Margaret Felice

  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Media
  • Calendar
    • Upcoming Performances
    • Upcoming Speaking Events
  • Speaking
  • Publications
  • Performance
    • Biography
    • Repertoire
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

The Thinking Person’s Devotional: This Fearsome Thing of Grace

November 25, 2011 · Filed Under: faith, grace, Scripture, writing ·

Many things have slipped from my routine the last few months: writing, running, and practicing among them. Unfortunately I have also devoted less time to my prayer life, something that has me chagrined, even as I try to convince myself that this is just a season, and that all the things I can’t quite fit as often as I would like these days will continue to be a part of my life.

I was already planning to find a prayer book for Advent, in hopes that I could kick start my prayer during this liturgical season I love so much. I was thrilled to discover that blogger, tweeter and friend Preston Yancey had published an e-book with daily reflections based on the Scripture readings in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. He was gracious enough to let me preview a copy, and I am happy to report it exceeds my (high) expectations.

My conversion to iPad has been recent and reluctant, so I wasn’t sure how I would like the e-book format. Uncharacteristically, I approached it with an open mind, and found This Fearsome Thing of Grace extremely easy to read. Preston includes links to the readings of each day, adding to the ease of use.

Most days’ reflections tease out a particular line from the Scripture. Preston brings his diverse knowledge to these Scriptural nuggets, using literature, history, patristics, and liturgy to suss out a particular theme in the readings. This is no thoughtless piety but a close reading of Scripture, history, and the signs of the times. The richness of these reflections is impressive and inspiring.

The danger, of course, when being so comprehensive in one’s reflections is that what should be a prayer book turns into a book report. Preston avoids this peril. This Fearsome Thing of Grace is obviously written by someone with a prayer life. Through each reflection he never loses sight of the mystery of the Incarnation, that what we marvel at throughout Advent is that “Christ our Lord hallowed this wounded thing we call body” as we wait in joyful hope for Christ to come again.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email
  • More
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Pocket
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit

Related

Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

More about Margaret

Subscribe to Blog

Sign up to get my posts delivered to your inbox.
How often would you like to receive updates?

Recent Posts

  • A place for grief to go
  • Post-op
  • Eating a tomato sandwich in October
  • Stubbornness and grace
  • Of Streets at Night

Topics I’ve Written About:

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets
  • Home
  • About
  • Biography
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Media
  • Performance
  • Publications
  • Repertoire
  • Speaking

Search

© 2022 Margaret Felice · Headshots by Earl Christie · Website by Little Leaf Design

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.