Spiritual Formation Articles

Future. Tense.

“But we want a man hag-ridden by the Future … We want a whole race perpetually in pursuit of the rainbow’s end, never honest, nor kind, nor happy now.” In this piece, we walk the path of the time-full life and consider, with help from Jack Lewis, how gratitude and love can ground us in eternity.

C.S. Lewis

June 27, 2017

Waiting on the Lord Involves ... Waiting ...

If it seems as though we post a lot about waiting here at Renovaré, that’s because it is a discipline that resonates with us—and we think with the world at large—in our “haste, hurry, and hustle.” Richard Foster introduces us to the idea of living a life that’s “time-full” instead.

Richard J. Foster

June 26, 2017

Learning to Pray Again

For anyone who wishes to enter more fully into the mystery and relationship of prayer, Emilie Griffin’s book Clinging is a rich resource. In this short excerpt, she writes of first righting our image of God when learning (or relearning) to pray.

Emilie Griffin

June 23, 2017

Teach us, Almighty Father

The daughter of an Anglican rector, Jane Austen not only wrote some of the most enduring (and hilarious) novels in English literature, she composed prayers for private and family devotions. Here we offer, for your consideration, one of her evening prayers, edited slightly for day or nighttime use.

Jane Austen

June 21, 2017

Sweet Will of God

This is a favorite hymn of at least one-sixth of the team here at Renovaré (we took a poll). We hope you’ll enjoy it as a lovely start (or middle) (or end) to your day—and find yourself folded ever more closely into the sweet will of God.

Lelia Naylor Morris

June 16, 2017

Let Charity Dwell Within You

St. Ephrem closely links love and honor of God to love and honor of our neighbor, specifically in his admonitions not to be wrathful about perceived wrongs, but to live in peace and agreement with all our brothers and sisters.

Ephrem the Syrian

June 13, 2017

The Kingdom is God's

“Give me a position so I may exercise power,” we demand. “You shall receive power without a position,” Jesus replies. Richard Foster guides us into a better understanding of where true power resides and why there is no place for status and position in the Kingdom of God in today’s vintage piece.

Richard J. Foster

June 12, 2017

The Tongue Can No Man Tame

Augustine weighs in on the theme of practicing prudence in speech (and action) with this piece on submitting our tongues (and ourselves) to the training of the great Tamer until the day we “need no more His taming hand, but only to be possessed by His exceeding mercy.” Enjoy!

Augustine

June 9, 2017

What I Found in My Pocket

If you’ve ever been trapped without a book on a long journey, here’s a post is for you. Come spend some time with G.K. Chesterton while he rifles through his pockets to discover the treasures therein. In his inimitable way, he gives each retrieval from the pockety deep a link to the greater cosmos.

G.K. Chesterton

June 8, 2017

Finding the Hidden Jesus

The charming Thérèse of Lisieux joins us to share a story of how she combatted natural antipathy toward a particular nun in her convent. Beyond just holding her tongue from giving sharp replies to this sister, Thérèse consciously cultivated a servant’s heart toward her—and so, toward Christ.

Thérèse of Lisieux

June 7, 2017

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