Spiritual Life and Leadership 94. Centering Prayer, with Rich Lewis, author of Sitting with God
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Centering prayer is a form of silent, wordless prayer and a wonderful practice for spiritual formation. Rich Lewis, author of Sitting with God: A Journey to Your True Self Through Centering Prayer, has been practicing centering for a long time. He has writes about centering prayer, trains individuals and groups how to practice centering prayer, and in this episode teaches us how to engage in centering prayer.
THIS EPISODE'S HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
- Rich Lewis is the author of Sitting With God: A Journey to Your True Self Through Centering Prayer.
- Though he has always enjoyed times of silence, Rich Lewis discovered the practice of centering prayer in 2013 through a book titled Healing the Divide by Amos Smith.
- Centering prayer is a form of silent, wordless prayer.
- Centering prayer was developed by three Trappist monks in the 1970’s.
- You can learn a lot about centering prayer at the Contemplative Outreach website.
- Centering prayer involves these steps:
- Sit quietly.
- Select a sacred word (e.g., Jesus, love, ocean).
- Introduce the word in your interior.
- When your mind gets distracted, come back to the center with your sacred word.
- Sit quietly until your time of centering prayer is done.
- The sacred word doesn’t have to be a word. It could be an image. Rich uses an icon of Jesus as his centering anchor.
- In centering prayer, it’s almost like God prays in us.
- Centering prayer can lead to deep inner healing.
- We are able to connect with our true self in centering prayer.
- Rich Lewis offers a free e-book on centering prayer at his website, silenceteaches.com.
RELEVANT RESOURCES AND LINKS:
- Books:
- Sitting with God, by Rich Lewis
- The Heart of Centering Prayer, by Cynthia Bourgeault
- Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening, by Cynthia Bourgeault
- Healing the Divide, by Amos Smith
- Websites
- Spiritual Life and Leadership Facebook Group
- Episode 44: Spiritual Formation and Lectio Divina, with Eric Nevins, Host of Halfway There
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