Ancient Anglican

This more ancient understanding of a sacrament includes anything that communicates and manifests God’s grace. Think about how the present moment is sacramental. How does being present make us one with God’s grace?

God is eternally present. Therefore, it is only in our experience of the present that we “have the experience God has of reality as a whole.”

Surrender is not a passive capitulation, rather it is a “receptive engagement with the present.” 

Gentleness respects boundaries. Being gentle means allowing others to live their own lives and carry their own burdens. We are to be a healing presence to others, not their savior. 

The homework this week is to be aware of those situations in which we have been treated by others with the gentleness of Christ and how we have treated others with the gentleness of Christ. 

Sanctity is a process of subtraction. We need to subtract our sinful nature and our agenda in order to get us our of God’s way and allow him to work in us.

Our vocation is to see the world as God sees it and to bring the healing presence of the love of Jesus Christ to those in need. Our vocation is simply to be a healing presence to those around us.

Prayer should take us to that place of being both wholly within ourselves and with God. For as Jesus teaches, the Kingdom of God comes not with an observation so that we can say it is here or it is there, rather the Kingdom is within you. Luke 17:20-21.

Our heart is seen as that place where God finds us.

The more effective method of combating our restless thoughts is to redirect our thoughts away from their object and towards Jesus through the repetition of a short Jesus-focused prayer. 

As we slow down to hear our breathing and become aware of God’s presence, we begin to be attentive and see and hear God all around us. As Jesus says “blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears for they hear.” Matt 13:16.

The cultivation of God’s peace and God’s love within us begins with us intentionally seeking an inner stillness that opens us to contemplative prayer and through contemplation to be transformed and through transformation to be able to go out to others.