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“When the sun rises in the heavens, you shall see the King of kings proceeding from the Father as a bridegroom from his chamber.” (Traditional Christmas Antiphon)
I’m finally getting this out in the Christmas season by the skin of my teeth. December was…a lot. A lot of preparation, a lot of sickness, and a lot of work with closing my book deal. And then I’ve continued to be sick for most of January thus far.
But I love the above Christmas antiphon because this season, and our whole spirituality, is not just celebrating that God came as a baby (as miraculous as that was). It’s that He is coming again, our King, and our Bridegroom. Christ comes to us to wed us to Himself; we see nuptial marital imagery all over the Scriptures.
I gave a talk to a group of moms back in November on prayer, and how prayer is like marriage. Essentially, it’s a relationship, and I went through some basic principles before I cut it short because the toddlers had had enough. There was time for questions at the end, and one of the moms asked how to make time for prayer.
I gave an answer which I know was unsatisfactory, but the question has stuck with me. It resonates with the same underlying question I hear from other moms on what homeschool curriculum to choose or how to get the baby to sleep.
You see, there isn’t one simple answer to all these questions. In fact, there isn’t one universal answer either. Every curriculum, sleep schedule, or prayer routine has its benefits and drawbacks.
The problem underlying these kinds of questions is that we want someone else to tell us what to do. What we lack is the ability to go to God and have Him answer the questions for us.
I believe this is because we don’t really know how to hear God’s voice in prayer.
And so, I wrote a book that I hope will help lay people come to an intimate union with God in prayer. It will guide the reader through the stages of a relationship, encouraging commitment and vulnerability, addressing the drawbacks and struggles, and hopefully offer a clear vision of where we are headed in a nuptial relationship with Christ, all while sharing a few funny stories along the way. I’ll quote plenty of Scripture, saints, and scholars along the way, making the rich spiritual tradition of our faith easily accessible.
It is scheduled to come out this fall, and there is a lot to do before then, both with the book and in life in general. But for now, enjoy this sneak peek: an excerpt of the book was adapted for my Christmas column at the Denver Catholic. Click the title below!
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