As the primary book steward at Laity Lodge, I find myself thinking about devotional books at this time of year. Devotional books comprise a larger niche within Christian publishing than you might expect, with titles aimed at every possible demographic, profession, temperament (i.e., “busy women”) or personal difficulty. Most of us are familiar with the devotional classic My Utmost for His Highest by Oswlad Chambers, but there are many other great resources to help provide structured daily reading, prayer, and meditation. Here are a few I would recommend:
One that I have found particularly helpful is a series of devotional guides from Upper Room Books called A Guide to Prayer. Following the church calendar, each chapter (or week) offers an invocation, a Psalm, a daily Scripture reading, a selected passage from an author, space for prayer and a hymn and benediction. I’m especially fond of this book not only because it features many of my favorite writers but also because it has introduced to me a number of saints I would otherwise not have known.
For the person interested in a more traditional approach to praying the hours (or offices), I recommend The Divine Hours by Phyllis Tickle. Divided into three volumes according to seasons, The Divine Hours is more a “manual for prayer” than a daily devotional guide. Drawing on the ancient tradition of “fixed-hour prayer,” Tickle has produced a treasure trove of prayers and Scripture readings gleaned from ancient sources. Whether you use it for morning prayers alone or prayers throughout the day, it’s a great resource.
Mary Earle is an Episcopal priest, poet, author, and good friend of Laity Lodge. This fall, Morehouse Publishing released a new book by Mary titled Days of Grace: Meditations and Practices for Living With Illness. This small book is divided into 30 chapters, each featuring a Psalm, a meditation from Mary’s personal experience, a prayer, and a practice. One gets the feeling when reading Mary’s words of sitting across the table from a wise and trusted friend.
Mark Roberts is our Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence. One of the great contributions he makes to the Foundations for Laity Renewal is his Daily Reflection and Prayer. For the past two years, Mark has been working his way through the Bible one book at a time, jumping back and forth between the Old and New Testaments. His reflections, questions, and prayers are always refreshingly personal and always filled with rich insights into the text. If you’re not already a subscriber, I encourage you to sign-up and start receiving his Daily Reflection.
i so appreciate your reading recommendations. i’ve benefitted from them over the years. (it’s so nice to get this in the email rather than having to wait for my annual retreat time…)
My wife and I were blessed enough to win a drawing for past LLYC counselors to enjoy a free adult retreat at the lodge a couple of months ago. It was such a blessing for us.
While we were there Steven Purcell read an excerpt from a very funny book about a New York Times journalist who takes it upon himself to ‘literally’ live by the Torah in modern New York City. To this day I cannot find the title nor the author and would very much appreciate it if someone could help me with this. The portion that Steven read was so funny and I’ve been telling others about it hoping to find someone who has heard of this book. The book is apparently in the Lodge book store.
Does anyone know the title or author?
Any help is appreciated!
Thank you,
Jason Mathews
Jason,
We are so glad that you had a great time at the Lodge!
The book that Steven referenced is titled “The Year of Living Biblically” by A. J. Jacobs. The book is available in the Laity Lodge bookstore.
Hope this helps!