Easter thoughts on Brother Lawrence and Practicing the Presence of God

We are now a few days into the season of Easter. I had intended to write reflections over the whole of Lent on Brother Lawrence and Practicing the Presence of God. I obviously did not. In part because the more I read the more I realized that the simple life Brother Lawrence exhorts and the simplicity of practicing God's presence in everything and at all times was very difficult. for the last three weeks of Lent resting in God's love and remaining aware of god's presence became a real struggle as I realized how little I am mindful of God in my daily activities and as I realized how I could so easily be distracted away from resting in God's love.

Brother Lawrence is honest about both the simplicity and the difficulty of this way of life. He repeatedly says how he will fail to live this from moment to moment but he has learned to become aware of this and simply confess it to God and then continue on without self-chastisement. I found this was part of the struggle to simply let go of attempting to be perfect in practicing the presence of God and resting in God's love.

Now on the other side of Lent and Holy Week in this season of focused celebration on Jesus Christ's resurrection, I see how Brother Lawrence's life is infused with the fullness of Holy Week and Easter. Brother Lawrence trusts fully that all has been accomplished in Christ but also understands that the Christian life is both Cross and resurrection. The struggle and the achievement aren't simply mine I enter into what Christ did and in Faith I find that what I do is not enough but that God raises me up out of my failure if I trust in What God has done in Jesus Christ. In the face of the Cross and resurrection my own failures become invisible and I am able to move beyond them and not be mired down in the moments where I do not see or fail to remain aware of God and trust in God's love.