Quick, No-Nonsense, and Profound - Matthew Leonard's "Pray Like a Saint"

Back in October I posted a video from the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology's Matthew Leonard where he shared how one of my favorite saints (Ignatius of Antioch) "drop kicked" him into the Catholic Church.  As the good Lord would have it, Matt attended an event here in St. Louis the next month; and I was able to meet him in person. He was every bit the down-to-earth, knowledgeable guy I had seen in the video.  So when I attended Mass earlier this week and saw his CD Pray Like a Saint in the Lighthouse Media rack, I had to pick up a copy.

Wow - you do not want to miss this.  In less than 50 min. Matt takes us through the three stages of prayer: vocal, meditative, and contemplative - and gives solid explanations of each.  He is a natural communicator who easily uses humor and plain language to deliver the insights of the greatest pray-ers known to Christianity.  He walks that awesome Catholic line of the "both/and" - showing how prayer is meant to be both communal and personal, "ready-made" and spontaneous, a discipline and a gift.  And he breaks it down into principles and steps that even the most green of beginners can understand and start using.  The message that comes through loud and clear is that God wants to take every single one of us to the absolute heights of prayer.  I listened to it again just today, with my kids in the car (ages 8 and 12) on the way to grandma and grandpa's; and it was awesome having to pause it because they wanted to chime in with their thoughts!

I hope you'll give it a listen.  Here is the direct link to Lighthouse Catholic Media, where you can hear a sample.  (Oh, and check out the FREE Catholic Study Bible app they offer while you're at it!) Happy listening!