“To pray is to descend with the mind into the heart, and [there ascend] to stand before the face of the Lord, ever present, all seeing, within you [and on the throne].”
- Theophan the Recluse
Growing up, most of us were told to pray before bed and before meals and we saw our preacher do it on Sundays, but we never put much thought into what it actually was. At times we think of it as a check list and duty. Last Wednesday at InterVarsity, Ann gave a great definition of prayer to shake loose these misconceptions, that "prayer is conversation between two people in love, you and Jesus." Like any conversation, if you don't know the person very well, it can be awkward. But as you talk more and get comfortable, great friendships can form. Many of us never get past small talk with God, having only brief awkward interactions followed by days or weeks of silence. But if we want to get to know God, our Creator, our Abba Father, we must talk to Him. Without communication relationships die. But different people communicate in different ways and having deep convos every time you chat with a friend wears you out. Sometimes you just want to catch up or hang out.
Inspired by that thought I have put together a list of 19 different kinds of prayer which can help us communicate with God in a variety of ways. I took these from a book called Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by Adele Calhoun as well as my own experience in InterVarsity and Vineyard. It is extensive but not comprehensive. They range from contemplative silent prayers, to prayers that get you moving, to group prayers. My hope is that you will bookmark this page and use it as a resource for connecting to God when your prayer gets a little stale, because every relationship needs to change things up sometimes. Build your relationship with God! Get praying!
1. Breathe Prayer - form of contemplative prayer linked to the rhythms of breathing: 1) breathe in, calling on a biblical name of image of God, and 2) breathe out in a simple God-given desire. E.g. (breathe in) “Jesus, Son of David” (breathe out) “have mercy on me, a sinner.” You may also pray a short verse. (In) “The Lord is my shepherd” (out) “I shall not be in want.” Recall this prayer throughout the day as a way to re-focus on God, practice being in His presence, and pray continually.
2. Centering Prayer - a form of contemplative prayer where the pray-er seeks to quiet scattered thoughts and desires in the still center of Christ’s presence. Set a timer for 10-15 minutes, settle into a comfortable position, tell God you are intentionally placing yourself in His presence, then choose a simple word, phrase, name of God, or verse that expresses your desire for God. Perhaps read a psalm then pick something that resonated with you. Allow yourself to be still and become quiet as you focus on that word or phrase and rest in His presence. As distracting thoughts come into your mind, gently bring your mind back to the word. You may come back to that word throughout the day to still yourself and remind yourself of God. Feel free to play around with different forms of contemplative prayer that stills your mind and rests in the presence of God.
Judging From A Google Search of 'prayer,' God doesn't hear you unless you're a silhouette.
3. Conversational Prayer - Engaging in a conversation with God by yourself or in a group. When alone, speak with God like you would a friend, engage in a dialogue about what is on your mind right then. Try to get alone by going for a walk or sitting in your car so you can speak to God out loud. In a group, engage in the conversation together, taking turns praying about topics briefly as you are led by each other and the Holy Spirit. This teaches us to speak with God naturally and unself-consciously, listening to His Spirit in response, avoiding the pressure of the pre-planned flowery prayers we think we need.
4. Fasting - the self-denial of normal necessities in order to intentionally attend to God in prayer for repentance, wisdom, or out of concern for others, yourself, and the world. It brings attachments and cravings to the surface as a reminder that Jesus alone can satisfy. It is also a practice of, like Paul, “keep our body under control,” to “live according to the Spirit” instead of the flesh, and to build a disciplined character which resists temptation. Fasts may include: food, drink, media (TV, social media, phone), comforts (naps, desert), etc for any length of time, but stick with it!
5. Fixed Hour Prayer - Regular and consistent patterns of attending to God throughout the day as a way of “sanctifying time” and building God into our everyday life. This may include setting a timer to pray at the top of every hour, taking the few minutes in between classes to pray, or taking a longer 10-15 prayer morning, afternoon, and evening. For 1,600 years the Order of St. Benedict have used a schedule of a night prayer, a waking-prayer, prayers for beginning work, giving-thanks prayers in mid-morning, noon-day prayer of commitment, a mid-afternoon prayer, an evening prayer of stillness, and a going to sleep prayer of trust. Feel free to be creative in your schedule or types of prayer used. What’s important is intentionally connecting to God at regular intervals throughout the day.
6. Healing Prayer - Contrary to what some may believe, God does still heal! Prayer is not magic and God is not bound to our requests but He is certainly able to heal and does, both physically and emotionally. Praying for healing can be scary because it puts us in the place of asking God to the miraculous and risking He may say no. But He can never say yes unless we ask! Seven words that can change someone's life are “Can I pray for you right now?” Prayer for physical healing may involve appropriately placing one’s hand on the injury (always ask!) and asking for God’s presence and kingdom to restore and heal the injury. In our culture, the need for emotional healing is even greater. Emotional healing means asking for God to bring to the surface wounds and lies that shape how we live and see the world, for Jesus to place himself in that place, and to take that wound and heal it. Listen to what he may be saying. We may have our own emotional wounds that we need to go to Jesus with as well.
7. Intercessory Prayer - Coming to God to intercede on behalf of yourself, others, or the world. It is a great mystery that God knows the desires of our hearts yet still wants us to ask Him and that He listens and responds to our prayer. Our prayer has direct effect in the world, especially in the spiritual realm, even if it may not seem like it. This is praying that God breaks our heart for what breaks His, for His Kingdom to come and will be done, for our family, friends, campus, country, and more. This may be done alone in a variety of ways such as prayer walk, as well as directly with someone, similar to healing prayer.
8. Labyrinth Prayer - Making a quiet, listening pilgrimage to God. Pilgrimages to the Holy Land were common practice for early Christians as a way of reconnecting with their roots and getting right before God. Later Christians began building their own labyrinth (like a really simple 3-D maze) to walk in order to replicate the experience. Today we may replicate the experience by going on a walk to some pre-planned destination, with the intention of getting away from distractions, centering yourself on Christ, sorting things out with God, and spending time with Him at the destination before returning renewed. We may go on a mental labyrinth prayer of sorts when we get alone with God and talk through a conflict or dilemma. Many today even use a pen to trace their way through a printed labyrinth to replicate the same experience. Just google “Labyrinth," like below.
9. Liturgical Prayer - Written or memorized prayer that serves as a framework for individual or corporate worship and devotion. This is what we do when we pray the Lord’s Prayer together or recite the Apostle’s Creed and is often used in a Catholic, Lutheran, or Anglican church service. Look up the Common Book of Prayer or search Liturgical Prayer to find other historical prayer that help us engage with our history and with God in a different way. This may also include praying a piece of scripture as your own such as Psalm 139 or Psalm 51 (also known as Scripture Prayer). In that vein you may insert your own name into a scripture as a way to personalize it.
10. Prayer Partner/Group - Regular gathering with trusted fellow believers to pray for each other, your communities, the world, or other needs. This is especially productive when formed around a common communities (sports team, fraternity, campus group). Prayer in the group may be done in a variety of ways. A “prayer meeting” may be a one time event for a specific cause.
11. Prayer of Recollection - a type of contemplative prayer with the specific purpose of relinquishing one’s false self, ego, pride, and culturally created identity in order to remember and “recollect” our God-given identity, and rest in the truth that we are a new creation, reborn, a son or daughter of God, and an heir to the King of Kings.
12. Prayer Walking - a way of praying for a particular location that you are concerned about by placing you in the actual geographical place and praying God’s kingdom to come and His spirit the be poured over over it. For example, walking around campus in order to pray for campus. Praying for the freshman dorms and all those within as you walk by, for Meredith, students and professors, as you walk by it. This often precludes a new beginning or a particular event such as praying for Greek street before a big party week or around the arts building before starting a drama ministry.
13. Praying in Tongues - Praying in tongues is a particular gift of the Spirit that not everyone has, so if you attempt it and it doesn’t come, that’s fine. You are equally valuable in the Body of Christ and gifted in other ways. However, praying in tongues is mysterious and weird, but also very valuable. Paul says that praying in tongues is the groans of the Spirit, speaking in tongues of men and angels, when our words are not enough. Practically, this happens in that moment of prayer when we run out of cognitive words to say but feel our soul burning to say more. When we simply let our vocal chords speak anyway, this is the Holy Spirit within us speaking through us. It is important that Paul says tongues edifies (instructs, improves) oneself, not others. It is possible for one to “interpret” the tongue (either because they hear it in their own language or are given a word by the Spirit) in a way that gives instruction to others. But this is the only time tongues should be done before the congregation/group, otherwise it is a private thing between you and God. For more about tongues, see: 1 Corinthians 12-14
14. Korean Prayer - A style of corporate adapted from Korean churches in which, rather than one person pray or every prays quietly, everyone in the assembly prays individually to God out loud.
15. Night Watch - Setting apart time late at night to forgo sleep and instead spend time in prayer, reading Scripture, and worship, connecting to God. During David’s reign, he had musicians and priests praying and worshipping 24/7 throughout the night. In a time when the rest of the world is sleeping, the Night Watch is a special way to set aside all distractions and spend extended time engaging with God. You may start off with any amount of time and build up to longer stretches. What’s important is setting an extended period of time that will allow to engage with God in a variety of ways. Think of watching the live feed of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, which has been doing 24/7 prayer since 1999 and has a group of people doing the Night Watch every night from 12-6AM.
16. Listening Prayer - A way of being still to hear from God. Prayer is not a monologue but a dialogue in which it is possible for God to respond in a variety of ways. Rarely does God speak through a loud booming voice but through a single word, phrase, scripture, or image. People often call this recieving “a word” from God. Do not feel discouraged if it seems awkward or difficult. Often it is difficult to tell the difference between God and our own thoughts but thought repetition we can learn to discern (and we could still be wrong). SImply take the time to still your mind, welcome the Holy Spirit, and ask God to speak. This may be done alone, directly for another person, or in a group setting. As you get comfortable hearing from God and make prayer a part of your everyday life, you may find yourself hearing God on a regular basis.
17. Treasure Hunt - This is listening prayer with a particular purpose and direction alone or in a group. You are asking God for revelation, signs, and divine appointments before you go out to an area, event, or campus. Time is spent in listening prayer as a group, with each person writing down words or images that come to mind. Each person then shares before the group goes out and looks for those images as a sign of where God wants them to go or what He wants them to do. Again, don’t be discouraged! It’s amazing how many images people think are totally random and stupid but several people received and is seen when on the treasure hunt. This technique has been used to find out from God where sex trafficking is going on in a city, which the group responded to by going to those places and prayer, as well going on prayer walks on campuses.
18. Lectio Divina - A type of contemplative prayer that includes reading and meditating on a passage of scripture in four stages. 1) Read through the passage slowly and gradually, perhaps several times. 2)Meditate on the meaning of the passage by letting the Holy Spirit guide you in understanding. 3)Pray by having a conversation with God about the passage and how the Holy Spirit is moving and speaking to you 4) Contemplate by sitting in silent prayer before God and letting the things you have learned and God has shown you to sink in.
19. Gospel Contemplation - Similar to Lectio Divina, this a type of prayer that involves Scripture. Read through one of stories in the Gospels of Jesus interacting with person like when he heals a beggar or talks to the woman at the well. Read it again and familiarize yourself with the details. Then in your mind place yourself in the scene and observe the surroundings, how Jesus is acting, how people respond, etc. Meditate on what this means for how Jesus looks at and loves you. Talk to God about what how this experience is shaping your knowledge of Jesus.
What do you think?? Any kinds of prayer that you use that I missed? Comment below!
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