholics - and Orthodox Christians - can be helpful to each other due to our shared beginnings) and recent monastics and popes can be extremely useful. The most important thing is to learn how to pray, how to open your heart to Christ, and how to let him lead you. It’s not about learning how to do something, it’s about learning how to let Christ do something in and through you, by the power of His grace.
In Christ,
Stephen
). They have lots of great tips!Make a challenge to them to begin daily prayer. Somehow figure a way to hold them accountable.
This is true, but I just wanted to add - not disagreeing with you at all, just adding - I heard some desert fathers said that even the Jesus prayer can be harmful if not prayed with humility and if the person cares too much about contemplation and not enough about simply serving God. If you say it only once a day, that doesn’t really apply. But if you say it 100 times a day, like a Rosary, it can even lead to spiritual delusion if the person is not watching their pride and sinfulness. Basically all I’m saying is, prayer is definitely a big part of growing spiritually but it mustn’t be something separate from our lives. Which I’m sure we’ll all agree withAside from the obvious (frequenting the sacraments and regularly examining the conscience) I’d highly suggest the book Way of a Pilgrim, which discusses the use of the Jesus Prayer (it varies, but generally comes out as something along the lines of: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”). That prayer, used for prayer of the heart (contemplation) is absolutely phenomenal! You can pray it anyone, without any aids or having to keep track of anything. All you have to do is bask in the glory of our risen savior!
After that I’d suggest readings by one of the great saints with whom God has chosen to bless us. Anything from the desert fathers of the early Church to the early Western monastics (remember, Roman Rite Catholics and Eastern Rite Catholics - and Orthodox Christians - can be helpful to each other due to our shared beginnings) and recent monastics and popes can be extremely useful. The most important thing is to learn how to pray, how to open your heart to Christ, and how to let him lead you. It’s not about learning how to do something, it’s about learning how to let Christ do something in and through you, by the power of His grace.
In Christ,
Stephen
That’s the tricky part, keeping in focused on Him! I know I can find myself thinking “Hey, I’m doing pretty good with this prayer thing,” and then only after feeling proud do I realize, “All good things come from God.” It’s hard to keep humble, but walking the walk is of ultimate importance. Prayer helps you keep focused on Him, but it’s only half the battle of a Christian life - as opposed to “knowing,” which is half the battle of a G.I. Joe life, hehe.This is true, but I just wanted to add - not disagreeing with you at all, just adding - I heard some desert fathers said that even the Jesus prayer can be harmful if not prayed with humility and if the person cares too much about contemplation and not enough about simply serving God. If you say it only once a day, that doesn’t really apply. But if you say it 100 times a day, like a Rosary, it can even lead to spiritual delusion if the person is not watching their pride and sinfulness. Basically all I’m saying is, prayer is definitely a big part of growing spiritually but it mustn’t be something separate from our lives. Which I’m sure we’ll all agree with
God bless!