Last week saw the start (for some!) of the Prayer Course that is taking place in some of our House Groups and on a Wednesday evening in the Hope Chapel on 7pm, and what a wonderful way for us to start but to start with adoration and praise. There were 16 of us who gathered together and reflected on what prayer meant to us and what we expected from it.
The course introduced this very simple way to pray which I have found helpful as a kind of structure particularly in those times when prayer isn’t coming naturally. The idea is to use the letters P.R.A.Y.
Starting withPause, to take time before we charge into prayer, to actually slow down and think I am talking to God, and then to Rejoice, to praise God because we know who He is, and what He has done for us, before we then move onto our requests or our Ask, where we come before God and ask for healing, for help, for reconciliation, for peace, for love for ourselves, for our family and community and our world. And then we come to the last letter which is to Yield this is a time in our prayer time where we listen to God and accept the situation, and to take time for hope and response to carry us through the day. I am a very big fan of an App that you can download onto your phone which can help you to go through this process called Lectio 365. It lasts around 10mins each morning and then a further 10mins at night, and you can either read or listen. Each session ends with this prayer which I think is beautiful:
Father help me to live this day to the full,
Being true to you, in every way.
Jesus, help me to give myself away to others,
Being kind to everyone I meet.
Spirit help me to love the lost,
Proclaiming Christ in all I do and say.
Amen
Remember that each week you can also join St Peters who lead Morning Prayer each Tuesday and Thursday on St Petes Facebook page, at 9am. You will also see that Jenni is asking for suggestions for prayer to go in this newsheet. What is God asking of you this week? What do we need prayer for, to be shared between us so that as a body we can pray specifically for one another. Please get in touch with Jenni via the office.
