Prayer Chapel at Sainte Chapelle
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the LORD.
Psalm 40:1-3 [RSV]
"Prayer" is just another word for communication between us and Someone who loves us more than we will ever be able to imagine. That Someone is God. It is hard to imagine that the Creator of the universe cares for each one of us individually, but that is the promise of Scripture. Prayer is talking to the God who desires to know us and to be our closest friend.
Prayer is a dialogue. We talk and we listen; God talks and God listens. Like any form of communication, prayer takes practice. It is hard work to be still and listen. It is hard work to learn to speak the innermost fears and desires of our hearts. But there is nothing more wonderful, more refreshing, more liberating and more empowering than prayer.
If you haven't spent time with God today, won't you take a minute right now?
I'm new to this. How do I get started?
The only "wrong" way to pray is not to pray at all! You don't need special words or a special formula to get God's attention. Simply tell God about your joys and sorrows, your needs and your celebrations. If you get stuck, use some of the prayer resources that are available as a starting point. Here are some examples:
Pray some of the great prayers from the Bible. The Bible is full of prayers. One of the most familiar is the Lord's Prayer, or the "model" prayer:
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.
Amen.
Matthew 6:9-13
Many people pray the Psalms, which is a venerable part of the Christian tradition:
Thou whose glory above the heavens is chanted by the mouth of babes and infants,
thou hast founded a bulwark because of thy foes,
to still the enemy and the avenger.
When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,
the moon and the stars which thou hast established;
what is man that thou art mindful of him,
and the son of man that thou dost care for him?
Yet thou hast made him little less than God,
and dost crown him with glory and honor.
Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy hands;
thou hast put all things under his feet,
all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the sea.
O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth!
Psalm 8
There are also many beautiful prayers written by the Saints throughout the history of the Church. One example is this well known prayer of St. Francis:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Use one of the prayers in a devotional guide or a prayer book as a starting point. Here is an example from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer:
ALMIGHTY God, Father of all mercies, we thine unworthy servants do give thee most humble and hearty thanks for all thy goodness and loving-kindness to us, and to all men. We bless thee for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all, for thine inestimable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we beseech thee, give us that due sense of all thy mercies, that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful, and that we shew forth thy praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives; by giving up ourselves to thy service, and by walking before thee in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.
Keep a prayer list. Write down what you prayed for and when the answer comes, write it down as well. It will become a constant reminder of the power of prayer!
We have a prayer list here at Sainte Chapelle. If you have a reason to give thanks, or a special petition, leave it here and I'll join with you in prayer.
Remember: It takes time to become comfortable in prayer, but it is well worth the effort and time!
by Larry Holder.