Dan and Melissa answer more listener questions on prayer. They discuss the benefits of a spiritual community to one's prayer life, some specific meditation practices, advice we can take from the Saints and Mystics, and much more.
Topics/Questions covered in the show:
Is there something wrong with me if I can't pray more than 10-15 minutes each day? How can being involved in a community help your spiritual life? To whom is the advice from mystics of the Church directed - beginners or the spiritually advanced? How can I progress in meditating on the scriptures daily? Is there a plan I should follow? How can a meditation practice, such as Lectio Divina, help me to encounter Christ? Some aspects of Ignation meditation. How does it differ from Lectio Divina? What should I do when I feel that God doesn't hear my prayers?Resources:
Divine Intimacy Radio on SpiritualDirection.com website EWTN Religious Catalogue - online Catechism of the Catholic Church - Part 4, Section 1, Chapter 3, Article 2: The Battle of Prayer James 4:7,8 - "Resist the devil...Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you of two minds." USCCB Bible link Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation Lectio Divina, A Guide: What It Is & How It Helps Prayer Life? - Post on SpiritualDirection.com The Way of the Cross - Alphonsus de Liguori. Prayer of St Alphonsus: I love you Jesus, my love. I repent of ever having offended you. Never permit me to offend you again. Grant that I may love you always; and then do with me what you will. Mark 9:14-29 - The Healing of a Boy with a Demon. Contains the quote “I do believe, help my unbelief!” Navigating the Interior Life - Spiritual Direction and the Journey to God - Daniel Burke with Fr John Bartunek The three ways: purgative, illuminative, unitive -- Four part series on SpiritualDirection.com (all parts linked to each other) Finding God Through Meditation - St Peter of Alcantara, edited by Dan Burke The Interior Castle - Saint Teresa of Avila The Collected Works of St Teresa of Avila, Volume One - Translated by Kieran Kavanaugh and Otilio Rodriguez. Contains Book of Her Life. An Introduction to the Devout Life - St Francis de Sales Lectio Divina, A Guide: What It Is & How It Helps Prayer Life? - Post on SpiritualDirection.com [read, reflect, respond, and rest, to which Dan adds resolve!] Ascesis/Asceticism - New Advent link The Better Part: A Christ-Centered Resource for Personal Prayer - Fr John Bartunek (who uses the concepts of "concentrate, consider, converse and commit" based on the Ignatian method where one puts oneself in the Scriptural scene and then makes a commitment based on what one has experienced with Christ) The Better Part and The 4 “Cs” of Christian Meditation - Video by Dan Burke and Fr John Bartunek on SpiritualDirection.com A Simple Guide to Christian Meditation - Post on SpiritualDirection.com A Guide to Christian Meditation: How to Engage More Deeply in Personal Prayer - Short book by Fr John Bartunek 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - "May the God of peace himself make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." - USCCB Bible link Questions? Send an e-mail to Questions@myavila.com or call 818-646-7729.