Recorded MP3 audio meditations: downloads and audio streams, written reflections and contemplative resources by Dorinda Miller

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Letters to Corinne

40 Winks, 40 Days, 40 Years: What’s so special about 40? Part 4

Tuesday, March 1st, 2016

What’s so special about 40? Part 4

Dear Corinne,

I am delighted to hear that you have embarked on the 40 Day Journey with the Daily Office by Peter Scazzero. Keep me posted as to how you get on!

I am aware that people respond differently at different times to the same book. As the saying goes, “One man’s meat is another man’s poison.” Not that I am suggesting, for one moment, that there could be terminal consequences from reading this book! Although there could be eternal ones!

Sometimes, I have found that I have struggled with a book, that has particularly impacted some of my close friends. Even though it has been recommended to me, I have put the book to one side. Often further down the line, I have found myself picking it up again and finding it insightful and encouraging At other times a book has been just perfect for where I was at.

I have also found that there have been times when I have come across a book, felt compelled to read it and in so doing, have discovered it is like a piece of the jigsaw of my life. By that I mean it illuminates further, an area that I have been pondering on, or God has been speaking me about. The book highlights, encourages, confirms, a stage, season or process that I am currently experiencing.

So how did I get on with this book? Well, as the saying goes, “like a house on fire”! The weekly themes resonated strongly with me. Every day provided more revelation and understanding and I just soaked it up like a sponge and relished it!

After a long season of silence and solitude, it provided a transition from one pattern of prayer, to a new one. I sensed that the extended time of silent prayer was coming to an end…….. but I was reluctant to let go!

About half way through the 40 day journey, I was flicking through Joyce Huggett’s book Listening to God, which I have read a number of times, and was amazed to be reminded that she too had experienced this shift from silence and contemplation to action. She dismantled her prayer room and set up a small prayer corner in her study and developed a new routine, which fitted in with her calling to write books!

I had sensed I needed to move from my sitting room, with its beautiful views of the park, golf course and countryside, to my kitchen! Encouraged by her experience I did just that and embraced a new rhythm of prayer! So far so good!

In the next letter we will look at another 40 Day Journey. Namely, Draw the Circle – The 40 Day Prayer Challenge by Mark Batterson.

Keep journeying on, recording your reflections/insights, and take time to stop and rest along the way!
with love,
sig-dorinda-web

Written by Dorinda Miller; © D Miller 2016. For full credits please see the site credits page
This letter is from the series: '40 Winks, 40 Days, 40 Years'