In the Coracle
“It’s almost like you’re writing a book one post at a time” - Kedge
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Laser Monks: Printer Toner and Contemplative Prayer
Ahh, those of us in the web-driven world and those of us in who practice contemplative prayer should all check out this blog post about the Laser Monks.
Monasteries all over the world have been self-supporting for centuries, and the practice of monks running a small business is nothing new. Most of them, however, don’t end up experiencing 700% annual sales growth, selling 30,000 products, and competing with Fortune 500 companies.
Instead of baking fruitcakes for the occasional visitor, the monks from Our Lady of Spring Bank Cistercian Abbey sell laser toner and business supplies throughout the United States. They’ve creatively branded themselves as LaserMonks, but they offer more than just a great story. They also help businesses save an average of 40% off printer ink and toner, and in turn, the monks donate all of their profits to charity.
There is nothing conventional about the LaserMonks web site. Next to “fax supplies” and “inkjet cartridges” is a link to send in prayer requests. The content is devoted equally to product details and information about the monastery. In addition to business supplies, they also offer fun monastery items like “Benevelent Blends Coffee” and “Holy Hot Chocolate.”
(I’m seeing the most entertaining and enlightening things with my technorati search feeds for various terms like ‘monasticism’, ‘monastery’, etc…)
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2 Comments »Reading Plans and Prayer Rhythm Help
Often around the first of the year, zealous Christians put together their Bible Reading Plans for the year. I usually do it, and then about February, I crap out and quit (strangely, this often coincides with the time I need to read a few chapters of Leviticus a day). Or I get to the point that I quit reading to be changed, and I’m only reading to check off a box and move onto my next project. That never feels good, so I sidetrack off into bumpy trails that are more fun.
If you’re looking for a reading plan, Discipleship Journal has a few that you can download, and they are here.
This year, I want to follow the model of the early Celtic monks, and focus primarily on the Gospels and the Psalms for my personal lectio divina. I’ve found a nice little resource that gives me smallish, digestible chunks of these two areas, and I hope to use this as my main reading guide. It comes from the book Celtic Prayers from Iona by J. Philip Newell.
In addition to this, I’m using one of several daily prayer books that help me with an organized rhythm of prayer.
The one I pack around with me in my work bag is Prayer Rhythms for Busy People: A Pocket Companion, by Ray Simpson. (This is apparently unavailable in the US on Amazon; I can highly recommend that you go get a copy from Ray by visiting the Community of Aidan and Hilda on Lindisfarne island).
The advantage of this book is that it’s small; it’s the same size as my small Moleskine notebook and not a lot bigger than a stack index cards - and it writes out the Scripture references that you’re praying (so no need to go look them up, which is a non-starter for me often). It has themes for each of seven days (e.g. Wednesday is about ‘The Renewing, Sending Spirit’, and has patterns for prayer four times per day (morning, midday, evening, night). Oh, and it’s designed for use by a single person. Many of the good Celtic models are designed for use by a community - with some call and response, or echoes - and that’s awkward when I’m doing it by myself.
I can’t say that I’m praying from it 4x/day, 7d/week. But I’m moving slowly there, I think.
Finally, when I’m in need of a mental break, a quiet moment, and I’m at a computer that’s on the Web, I use Sacred Space by the Irish Jesuits. It’s designed to be a slow, meditative breather that takes 10 minutes.
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No Comments »On Integrity
I found this quote in tomorrow’s reading (I don’t know what day of the week it is when I pick this book up early in the morning, sue me… :)) from Celtic Daily Prayer.
It speaks well of the desire for integrity - for the private and public life, the inner and outer life, the “spiritual” and “social” life to be the same (and to remind us that they ARE the same anyway; it’s a false approach to think of them as separable).
 I want singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out all my obligations and activities as well as I can. I want, in fact - to borrow from the language of the saints - to live ‘in grace’ as much of the time as possible. I am not using this term in a strictly theological sense; by grace I mean an inner harmony, essentially spiritual, which can be translated into outward harmony. I am seeking, perhaps, what Socrates asked for in the prayer from the Phaedrus when he said, ‘May the outward and inward man be one.’ I would like to achieve a state of inner spiritual grace from which I could function and give as I was meant to in the eyes of God.
There are time when one seems to carry all one’s tasks before one lightly, as if borne along on a great tide. And in the opposite state one can hardly tie a shoe-string. It is true that a large part of life consists in learning a technique of tying the shoe-string - whether one is ‘in grace’ or not.
I believe most people are aware of periods in their lives when they seem to be ‘in grace’ and other periods when they feel ‘out of grace’, even though they may use different words to describe those states.
This quote is from Gift of the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, and quoted in the book Celtic Daily Prayer (highly recommended).
There are times in our lives where everything “just clicks”, right? And other times when nothing works as advertised, and we can’t figure out what’s wrong or what to change. A wise teacher once spoke to me about seasons of life - life has its changes, and sometimes it’s winter whether you want it to be or not.
Integrity is doing life whether or not it’s just clicking - not giving up or giving in, but intentionally pursuing integrity, pushing forward, digging deeper.
David Wilcox writes, “All the roots grows deeper when it’s dry“.
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2 Comments »Quote: Why I Journal
This sweet quote comes from Dave Jacobs, a church planter and coach who has recently started a really nice web resource and brief email at smallchurchpastor.com
“I practice journaling because I believe in meditation. I practice meditation because I believe in prayer. I practice prayer because I believe in God. Spiritual journaling is not the same as keeping a diary. Journaling is a form of meditation. Meditation is a form of prayer. Meditation, prayer, and journaling help us recognize what the Father is doing with us. They are a holy trinity for finding God.”
If you’re into church, church leadership, small churches, church planting, spiritual formation or contemplative prayer, go check out Dave’s website and also sign up for the emails. It’s the only email distribution I actually make time to go look at when it comes in, rather than filtering into a folder and looking at it “someday”.
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