Pray As You Can

Read this in "Sacred Space" this morning and it made me think:

"One of the chief dead-ends in developing my spiritual life is to want to have someone else's spiritual life. If, for instance, I visit a convent one day, or see a monastery on TV, I may find myself thinking, 'I wish I could pray like them.' But if I am a school teacher, or an accountant, or looking after my children all day, then that rhythm of prayer may just not be suited to me. Pray as you can, not as you can't is an obvious maxim, but one that is frequently overlooked, leading to a lot of unrealistic expectations and frustration."

"Finding my own rhythm, a way of praying that suits me, may involve some experimentation with times and places and with different styles and approaches. At times I will need to persevere and not give up on something too easily. I also need, however, to be prepared to say, 'This doesn't work for me.' Finding a way of praying I can sustain is an important step in developing my relationship with God."

Isn't that encouraging? First off, it reminds me that we are all called to pray. It's not an optional piece of life. We were created to interact and be in relationship with God, and prayer is a major component in that journey. The struggle shouldn't be, "should I pray" but rather "how should I pray". Find ways that help you engage with God. Sometimes I journal my prayers because it helps me focus. Praying out loud helps me remained focused as well. Silent prayer doesn't work as well for me, simply because I start thinking about a million other things. Going on walks around the neighborhood is a great exercise as well. If you're not sure to pray, start with prayers you know. Open up the Psalms, or perhaps pray the Lord's Prayer. Let those prayers start the journey but then open up to other prayer pieces. Be honest with God. Tell him how you're feeling.

The other thing this quote did was give us freedom to be who we are. Comparison brings one of two things: pride or shame. Pride because you've assessed yourself next to someone else, and you fared well. Shame because in the comparison, the other person looks better than you and you feel "less than". Neither are good, healthy postures. Good self-assessment is welcome, but one should never be shamed into trying harder. The motivation should always be, "God, shape me to be who you've made me to be. Continue to create where I've destroyed, continue to grow where I've withered. Make me truly alive."

Lastly, I'd encourage you to find some books on prayer to read. Pick up books that address the understanding of prayer like Richard Foster's "Prayer", CS Lewis' "Letters to Malcolm", Anthony Bloom's "Beginning To Pray", or Eugene Peterson's "Answering God: The Psalms As Tools For Prayer". Also consider books that actually call you to pray along with them like the Puritan's "Valley of Vision", Walter Brueggemann's "Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth", Phyllis Tickle's "The Divine Hours", or the Jesuit's "Sacred Space".

Would we be a people who pray regularly as God has made us to be. It's in that place that we'll continue to be shaped and refined.