One of the books I will be reading and meditating upon during my sabbatical is Thomas Merton’s Thoughts In Solitude. A well-known passage from this book has been called, “The Merton Prayer” (see below). This prayer acknowledges that, despite our human tendency to think we know what life is about and how we can manage [...]
Does Jesus Really Mean It?
24 Mar by
Confession time: I pray a lot, but I don’t often believe that God will hear and answer my prayers. And for me, that creates quite a bit of tension. On the one hand, I believe that I should pray and pray frequently. We are told to pray unceasingly. We are to pray for those in [...]
Chapter Two: Prayer
8 Feb by
Preachers occasionally comment that it is permissible for them to preach “down the road†– to talk about something they haven’t yet seen or exhort their congregation to levels they haven’t yet achieved. When I write about prayer, I’m definitely writing about a “down-the-road†view, not a retrospective of all I’ve achieved myself. That’s been [...]
Is There a Church There?
29 Nov by
By Chaplain Mike Last week’s provocative bombing of Yeonpyeong Island by North Korea made us all feel a little more insecure, even as we read words about beating swords into plowshares on the first Sunday of Advent. Those who welcome the Prince of Peace at this time of year should be on the front lines [...]
Thank You, Lord
24 Nov by
A Prayer of Thanks By Chaplain Mike Thank you, Lord, In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit… For life itself, the gift I take most for granted. For my baptism and introduction to the Gospel when I was but a helpless, trusting infant. For my family and my heritage. For my birthplace [...]
I Have To Admit, I Don’t Get It–Part Two
1 Oct by
Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth. (Psalm 54:2, ESV) You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it. (Matthew 21:22, NLT) They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. (Acts 2:42, The Message) [...]
Sunday’s Gospel: Lord, Teach Us to Pray (Teaching One Another)
25 Jul by
By Chaplain Mike On Sundays, we hear the Gospel reading from the Revised Common Lectionary. Sometimes, I share a message based upon this text. On other weeks, I ask you to share your observations for us all. Today, we’ll be teaching one another again. Today’s Gospel How many times have we had this desire in [...]
A Rosary By Any Other Name … Is For What, Now?
18 Jun by
Editor’s Note: Alan Creech is a longtime friend, sponsor and contributor to the Internet Monk community. I asked Alan, in light of recent news stories about celebrities and gang members wearing rosaries, to help us understand the true usage of this oft-misunderstood piece of Christian “gear.” You can visit Alan’s web site to see the [...]
Practice Resurrection, continued—Why I Love Eugene Peterson
19 Mar by
Noted by Chaplain Mike. I’ve been distracted lately from my reading of Eugene Peterson’s new book, Practice Resurrection, a conversation about spiritual maturity from Ephesians. Tonight, I came back to it, and found this story. Sublime illustration. Two friends, Fred and Cheryl, went to Haiti twenty-five years ago to pick up a child they had [...]
Who and What Are Forming You?
14 Mar by
A classic IM post by Michael Spencer (4/07), presented by Chaplain Mike. Every time I feel like I have lost my way in the Christian life, I find myself back looking at monasticism, and the lessons I learned in two decades of reading Thomas Merton. I’m not attracted to Catholicism, but I am very much [...]
