Wonderous Encounters: Scripture For Lent, by Richard Rohr

A series of meditations to help transform us in the image of God during our Lenten journey.

In Pursuit of Silence: Listening For Meaning In a World of Noise, by George Prochnik

One man's search to be attentive to the wonder of the moment. His experiences include an abbey retreat.

Sacred Space For Lent 2011, by Irish Jesuits

Concise and thoughtful readings and prayers for anyone who is busy or desires to be more connected to God.

Run With The Horses, by Eugene Peterson

A series of reflections on the life of Jeremiah and the call to ask, trust, and pursue excellence with freedom and purpose.

Diet For A Hot Planet, by Anna Lappe

How daily food choices contribute to climate change by looking at the costs of what we put into our bodies.

Being The Church In The Midst Of Empire, edited by Karen Bloomquist

Essays by different theologians (both national and international) on the temptation to be complicit and the call to critique, challenge, and live out transforming alternatives grounded in the triune God.

• First, it makes materials inviting and available by keeping the room open, clean and well-organized. A useful phrase for a Godly Play room is, "This material is for you. You can touch this and work with this when you want to. If you haven't had the lesson, ask one of the other children or the storyteller to show it to you." Children walking into a Godly Play classroom take delight at all the fascinating materials calling out to them. These materials say, "This room is for you."

• Second, it encourages responsible stewardship of the shared materials by helping children learn how to take care of the room themselves. When something spills, we could quickly wipe it up ourselves, of course. Instead, by helping children learn to take care of their own spills, we communicate to them the respect we have for their own problem-solving capabilities. At the end of work time, each child learns to put away materials carefully. In fact, some children may want to choose cleaning work--dusting or watering plants--for their entire response time.

• Third, it provides a respectful place for children's work by reserving space in the room for ongoing or finished projects. When a child is still working on a project at the end of work time, reassure him or her by saying, "This project will be here for you next week. You can take as many weeks as you need to finish it. We never lose work in a Godly Play room." Sometimes children want to give a finished piece of work to the room. Sometimes children want to take either finished or unfinished work home. These choices are theirs to make, and ours to respect.

• Fourth, it sets a leisurely pace that allows children to engage deeply in their chosen responses. This is why it's better to do no more than build the circle, share a feast and lovingly say goodbye when we are pressed for time rather than rush through a story and time of art response. When we tell a story, we want to allow enough time for leisurely wondering together. When we provide work time, we want to allow enough time for children to become deeply engaged in their work. In their wondering or their work, children may be dealing with deep issues--issues that matter as much as life and death. Provide them a nourishing space filled with safe time for this deep work.