He said that faith was sufficient to bring us to a high degree of perfection. Instead of taking faith for the rule of their conduct, men amused themselves with trivial devotions which changed daily. He said we ought to quicken and enliven our faith. The following year, in a second publication which he titled, ‘The Practice of the Presence of God’, de Beaufort included, as introductory material, the content of four conversations he had with Brother Lawrence. Joseph de Beaufort, representative, and counsel to the local archbishop, first published the letters in a small pamphlet. It was not until after his death that a few of his letters were collected. For some forty years, he lived and walked with God at his side. While repairing sandals or working in the kitchen, Brother Lawrence discovered and then followed a pure and uncomplicated way to walk continually in God’s presence. After fifteen years, his duties were shifted to the sandal repair shop but, even then, he often returned to the busy kitchen to help out. Brother Lawrence Learned to Be in God’s Presence While Doing ChoresĪt mid-life he entered a newly established monastery in Paris where he became the cook for the community which grew to over one hundred members. He was well-read and, from an early age, drawn to a spiritual life of faith and love for God. Brother Lawrence was educated by a parish priest whose first name was Lawrence and who was greatly admired by the young Nicolas.
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