I recently finished a book entitled, "Practicing the Presence of God". It is a book that is about a man named Brother Lawrence. He was a Carmelite Monk who lived in the Seventeenth Century.

This book details the life of Brother Lawrence. It is a compilation of conversations and letters of Brother Lawrence as well as a few of his writings.

What I really enjoyed about this book is the way that it stretched me in my thinking. All too often I go throughout my day forgetting about God. I get so busy doing little mundane things that I am distracted at times from what really matters. In this book Brother Lawrence is a man who goes about everyday life practicing God's presence, as the title suggests. Yet the way that he goes about this is so different from anything I have ever thought about. He is so devoted to what he calls practicing the presence of God, it is amazing to me. He lived every moment of his life as though God were right there with him. As I read this book I got the sense that Brother Lawrence never really felt alone, because he knew that God was with him at all times in everything that he did.

Another amazing aspect of the life of Brother Lawrence is the way in which he approached everything that he did. He became a Christian in his late teenage years after seeing a barren tree. He realized that though the tree was barren, the spring would bring life to it again. This tree reminded Brother Lawrence of his own life and he knew that though he felt barren, God would bring new life to him. After he got out of the military he joined a monastery and became a Carmelite Monk. In this monastery Brother Lawrence would spend the rest of his life. For more than 15 years he worked in the kitchen washing dishes. This season of his life is what amazes me most. He spent those 15 years washing dishes to the glory of God. He never saw his job as unimportant, because he knew that everything that he did should be done to the glory of God. And so it was in this kitchen that he began to practice the presence of God, conversing with him throughout the day. When his mind wandered from thoughts of God he would simply take a moment and refocus on God.

What I have shared here is one of the things that I liked most about this book, there are many other things that really challenged me and stretched my thinking. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants to bring God with them into their daily lives doing whatever "seemingly mundane" task they have been called to do.

If you'd like more information about this book click here.