A Little More Praying Library

Trying to keep the posts "short" here is the continued list of books from the last post that have shaped the way I think about prayer and more importantly the way I pray.

Fifty Prayers: If you want to pray but don't feel like you know how to pray find a book of prayers that can get you started. I got this book for Christmas this year and LOVE IT! Barth is one of my favorite theologians. I love his heart, his thoughts, the way he writes, and come to find out--I adore the way he prays. This is a collection of prayers he wrote to go with his sermons, and they are arranged to go with the church calendar. Here is a segment of one of my favorite ones:

"Lord our God, you are great, high, and holy over us and over all people. And indeed, you are so great that you have not forgotten us, have not left us alone, and despite all that might testify against us, you have not rejected us. Now, in your dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, you have given us nothing less than yourself and all that is yours. We thank you that, as long as we live and in eternity, we may be your guests at the table of your grace.
   We now spread before you everything that troubles us: our mistakes and attempts to overreach, our sorrows, cares, rebellion, and bitterness-our whole hearts and lives that you know better than we do. We place all of this into the trustworthy hands that in our Savior you have stretched out toward us. Take us as we are, hold up the weak among us, and make the poor among us rich from your fullness!
   And so, let your friendliness shine over us..."

The Way of the Heart: This was required reading for staff this year in my region, and it was great! Nouwen is a great writer and I love how he thinks about leadership in Christ. In the book he quotes Theophan the Recluse: "To pray is to descend with the mind into the heart and there to stand before the face of the Lord, ever-present, all-seeing, within you." (73) This is the shortest book in the bunch, and if you are looking to be challenged not only in the way you pray but also in how you practice (or don't practice) silence and solitude then you should read this little book. His thoughts on prayer in this book actually convinced me to start practicing more simplistic praying.



 
Red Moon Rising: This was the most adventurous book I've read about prayer. It is a "history" of the 24/7 prayer moment that began in England. I was encouraged to read it at Urbana by a wise woman. I think anyone would get excited about intercessory prayer when reading this book. It inspired me for sure. I don't walk into prayer rooms the same way.

"Initially 24-7 was a lot of hard work. It wasn't easy persuading people to say they would come to the prayer room: prayer didn't really seem to be top of anyone's agenda! But when the week started, it just ...flowed--people came and people came back! Many people called in for an hour and ended up staying for three or four!...It wasn't until Thursday morning that I found myself in the prayer room alone. I was on my knees and just looked over at our wall covered in the names of family and friends--and God broke my heart. These weren't just random people, but people who were deeply loved, and someone was desperate for them to know Jesus." Lucy-Dublin (95)

Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: If you are a human you need to own this book. It is in my prayer library because it has a whole section of prayer disciplines, but it could be in any "library" that as to do with me getting closer to being like Christ. It is an amazing resource and I use it all the time! It has 14 different kinds of prayer: including Breath prayer, Centering prayer, Prayer walking, and fasting.

"Prayer is sustained less by duty than by a desire to connect and grow in intimacy and communion with the holy Three. But prayer also moves us up and out into our world" (203)

I also made a handout that went along with the talk on prayer I gave at Greek Conference. It breaks down 4 different ways to pray, and has some quotes on prayer that challenge me. Click here to look at it or print it off.

Books on my waiting to read list--History Makers-by Dutch Sheets and William Ford 
                                                        Prayer-by Karl Barth

What are some books you love that deal with the topic of prayer? Expand my list!