What are some of your favorite or go-to books, devotionals or even blogs that help encourage you in your spiritual life?
So this week we are talking about spiritual writing that inspires, enriches and encourages us. So now that college is far enough behind me that required reading assignments don't make me sigh so audibly I am trying to find my stride when it comes to spiritual reading. I actually had a friend recently remind me how important spiritual reading is as Catholics and it isn't an optional devotion. That hit me and really inspired me to step up my game when it comes to spiritual reading.
Over the years I have read a variety of spiritual readings, along with fiction. You can find my book lists here, here, and here from 2013, 2014, and the running list for 2015 respectively.
However, if I had to pick from all these books the book that has most enriched and changed my spiritual life it would have to be Consoling the Heart of Jesus. In this book Fr. Gaitley posed how thirsty Christ crucified is for us and by how praying, sacrificing, the sacraments, loving, serving, trusting and being His we are able to care for his wounds. In particular, he emphasizes how much lack of trusting pains the Lord and how trusting in Him and His will can console His aching heart. Something that has always in particular stood out from his book was his discussion of sacrifice. Too often we only sacrifice big things forgetting about the small daily consequences not recognizing their worth. However, compared to the sacrifice of the cross all of our sacrifices are small and insignificant so how much more important the small sacrifices. Please, read my original review and more importantly pick this book up. In particular this Lent, and this soon to come Holy Week read this book and comfort His heart.
Over the years I have read a variety of spiritual readings, along with fiction. You can find my book lists here, here, and here from 2013, 2014, and the running list for 2015 respectively.
However, if I had to pick from all these books the book that has most enriched and changed my spiritual life it would have to be Consoling the Heart of Jesus. In this book Fr. Gaitley posed how thirsty Christ crucified is for us and by how praying, sacrificing, the sacraments, loving, serving, trusting and being His we are able to care for his wounds. In particular, he emphasizes how much lack of trusting pains the Lord and how trusting in Him and His will can console His aching heart. Something that has always in particular stood out from his book was his discussion of sacrifice. Too often we only sacrifice big things forgetting about the small daily consequences not recognizing their worth. However, compared to the sacrifice of the cross all of our sacrifices are small and insignificant so how much more important the small sacrifices. Please, read my original review and more importantly pick this book up. In particular this Lent, and this soon to come Holy Week read this book and comfort His heart.
Consoling the Heart of Jesus is a great book but it isn't one I read everyday. For my daily reading I first and foremost read the bible and a Mary devotional each morning. I hope to read whatever spiritual reading I am reading at the moment, currently a Mother Theresa book and rereading Rediscovering Catholicism for a book club of sorts. However, what is most often the most manageable is YOUR blogs and the articles YOU recommend. All you ladies are so inspiration and steer me towards other writers who write real, honest, raw, and passionate words that make me want to be better. Please don't doubt that what you write isn't read and isn't taken to heart.
I look forward to getting some recommendations from all of your posts and don't forget to check out the book lists to get other spiritual reading recommendations.
Ooh! If you like sacrificing for Jesus' sake, you should join the Apostleship of Prayer! I blogged about it recently. It turns your individual praying of the Morning Offering into a worldwide union praying for the intentions of the Holy Father. It is awesome.
ReplyDeletehttp://apostleshipofprayer.org