Advent Prayer Series
Session I—Simple Prayer, Nov 28, 2010
Our lives keep us so busy! Like those in our gospel passage that Jesus talks about today in the time of Noah, busy carrying on their lives, eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, too busy to give any thought at all to God, and who were swept away by the Great Flood, we too get swept away by the flood of things we have to do.
Prayer can help us give God space during our busy days. And so we begin with simple prayer.
Simple prayer is the most common form of prayer in the Bible.
For instance, in Numbers 11:11b-12, we find Moses complaining about the Israelites, and in Exodus, interceding for these same people (Ex32:32).
At the end of Psalm 137 (vs 9), we hear the psalmist delighting in the violent death of his enemies’ babies.
Jesus taught us to ask for our daily bread in the Lord’s prayer and he asks God to forgive his enemies as he is crucified.
Foster points out that in Simple Prayer, “the good, the bad, and the ugly are all mixed together.” (page 10)
Maybe our fear of bringing our bad and ugly thoughts to God adds to our difficulty in finding the time and space to pray.
“We are starting from the wrong end of things—putting the cart before the horse. Our problem is that we assume prayer is something to master the way we master algebra or auto mechanics. That puts us in the “on-top” position, where we are competent and in control…internal soul searching can paralyze our ability to pray…we will never have pure enough motives, or be good enough, or know enough in order to pray rightly.” (pages 7-8)
Discussion question—What discourages you from praying?
Foster suggests that we start with the most primary form of prayer—simple prayer.
“In Simple Prayer we bring ourselves before God just as we are, warts and all. Like children before a loving father, we open our hearts and make our requests. We do not try to sort things out, the good from the bad. We simply and unpretentiously share our concerns and make our petitions…..in a very real sense we are the focus of Simple Prayer. Our needs, our wants, our concerns dominate our prayer experience…. “ (page 9)
Discussion question–How is simple prayer useful to you as a form of prayer? How do you pray simply?
Helpful hints from Foster about simple prayer follow.
First, begin where you are. Carry on an ongoing conversation with God. Feel free to complain to God, or argue with God, or yell at God. C.S. Lewis said, “Lay before God what is in us, not what ought to be in us.” (page 12)
Second, remember that prayer is “nothing more than an ongoing and growing love relationship with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” Everyone can pray simply, rich or poor, educated or uneducated. “Only one thing is required—Love.” (page 13)
Discussion question—how has prayer helped you love God more?
Third, “we must never be discouraged by our lack of prayer. Even in our prayerlessness we can hunger for God.” (page 13)
Fourth, “let go of trying too hard to pray….if prayer is not a fixed habit with you, instead of starting with twelve hours of prayer-filled dialogue, single out a few moments and put all your energy into them.” (pages 13-14)
Fifth, “we should learn to pray even while we are dwelling on evil…we talk to God about what is going on inside that we know displeases God…sin separates us from God, but trying to hid our sin separates us all the more.” (page 14)
Sixth, “strive for uneventful prayer experiences…just slipping into the presence of God can be so exotic and fresh that it delights us enormously.” (page 14)
Discussion questions—Which of these suggestions resonates with you? What do you find most helpful about Foster’s suggestions?
Do you have a favorite place to pray? If so, where is it?
Light a candle when you pray. You can say a simple prayer when you light the candle.
“Fire is your sacrament, O God, fire is sacred; as I light this candle may I be reminded that I am to burn with the same fire for you. May I fill my life with that burning love.”
Do you have other rituals to help you pray? If so, what are they?
Closing prayer for this session, page 80 in Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim, by Edward Hayes. (or page 97)