Everyday Divine: A Catholic Guide to Active Spirituality Book

1 Creating Calm Amid the Chaos 1

Desperately Seeking Serenity 2

An Undercurrent of Mindfulness 7

The Grace to Be a Beginner 11

Two Steps Forward 13

2 Building a Spiritual Foundation 17

A Few Prayer Essentials 18

Private Devotions 24

Ancient Traditions 28

3 turning chores into Spiritual Practice 33

Minding the Mundane 33

The Little Way 35

The Habit of Prayer 36

Labors of Love 38

The Waiting Game 43

4 Bringing Your Body into Prayer 47

Two Halves of the Same Whole 48

Body in Motion, Spirit in Stillness 49

Exercise as a Path to Spiritual Growth 51

In Sickness and in Health 61

5 The Work of Your Hands 67

Finding God in the Kitchen 67

Talent as Prayer Treasure 76

Taking God to Work 81

Using Technology to Pray 85

6 Sounds and Signs of the Spirit 89

Sacred Spaces and Sacramentals 89

Finding God in Nature 95

Praying Through Song 102

Outward Signs of Inward Movement 105

7 Silence, Simplicity, and Solitude 113

Setting Life to a Sacred Rhythm 113

Decluttering Your Home and Soul 117

Cultivating Silence in a Noisy World 121

Everyday Hermits 126

8 Dark Nights and Dry Spells 131

Is Anybody Out There? 131

Looking Beyond Answers 137

Learning to Persevere 140

Becoming a Fool for God 143

9 Pilgrimage of the Heart 147

Walking the Way of Faith 149

Physical Journeys on the Spiritual Path 150

Interior Pilgrimage 159

10 All of Life as Prayer 161

Transformed from the Outside In 162

One Day at a Time 166

On the Breath of God 170

Making Every Moment a Prayer 173

Appendixes

A Favorite Prayers 177

B Prayer Practices 190

C Everyday resources 197

Index 203