We’re so glad that you’re interested in prayer. Believe it or not, prayer is actually the most important thing you’ll ever do! Why? Because you were created for a relationship with God, and prayer is how you cultivate that relationship.
We have a prayer room at CUMC that can be a great place to have some set apart time for prayer. See this video for a virtual tour, and contact our church office for more information.
Getting Started
Don’t over-complicate things. Talk directly to God, either out loud or in your mind. A simple pattern of prayer you can remember is P.R.A.Y.: Pause, Rejoice, Ask, and Yield. Pause in God’s presence and turn your heart toward him. Rejoice by giving thanks for whatever comes to mind. Use the words of scripture (e.g. Psalm 100) when you’re lacking. Ask God for what you need. Finally Yield to God’s will for your life, come what may.
Keep it simple. Keep it real. And Keep it up!
At CUMC, many of us use the Lectio 365 app to help us pray. You might find it helpful too.
Getting Motivated
A parachurch organization called 24-7 prayer has a wonderful “Prayer Course.” You can find the first video and a full playlist here:
You might also find our sermon series from January, 2023 helpful. You can find it here.
Going Deeper
60 Minute Prayer Guides
Check out these 60 minute prayer guides put together by 24-7 Prayer:
Daily Set Prayers
Daily set prayers or “offices” can be a helpful way to find a language of prayer. The United Methodist Church doesn’t have a daily set prayers, per se, although we do have orders for Morning, Midday, Evening, and Night Prayer.
The Church of England has more substantial orders for daily prayer within the Book of Common Prayer. You can find today’s prayers here. We recommend “Rite II.”
The Roman Catholic Church uses the Liturgy of the Hours (or Divine Office). It can be found here.
Many Christian denominations have something like this.
Explore the Prayer Toolbox
There are many, many different ways to pray. They are each like a tool in a tool box. Why not try out a new tool? Check out the Prayer Course web site for lots of simple “How to’s.” Some examples are
- “How to Journal”
- “How to maintain a Prayer List”
- “How to Pray the Psalms”
- “How to Intercede for a Large-Scale Crisis”
- or even “How to Speak in Tongues”!
Recommended Reading
Read anything written by Pete Greig, the founder of 24-7 Prayer. In our humble opinion, there is no finer teacher on prayer alive in the English-speaking world. Most of it is available in audiobook form as well. Red Moon Rising is the exciting story of the 24-7 Prayer movement. God on Mute deals with the reality of unanswered prayer. Dirty Glory is a beautifully written, inspiring book about prayer, mission, and justice. And How to Pray synthesizes lots of lessons learned from 20 years of 24-7 prayer.