Council for Health and Human Service Ministries

Word and Deed: Thoughts on Faith-Based Leadership

Provocative Prayer for Passionate Spirits

During our Annual Meeting, March 1-4 in Louisville, author Wayne Muller will share his reflections on Sabbath. Muller is sure to lend us all insight and clarity on a subject that many of us take for granted--rest. As our lives move faster and faster, often with little or no seeming relief, prayer is an essential practice that can help us to rest.

What is prayer? It is sometimes described as a means to an end, but it is more than that. It is unlimited in its scope and has no specific form. Prayer can be as simple as one word or can flow like poetry from a babbling brook--complex, romantic, raw, unintelligible, guttural, and as diverse as the many cultures from which it stems. Prayer is multi-dimensional in its appeal and affect. Regardless of its form, prayer is communion with the divine and is often described as a conversation with God. The virtues of prayer are many, and learning to pray in a way that is fulfilling and meaningful to you can make a significant difference in your life.

Muller examines the mystery of prayer in a gem of a book titled Learning to Pray--How We Find Heaven on Earth. "...What should prayer feel like and what is it supposed to accomplish? Should we pray to get everything we want or should we pray instead to accept what we have been given? Or does prayer offer something deeper, beyond measurable purpose or affect, serving instead as a precious invitation to simply rest deeply in the gentle, loving company of the Divine?" Each chapter offers a portion of the Lord's Prayer, deepened through story and the author's personal experiences. As a discipline, this simple prayer can become a powerful practice to add to your life as you discover the significance of the rhythm of rest.

THE LORD'S PRAYER

OUR
When we pray, we never pray alone
FATHER
We are beloved children of a living Creator, sons and daughters of a Mother-Father God
WHO ART IN HEAVEN
Heaven is everywhere, in everything, in every moment. We need only open our hearts to find it.
HALLOWED BE THY NAME
When we pray, we stand on holy ground, we consent to be surprised by a rich and sacred mystery.
THY KINGDOM COME
We are always welcome in the household of God.
THY WILL BE DONE
We are in loving hands; there are wise and subtle forces that guide and protect us every moment.
ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN
We enter the household of heaven when we live fully awake on the earth
GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD
Everything we need for this day is given to us lovingly and freely.
FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES
When we acknowledge and confess our errors and mistakes, to ourselves and to God, deep, genuine healing begins.
AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US
When we offer forgiveness to others, it becomes a powerful sacrament that sets us free.
LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION
Our temptations are our greatest teachers; they clearly mirror the unresolved confusions of the heart and soul, and allow us to heal them.
DELIVER US FROM EVIL
When we honestly and courageously face the evils we have nourished in ourselves and in the world, we begin to plant the seeds of heaven on earth.
FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM, THE POWER, AND THE GLORY
Everything--love, joy, sorrow, grace, the earth, life itself--all belongs to God.
FOREVER AND EVER,
AMEN
We are, always and forever, through the practice of prayer, invited to rest in the loving arms of our Creator.

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