Editorial Review:
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The Practice of the Presence of God is among the most enduringly popular of all Christian devotional works. It is a collection of conversations with a simple seventeenth-century French Carmelite monk who, through the simplest of everyday activities, was able to achieve a profound intimacy with God. Brother Lawrence's teaching has resonated with Christians for more than three hundred years, and it is fitting that it is now available in this beautiful edition with a fine full-cloth cover, a sewn binding, and a ribbon marker.
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Reader Reviews for The Practice of the Presence of God:
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Customer Rating:  
Summary: Not an easy book to read, but provides good guides to hear better from God
Comment: Occasionally my Christian brethren will mention Brother Lawrence. It was only when this book was given to me that I understood why Brother Lawrence was oft so mentioned. This book is a little difficult to read as it is not translated well, meaning the flow of English words seem at times awkward. But on further probing and gathering of thoughts, one should be able to understand the main gist of the passage.
This book has 2 sections. The first section, The practice of the Presence of God, consists primarily of conversations and letters. It gives an introduction of who Brother Lawrence was, a French monk who worked in the kitchen in the monastery. He was able to find time to talk with God and honor Him, even when working with pots and pans. Brother Lawrence spoke with words of wisdom, very much like King Solomon. He mentioned that "many do not advance in the Christian progress because they tend to stick to penances and particular exercises, while neglecting the love of God". He encouraged by saying "all things are possible to him who believes; that they are less difficult to him who hopes; that they are more easy to him who loves and still more easy to him who perseveres in the practice of these 3 virtues". He noted that "the greater perfection a soul aspires after, the more dependent it is upon divine grace".
The second section, The Spiritual Maxims of Brother Lawrence, conveys the character of Brother Lawrence and the spiritual maxims. Brother Lawrence, through the spiritual maxims, shared his thought of how one can get closer to God.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Straightforward and profound
Comment: This short book has had a profound impact on my spiritual life. Brother Lawrence set himself the task of living with a conscious awareness of God's presence and in constant dialogue with God. He found immense joy and satisfaction in doing so. After reading this, I set myself about the same task, and I can say that although I have been doing it only for about four months, I have experienced tiny glimpses of what he talks about. (He says that to develop the habit takes about ten years, and I think he means for a monk, so I think it will likely take me longer.) I find this book very enlightening and encouraging, and have re-read it a number of times.
A word of caution, though: the benefits of practicing the presence of God depend on you actually wanting to know and be with God. People have a lot of different motivations for their religious practice, and I have found that even some highly motivated religious people are really interested in parts of spirituality other than knowing God. (This is not a criticism, just an observation.) If your motivation for your spirituality is something else, then you probably won't find this book very useful, any more than a person interested in, say, yoga would find interesting a book on, say, football. I found myself working through some of these issues only *after* setting out to practice the presence of God, so this heads-up might save you some time.
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Summary: Great meditation book. Fast delivery.
Comment: Great meditation book. The service was great. Fast delivery. I love Amazon!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Some good insights
Comment: Brother Lawrence was a Catholic monk, so he did some things that I don't agree are Biblical (like suppressing his outward expression of the joy he felt in God and deliberately increasing his suffering from a physical problem so that he could suffer for his sins). He also never quoted Scripture to support his points (though often there was Scripture he could have used). However, overall, the book was God-focused and had some good insights.
Due to the style of writing, it often took some thought for me to work out what he meant. The Spiritual Maxims were the more organized and easier to read of the two.
Overall, this book may help people who are seeking insight on gaining a constant awareness of God and finding joy in His presence.
Review by Debbie from ChristFocus Book Club (christfocusbookclub. blogspot. com)
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Summary: An inspiration to leading practitioners of prayer
Comment: Brother Lawrence fell in love with the God of love when he was 18, and, as a lay brother of the Carmelites in Paris, spent the rest of his life in a lively communing with God at all hours of the day and night, even when working in the kitchen among the pots and pans. A "M. Beaufort" interviewed him in 1666, and Beaufort's notes, together with some letters that Brother Lawrence wrote, have become the basis of this now-classic collection. Both the conversations and the letters contain examples and suggestions as to how such a communion can be sustained.
Other writers on prayer often point back to Brother Lawrence as the example of what prayer at its best really is, which is that constant conversational relationship with a living and very present God.
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