Voluntary Simplicity: Daily Spiritual Practice
- December 6 Sermon “Find a Stillness“
- Challenge: A minimum of five minutes a day of prayer, meditation, journaling, or sitting in silence. DAILY.
- Join the Spirit Study Facebook group to share how you’re doing with the challenge
Resources
About Prayer
My advice: Don’t overthink it. Don’t over-analyze it. Don’t worry about it. Find a quiet spot (you probably want to be alone), get into a comfortable position, and then give it a go. It’s an experiment. Maybe you want to pray out loud. Maybe you want to pray silently. Maybe you want to whisper your prayer. Maybe you want your hands clasped in front of you. Maybe you want to kneel on the ground with your forehead to the floor. Whatever you feel called to do, go for it.
If you aren’t sure how to begin, try starting with “Spirit of Life…”
Your prayer might include:
- Gratitude for what’s good
- Praise for what’s wonderful
- Confession of what troubles you
- Hopes for what could be different
About Meditation
- Blog: “Meditation 101: Techniques, Benefits & Beginner’s How-to“
- Book: Sitting Still Like a Frog: Mindfulness Exercises for Kids (and Their Parents) by Eline Snel. This book includes a CD-ROM of guided meditations; very helpful for beginners.
- Book: A Handful of Quiet: Happiness in Four Pebbles by Thich Nhat Hanh (this was the source of the meditation we used in the Sunday service)
- Audio from YouTube: This is 5 minutes of a mindfulness bell chiming, and it’s lovely.
About Journaling
- Blog: If you have trouble getting started, read “What to Journal“
- Blog: Consider trying “Writing on the Stream of Consciousness“
- Blog: Consider trying “Writing With Your Non-Dominant Hand“
About Silence
- As I described in my sermon, this is more than just silence. It’s still, silent, do-nothingness.
- Blog: If you need encouragement about the benefits of silence, read “20 Ways Sitting in Silence Can Completely Transform Your Life“
- Blog: “The Art of Sitting in Silence“