Why being contemplative is the opposite of being escapist

Contemplative prayer may sound a bit escapist or even elitist. It’s not. Far from it. The word itself is comes from the Latin, contemplatio, which refers to “the act of looking deeply”. The word is made up of two Latin roots, con-, which means “with” or “together”, and -tempore, which refers to the “moment”. So contemplative prayer is prayer that, in its most basic form, is rooted deeply in the present—in daily, ordinary life . . . nothing elitist or escapist at all.

Instead, it aims to bring all of you “together with” all that’s happening in the “moment.”

And when you’re all here—all now—then you’re present to all of God and God is present to all of you.

Living with a higher degree of pleasure

Dear brave soul; What I've been talking about might sound contradictory—“How can I be present to this moment when I’m thinking about the future?” But give it some time and practice. You’ll learn that it’s possible to plan a birthday party for a loved one or bury your head in a history book and do it all with a high degree of awareness or presence.

You’ll also learn that doing so can bring you a higher degree of pleasure than you’ve known before. What’s more, you’ll learn to let go of planning the party when you’re driving your car or sitting in a meeting at work or having dinner with someone you love.

You’ll become skillful, better able to concentrate your energy on the person or task right in front of you. You’ll learn how to intentionally forget other tasks that nag at you, and you’ll be more able to resist the temptation to multitask (which only scatters your energies).

Let’s be honest, multitasking is a spiritual treadmill; you waste a lot of energy trying to get where you want to go.

Be here, now . . . even when making plans for the future.

May you walk in the Way today.

Bring greater awareness to your experience of real life

Dear brave soul; Living here and now, alive to the presence of Christ, means that you bring greater awareness to your experience of real life, you immerse yourself more fully in the present moment.

But that doesn’t mean you ignore the future or forget the past. That would be irresponsible, and very, very few people can legitimately live that way.

You have to plan for breakfast or dinner.  You have to plan a way to gets the kids to and from school.  You have to plan for retirement.

Practicing awareness doesn’t mean ignoring such things. Instead, it means learning to control how and when you engage these necessary tasks.

Practicing awareness means that when you engage them, you do so intentionally and with a high degree of presence to each task.

May you walk in the Way today.

Open yourself to the wisdom you need

Being truly present to the light and the darkness, the hope and the restlessness that’s all around and within you—is nonnegotiable. When you’re aware, you shift your focus from what should be, would be, or could be to what is. You receive the moment. And when you do, a stillness, a spaciousness, a freedom opens up within you. When you’re truly present, you’re no longer reacting to situations, demands, and impulses. You’re not resisting life, nor are you grasping frantically for some fantasy you’re chasing.

Instead, you’re open to what is, and when you are, the deepest and best kind of wisdom can finally come to you. Your intuition merges with God’s revelation and you receive a sixth sense, born of the Spirit whom Jesus sent to teach us everything (John 14.25).

The insanity of our distracted lives

Next time you’re stopped at a stoplight, look around. Notice how distracted people are. Drivers are texting, fiddling with the radio, talking to someone beside them or someone at the other end of their wireless phone. The man in the car beside you is shaving. The woman behind you is putting on makeup. It’s little wonder we live through our morning commute. And maybe we don’t. When we’re distracted, we’re not really living. We’re not really here. Our hands may be on the wheel, our bodies in the driver’s seat, but our minds are miles away, everywhere but here . . . now. If we knew better, we’d lock ourselves up for such insanity!

It’s one thing to be awake. It’s another to be aware, alert, and conscious of the life you’re living now. If you’re going to find God—if God’s going to find you—you’ll have to bring yourself to the only place where such a meeting can take place—here . . . now.