Much of the prayer of the Church of England is corporate, that is to say we do it together and this is reflected in much of what you will say when you recite Morning Prayer or Evening Prayer. Yet there is another side to our prayer life, our own individual prayers, as we try to share in Christ's prayer to his Father, that his will be done, his kingdom come.
The advice we provide here was originally written for a children's book. However, whether you are a child, young person or an adult, prayer is easier than you might imagine! Millions of people of every age pray every day.
You don't have to know any prayers if you want to pray - in fact, words can often get in the way. Picture Jesus, and then say what is in your heart, what you feel.
Remember!
God hears every prayer - but not all prayers are answered in the way we might expect or desire: we don't always pray for his will to be done!
'Arrow' Prayers
can be offered to God anywhere, at any time.
But thankfully we don't live all our lives in moments of extreme crisis. What about day-to-day praying? We need to come closer to God, to experience His love for us and to try to make sense of where we are in the world. Prayer is the way we do this.
How to start?
Use your hand.
Your fingers can be used to bring to mind different things to pray for.
thumb
this is the strongest digit on your hand. Give thanks for all the strong things in your life, like home and family, relationships that support and sustain you.
index finger
this is the pointing finger. Pray for all those people and things in your life who guide and help you. Friends, teachers, doctors, nurses, emergency services and so on.
middle finger
this is the tallest finger. Pray for all the important people who have power in the world, like world leaders and their governments, members of parliament and local councillors, the Royal Family, other world leaders and their governments.
ring finger
this is the weakest finger on your hand. It can not do much by itself. Remember the poor, the weak, the helpless, the hungry, the sick, the ill and the bereaved.
little finger
this is the smallest and the last finger on your hand. Pray for yourself.
When should I pray?
Traditionally, prayer times have been morning and evening, but you can choose a time which is best for you. It helps to be somewhere quiet, where you can have some time for yourself.
Do I have to kneel?
Kneeling is the traditional posture for penitence and standing for praise, but you can pray anywhere - walking, standing, sitting, whatever feels comfortable.
What else do I need to know?
Be creative - use music, a stone, a feather, a flower, or a candle to help you focus - if you are very young, or elderly, be careful with candles!
Prayer activity is a discipline - it can be difficult at times, just like keeping fit, being on a diet, or keeping weeds down in the garden! Little and often is best, but don't give up! No prayer, however inadequate you may feel it to be, is ever wasted or of no value.
What next?
Build up a collection of favourite prayers and sayings -anything that speaks to you. You can find them in greeting cards, cuttings in the press or bookmarks and prayer cards. You could make a scrapbook for them.
Visit your local church bookshop and have a browse. Most cathedrals have shops with good resources.
Here are some books you might find helpful. The first two are designed for children, young people and families, but they contain very powerful material which is ideal for adults who are new to praying.
Pocket Prayers for Children - Christopher Herbert, pub NS/CHP 1993,
When You Pray - Gilling/Evans, pub Darton Longman &Todd (1995)
Praying through Life - Stephen Cottrell, pub NS/CHP 1998
Confirmation Prayer Book - Stephen Lake, pub SPCK 2002
Extract from Children and Holy Communion - Diana Murrie and Steve Pearce, pub NS/CHP 1997 is copyright © Diana Murrie and Steve Pearce and is reproduced by permission Church House Publishing. This extract edited in 2003 by Rt Revd David Stancliffe.
There are many, many more designed to help people like you. Prayer is life-enhancing. Try it!
About Meditation by Theresiu Janicki-Hardy
The vicar and I recently had a lovely conversation together. We talked about God, silence, prayer and I shared with him that I have been practising meditation for 30 years and I have also been teaching this to others and running meditation groups. The vicar kindly invited me to write in the Octagon about meditation.
There are many ways to meditate and nowadays the word is used very freely, from relaxing and calming the mind, to a spiritual practice. I personally use meditation to deepen my spiritual life, which is the true purpose of meditation and for which it has been used over the ages. Focussing and calming of the mind, improved health and other positive side effects will naturally follow. Meditation is a way, through the use of simple techniques, to still the mind, so that in stillness we may become attuned and commune deeply with God. “Be still and know that I am God”, can become a much greater reality to you in deep meditation.
The mind, which is busy with all our engagements in life, is like a glass filled with muddy water, which has been shaken. When we sit down to meditate we become very aware of this restlessness and observe the mind going off in all directions. But when you leave the glass with muddy water to stand for a little while, the mud settles at the bottom and the water becomes clear. So it is when we take the mind into meditation: it becomes beautifully still and clear and in that stillness we can deepen our communion with the divine.
There are simple ways to begin to practice meditation. It is important to sit very still in an upright position and then you can focus your mind, for example on your breath, or a mantra or a saying of Christ or the Gospels, or another positive statement, repeating it with deepest attention over and over again: such as: My Father and I are One; or I am One with Christ ; or I am Peace; or Peace fills my Being, etc. .
When the mind wanders, you gently and patiently bring it back to your meditation. After a while the mind becomes still and a deep peace and stillness can be experienced. That stillness in your mind and heart becomes the meeting place for your divine communion.
Although there are more advanced techniques of meditation, which can take you more deeply into the stillness, even a simple form of meditation, as explained above, can greatly enhance and deepen our spiritual practice. It also helps us to practise more easily the presence of God in our daily life, as practised by St. Lawrence and mentioned in an earlier article in the Octagon by the Vicar. As one saint expressed: “Whisper in my ears of silence, the way to be with You always”.
You can begin by setting aside 10 to 20 minutes to meditate daily, and include in that time at the end deep prayer. Meditation can be practised by people of all ages and all denominations, and is very beneficial for young people and even children. If you would like some help with more specifics about the practice of meditation I would be more than happy to help.