On Saint Patrick's Day, we thought it would be nice to share here some simple, everyday prayers from the Christian Celtic tradition that have blessed us over the years.  They had prayers that acknowledged the presence of God in the simplest of human activities--milking a cow, stoking a fire, extinguishing a fire, rising and retiring, and embarking on a journey, to name a few.

Below are some of those prayers:

(Excerpts from the Carmina Gadelica taken from The Celtic Vision. Edited by...

While I was writing the first draft of my next book, An Unhurried Leader: The Lasting Fruit of Daily Influence, I enjoyed a few days at a friend’s remote home in Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic. One of the rhythms I practiced was morning prayer using the morning lectionary* passages.

My habit is often to take a meaningful verse or two from my readings to reflect on and pray through in my journal. It is a discipline that helps me pray the scriptures. Below is a journal entry from one of...

When we are hurried inside, serving others may be the last thing on our minds or in our hearts. We may feel there is so much on our plate that doing something for others is beyond our bandwidth. But that kind of hurry is unreal.

Our first work is not our already-too-long to-do list. Our first work as followers of Jesus is the work of Jesus, whether our job is at a church or non-profit or not.

Serving others does not always require heroic, time-intensive efforts. We can serve another in any...

I’m writing this post in a moment of solitude from a third-floor guest room at the Sustainable Faith Indy urban retreat house in Indianapolis, Indiana. We have been hosted by our friends, Dave & Beth Booram. We enjoyed holding a talk and book signing for An Unhurried Life here during our visit. (By the way, I’ve enjoyed Beth’s most recent book, Starting Something New: Spiritual Direction for Your God-Given Dream, especially in light of launching Unhurried Living in the...

“I do not believe that sheer suffering teaches. If suffering alone taught, all the world would be wise, since everyone suffers. To suffering must be added mourning, understanding, patience, love, openness, and the willingness to remain vulnerable.” (Anne Morrow Lindbergh)

The process about which Lindbergh speaks takes time. Each word she uses (mourning, understanding, patience, love, openness, willingness) is an unfolding.

One of the key words is openness. As I remain open to...

I want to tell you about an unhurried practice I've been engaging for a few months now. For my last birthday, I was given an especially beautiful present. One of the disciplines that has been an important part of my spiritual journey over the years has been reading and reflecting on scripture. For many years recently, I have read the Bible on digital devices like my iPhone, iPad or computer screen. I found myself wanting to read a physical Bible again, but my most recent NIV Bible was so...

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I have found the practice of the examen to be a priceless and grace-giving one for me. I tend to be a more “glass-half-empty” kind of person, so noticing the grace of God in my recent experience helps me realize just how graced my life actually is.

Typically, I take a moment at the end of my day to reflect on my experience since the morning, looking for ways in which I experienced God’s grace in my life or through my life.

At Unhurried Living, we seek to inspire Christian leaders around the world to rest deeper so they can live fuller and lead better.

Rest deeper. How does that happen?

There is certainly more than one answer to that question, but let's just say that it doesn’t always involve days away for retreat or vacation. Sometimes “rest deeper” can happen in just a few minutes. It’s a focus of soul, not just an emptying of our schedule.

In a recent article in Prevention...

Scroll to the bottom of this post to download a free Retreat eBook that includes a schedule for a 24-hour retreat, with options for a half-day and full-day retreats.

Over the years, I’ve led or been part of countless retreats: youth retreats, couples retreats, men’s retreats (never a woman’s retreat—surprise!), leadership retreats, strategic planning retreats, spiritual retreats. What I’ve learned is that there a lot of different ideas out there about what...

Watching television lately has been so painful. Have you been watching the news? So much conflict. So many harsh words. So many accusations and insults. And how about those presidential debates? When's the last time you heard a good word--a word of blessing?

It’s made me think that it would be so helpful to rediscover, as a culture, the language of blessing. I’m not talking about saying a prayer before you eat. I don’t just mean having your pastor say something at the...