The Practice of the Presence of God

Not wholly satisfying but not a complete waste of time either. There were some key underlying philosophical paradigms in the texts provided with which I'm not sure I agree, but there were also several important spiritual truths that I hadn't considered before reading this. Overall, I felt this wasn't as accessible and consequently easy to retain as I had hoped. I'll be surprised if I remember much from this reading.

This book is more suited for people who are already devout Christians. It's so steeped with Christian ideology that if you're trying to approach it from any other faith you really need to stretch your metaphors to make it even slightly palatable. Also not really suited for anyone who has just become interested in Christianity because brother Lawrence was just SO devout. I found it ironic that brother Lawrence was apparently so humble, but the last chapter of the book is his friend praising him for how perfect he was (although, it can be forgiven as it was written by a close friend of his after his death - so of course it is going to be praising him).

Classic book containing letters, conversations and spiritual maxims from a seventeenth century priest. Interesting, and encouraging, but not as revelatory or new as I had expected. Worth reading - probably three and a half stars rather than three - but on the whole what was said seemed rather obvious. Even if difficult for most of us to put into practise!

While I have heard many good things about this book, it just did not sit right with me. It was very repetitive and seemed to glorify brother Lawrence, which seemed counterproductive to the goal. It also felt incredibly cultish and left me feeling icky.

I’m not sure what to say about this book, save that it describes a simple, yet not necessarily easy path to be at one with God. This path is described through a series of conversations, letters, principles and ways.

As someone who lives with a serious and enduring mental illness, I came away from this relatively short read, which by the way I first read some fifteen years ago, with a sense that although this is a practice that I could aspire to I would find it difficult to realise. This is mainly due to my racing thoughts.

However, I have been practicing recently the Jesus Prayer with the aid of an Orthodox prayer rope, and I have found this very helpful in returning to the solid ground that the author describes through the use of this show more simple prayer.

I believe that the key to this book lies in its title - the Practice of the Presence of God. God is the ground of our being and to find Him we need to seek Him in His simplicity. We only achieve this by the gift of His Grace and a surrendering of our will, and this as the title suggests requires practice. show less

The book is set up with 4 different sections, conversations, letters, spiritual maxims and lastly his life. It was definitely an interesting read and did inspire me to walk more with the Lord, abiding in Him and appreciating His goodness. Here are a few quotes that stood out to me as I read.
“To think that we must abandon conversation with Him in order to deal with the world is erroneous.”
“Even suffering will be easier with Him, but without Him, even the greatest pleasure will be joyless.”
“The more we know Him, the more we will desire to know Him.”
While I took away a good many things from this short book and I do think Brother Lawrence was probably a very strong believer in the Lord and truly loved Him much, I agree with show more another reviewer that it felt a little strange though I can’t pinpoint exactly why…nonetheless his lessons in dwelling in the presence of God and doing all for His glory is truly something we must all remember and pray for His grace to do. God’s love for us is amazing and living for His will and His glory is truly what is best for our lives. show less

It's a classic for a reason. The simplicity of this book was refreshing and so encouraging. A truly beautiful message and teaching of a life in intimate relationship with Jesus. I had noticed Brother Lawrence quoted in many other books and thought it time to read the source.

Here are two of my favourite passages in the book. There are many other VERY quotable and good parts, but I love the imagery of these.

"Those who have the wind of the Holy Spirit in their souls glide ahead even while they sleep. If the vessel of our soul is still being tossed by the winds or storms, we should wake the Lord who has been resting with us all along, and He will swiftly calm the sea" - pg 30.

"My prayers consist of a simple continuation of this same show more exercise. Sometimes I imagine that I'm a piece of stone, waiting for the sculptor. When I give myself to God this way, He begins sculpting my soul into the perfect image of His beloved Son. At others times, I feel my whole mind and heart being raised up into God's presence, as if, without effort, they had always belonged there." - pg 41

Reckon this will be a book I gift people. Read it. show less