- The Lord's Prayer
- Prayers in the Bible
- Two methods of prayer - "cathedral prayer" and "monastic prayer".
This was my problem:
I wonder what you thought of the passage about “cathedral prayer” and “monastic prayer”, Lord? Did it seem unhelpful to you? Why do you think the course staff put it in?
Are they just trying to draw a distinction between individual and corporate prayer do you think? Can they really be separated? Does it matter?
Would you have liked the group to have learned about the prayer of agreement? I sort of feel you would, but there is not much else coming through, Lord. If you want me to get hold of some new ideas here, I’m going to need the help of your Spirit.
In a way, the problem got worse today, although I certainly felt that God had given me a set of situations that gave an answer. The problem is worse now because the answer I think I got is that there is a lot to pray about, and God isn't so much bothered by how we pray as that we do pray. There are the big issues like the persecuted church, mission, justice and peace; there are the caring issues like praying for people we know who need our prayers; there are the events and plans of each day and the people we meet in each day. God is in the detail of our lives and it's there we encounter him and line ourselves up with his saving, healing, creative purposes.
Lest I lapse into making myself and my concerns the centre of the universe, there are also the prayers that God initiates as he speaks to us through his word (the Bible), through his Church and its liturgy, through the community of the saints and through his Holy Spirit.
This I am sure is not what the course team want to hear! I shall think about it some more tomorrow, as I prepare the intercessions for Sunday's Family Service and Baptism, and on Sunday evening, when the service and the celebration are over.
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