Prayer
Finding the Heart’s True Home
by Richard Foster

Week 3
Part 1— Moving Inward
Chapter 2— Prayer of the Forsaken

“To come to the pleasure that you have not, you must go by a way in which you enjoy not.”  St. John of the Cross

OPENING PRAYER
Prayer Project Review

1.  Matthew 27: 46b
       Was Jesus’ experience unique, or common to all of us?

2.  Abandonment—why do we all feel this way?
       The Fall
       1st Adam/ 2nd Adam—Roman 5: 12-19

3.  Deus Absconditus
       Empty
       Dryness—the Desert

4.  Our response—
       We do what we did before to “make” God come back
       Reveals our hearts—was God ever there?
       Theology—Omnipresence

5.  We are not alone in this empty feeling
       Moses after leaving Egypt
       Jonah in the belly of the whale
       Elijah in the cave
       Joseph in jail
       David in war
       Mary at the cross
       Jesus on the cross
6.  Names for Deus Obsconditus   
       Dark Night of the Soul—St. John of the Cross
       Cloud of Unknowing – anonymous English writer
       Dark Night of Faith
       Wishing day was night and night was day—George Fox

7.  The patterns of our tailor-made journey
       Consolation
       Desolation
       Dark Night of the Soul
       Illumination

8.  Mutual Freedom between God and us
       Giving God freedom to be God    
       Not the genie in the bottle
       Not the idol of our imaginings

9.  Purifications in the Dark
       Strip Dependence on Exterior Results
              Less impressed with external things
                     The Big Deal on Sunday morning—not what we’re looking for
                     Other’s praise of us—it seems pointless
                     Religious practices and trappings—they no longer fascinate us
                     Final stage: Passive Dark Night—no longer in control of our lives                                                           and it doesn’t bother us like it used to
       Strip Dependence On Interior Results
              Less sure that we know what God is doing in us
                     What kind of God is He?
                     Is the Holy Spirit really active in my life?
                     Faith, hope, love (natural virtues) become suspect.
                     Personal motives are called into question
                     Unsure of our footing around God—in a thick mist
                     Am I worth anything—Does God love me?
                     Does Evil have the power to win?
                     Like depression, but not quite.  Anger, discouragement

10.  Result of Dark times
       We distrust any human effort
       We are weaned from vain insecurities and false allegiances
       Our trust in anything other than God is shattered
       We are driven to prayer by the darkness
       We despair and give up OR continue the search


11.  Continuing the Search
       Prayers of Complaint/Lament
       Short Darts of Longing Love
              Spiritual Disciplines

12.  Waiting On God
       Practice disciplines
       Trust—believe scripture—He means to do me good
       Not permanent

Bernard of Clairvaux:  “Oh my God—deep calls to deep.  The deep of my profound misery call to the deep of Your Infinite Mercy.” 

Prayer Project:
Each morning this week--
·  Ask God to search your heart. (Psalm 139)
·  Ask God and your own soul what it means to be a living sacrifice in your daily life.

·  Search your own heart for who you think you are—a role that you hold on earth, or “in Christ”.  Confess those things to God.

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