A friend commended a delightful little book Brother Lawrence: A Christian Zen Master. Lawrence was a Carmelite monk born in France in the 17th century. He left no biography or theological treatise. He considered himself to be clumsy and awkward…an ordinary kind of guy. This book presents some Zen sayings alongside words of Brother Lawrence. I really related to this one:
Brother Lawrence: “I can’t always maintain my focus on God, of course. I’ll suddenly discover that I’ve barely given God a thought for a good long while. Usually, what gets my attention is that I’ll notice how wretched I’m feeling-and then I’ll realize I’ve forgotten God’s presence. But I don’t worry about it much. I just turn back to God immediately. And having realized how miserable I am when I forget God, my trust in God is always that much greater.”
Mahaparinirvana Sutra: “When the moon sets, people say that the moon has disappeared: and when the moon rises, they say that the moon has appeared. In fact, the moon neither goes nor comes, but shines continually in the sky. Buddha is exactly like the moon; He neither appears nor disappears; He only seems to do so out of love for the people that He may teach them.”