We pray daily
God loves spending time with you. Don't overcomplicate it. God's there and is a perfect companion.
Praying is a bit like breathing: like the air around you, every second of every day you are in God’s presence.
It is also good to make a space in your day when you focus on praying. You can share what’s on your heart, pray for others, and listen to God.
Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Ephesians 6:18
There are many ways to pray, and it’s good to experiment to find a way that suits you. The main thing is to spend time with God, as you are, like you would spend time with a friend. This might be silent companionship, a good chat, or something physical or creative.
“The church ran a six-week prayer course over Lent that introduced folk to different types of prayer. We had each session in a different church in the Circuit. From this, we’re encouraging folk to take part in an upcoming local event. It's an opportunity to learn about how to have good conversations and pray for people if they want.”
Pause for thought
If you were on a bus and somebody asked you about hearing from God, what would you say?
Interested in having conversations like this with your friends, neighbours and community?
Buy Conversations Against Mundanity now for a fun game based around questions like this.
Simple things to try
- Each day, week or month, focus your prayers around a different station on the map. You could pray that you and others around you (whether they call themselves Christians or not) would meet God through this practice.
- Try praying like breathing, continually being aware of God’s presence as you go about your day.
- Experiment with a daily time of prayer. Try different time slots, and a range of activities. The Digital Prayer Hub, Methodist Prayer Handbook or Lectio 365 app are great ways to prompt your prayers and know you’re praying in community with others.
- Explore creative ways to pray with all ages, using the Methodist prayer cards, available as a printed pack for meetings and events, a PowerPoint for church services and meetings or as a PDF for digital use.
- Sunshine and Showers is a six-session course for exploring the mystery and paradoxes of prayer with a small group of committed journeyers, or new explorers.
- Listen to a Taketime meditation based on Luke 11:1-13: Teach us to pray
Explore more creative ideas for prayer for all ages
For Thy Kingdom Come 2022, five Methodists from across the Connexion shared their stories of what prayer means to them. You can download their stories for use in services and meetings, and encourage people to respond with their own stories. Here's Esther's story.