22 August 2025 Prayer

Opening Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this new day.

As the light of morning fills the sky, I lift my eyes and heart to you.

I ask for your guidance throughout the day, in my thoughts, words, and actions.

As I journey through the day I pray that I keep you in my heart

Thank you Lord God. Amen

Reflections

Today we are looking at Prayer. We are very lucky in that Judy has written a reflection, so we will read that now

Judy’s Reflection

What does ‘prayer’ mean to you, I wonder?

… and then - I reflected - what does prayer mean to me?

This question has taken on a deeper, more personal meaning for me over the past few months. And I suspect that for each of us, the meaning of prayer can change depending on where we are in life, what we’re going through, and how we’re feeling. I imagine that although we might share similar ideas, there are as many understandings of prayer as there are people gathered here today.

As many of you know, I’ve been very unwell this year. I had major abdominal surgery in early May and have been home recovering since June. As I write this, I’m not sure if I’ll be with you in person today — as I will be having preventative radiotherapy soon, and it’s possible the dates will overlap with our August meeting at St Mary’s.

These past months have given me a lot of time to reflect, especially on prayer. I’ve come to see it in a new light — perhaps not entirely new, but certainly more deeply and more personally. I have been deeply aware of, and very thankful for, the thoughts and prayers supporting me during my illness and recovery.

One of the first things I would like to say is that there’s no “right” or “wrong” way to pray. Most of us have wondered at some point, “Am I doing it right?” I truly believe that prayer is about relationship — our relationship with God. It comes from deep within us; simply perhaps (although it doesn’t always feel like that) heartfelt thoughts, even when we can’t find the words.

There are many forms of prayer: including …

Arrow prayers — those quick, breath-like requests: “Please God, help me…” Often whispered in moments of fear or stress, asking for guidance or advice.

Personal, individual, prayers — spoken or silent, words that come straight from our hearts.

Communal prayers — when we join our voices with others, whether in a service or a quiet gathering.

Unwritten, unfiltered prayers — those that just come, raw and unplanned.

Christian prayers - are often prayed “through Jesus our Lord” or similar words.

Prayers of other faiths – talking with and listening to God in different ways and traditions.

Formal prayers - shaped by tradition and shared in worship.

Intercessory prayers - where we lift others to God — the church, the world (especially places where there is war, conflict, natural disaster, or famine), our communities, those who are sick or in need, people who have died, those who are grieving.

Contemplative prayer — where often silence says more than words ever can. Just ‘being’ with God – listening to him.

Tears, longings, wordless thoughts, simply resting in God’s presence.

Spirit led prayers – times when we might invite the Holy Spirit to guide our prayers, or pray on our behalf.

Prayers of gratitude — when we just want to say, “Thank you.”

Prayers of awe— maybe a spontaneous “Wow!” at something of natural beauty of the world - or works of art, music, or the written word.

My mum, more than once told me, “If you don’t know what to pray, don’t worry — He (God) already knows.” I often remind myself of that. Hence, my frequent use of the phrase: “Let go and let God.”

While I was in hospital, there were long stretches of time when all I could do was simply be — not do, not even think too much. Just be. I felt God with me — as a quiet, steady, comforting presence. During surgery, in recovery, in those long nights, and in the hustle and bustle of a busy ward — I wasn’t alone.

Looking back, I feel very strongly that God was with me the whole time. I realise now that, even in those early hours of ‘coming to’ after the operation, I knew deep down that he had been with me — and with everyone caring for me — through it all.

Over the years, I’ve come to believe that prayer isn’t always about saying the right words. So often, it’s about presence, about surrender, about trust. And sometimes, it’s just simply about knowing — even when we can’t find the words — that God is with us.And for that, I am deeply grateful.

Rev Judy Greenfield July 2025

Theologian Johnson considers that prayer reveals the heart of God and could be said to provide us with the privilege of partnering with God – helping Him achieve his purposes in the world. Johnson states that as we pray:

‘We are joining the Living God in bringing about the realization of his heart’s desire for the world.’

Johnson, Darrell W.. Fifty-Seven Words That Change the World, Kindle p9-11

John O’Donohue states: ‘Prayer an art of presence and as the sister of wonder… It is the most fascinating thing about humans and it is fascinating precisely because it is that tender and precarious threshold where the divine breaks through to us and where we come in deeply to the presence of the divine…. The source of prayer is wonder.’

John O’Donohue, The Invisible World, Audible, Chapter 1

Listen to the Voice of Gentle Love – Henri Nouwen

Listen to your heart. It’s there that Jesus speaks most intimately to you. Praying is first and foremost listening to Jesus who dwells in the very depths of your heart. He doesn’t shout. He doesn’t thrust himself upon you. His voice is an unassuming voice, very nearly a whisper, the voice of a gentle love. Whatever you do with your life, go on listening to the voice of Jesus in your heart. This listening must be an active and very attentive listening, for in our restless and noisy world God’s so loving voice is easily drowned out. Henri Nouwen

Introduction to Silence

Blessing

A Morning Offering

I bless the night that nourished my heart

To set the ghosts of longing free

Into the flow and figure of dream

That went to harvest from the dark

Bread for the hunger no one sees.

All that is eternal in me

Welcomes the wonder of this day,

The field of brightness it creates

Offering time for each thing

To arise and illuminate.

I place on the altar of dawn:

The quiet loyalty of breath,

The tent of thought where I shelter,

Waves of desire I am shore to

And all beauty drawn to the eye.

May my mind come alive today

To the invisible geography

That invites me to new frontiers,

To break the dead shell of yesterdays,

To risk being disturbed and changed.

May I have the courage today

To live the life that I would love,

To postpone my dream no longer

But do at last what I came here for

And waste my heart on fear no more.

John O’Donohue, Benedictus, p25

Thoughts to ponder:

Matthew 6:5-8 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Luke 11:1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

‘The important thing is to let the medicine and music of the prayer encircle the people for whom you are praying, the situations about which you are concerned, so that you see them transformed, bathed in the healing light of the Lord’s love as expressed in the prayer.’ Wright, N. T.. The Lord and His Prayer . Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle. loc 84- 108

Going to the deepest level of communication, 

Where back and forth has never stopped. 

Where I am not the initiator but the transmission wire itself.

Richard Rohr  https://cac.org/daily-meditations/praying-simply/

When you are done telling God about your hurts, … just silently rest in God, letting God hold you. And then for the rest of the day practice joy and optimism knowing that you are God’s beloved child, knowing that you are loved, and knowing that you are carrying a great gift in your heart.

Episcopal priest and activist Adam Bucko, https://cac.org/daily-meditations/praying-simply/

God is the constant Interlocutor with the soul. 

This voice so constant and insistent, you do not know how to differentiate it from

yourself.  YOU are so in charge here, that what you choose the voice to be, is what it is!

You are always calling the shots. 

YOU know this voice so much, you take it as a given and for granted. 

It cannot be taught, because teaching is about what you don’t know. 

You know this voice as your own interior dialogue about everything,

so it really cannot be taught. It can only be heard. 

Richard Rohr  https://cac.org/daily-meditations/praying-simply/

You should pray and meditate every day, so you know that you are loved, so you feel the presence of God’s love in your life. This is the only way you can truly help others and serve the poorest of the poor. We have to give from a full heart, one that is saturated with love, overflowing to others. Before we can give freely, we have to know that we are loved. This is why you should pray and meditate every day. So you can remember you are loved, letting it fill your heart and your body. Let it fill every cell of your being. Then give it all away.

Mother Theresa https://cac.org/daily-meditations/a-prayer-that-transforms/

A PRAYER FOR YOUR WILD SOUL

Give yourself time to make a prayer that will become the prayer of your soul. Listen to the voices of longing in your soul. Listen to your hungers. Give attention to the unexpected that lives around the rim of your life. Listen to your memory and to the inrush of your future, to the voices of those near you and those you have lost. Out of all of that attention to your soul, make a prayer that is big enough for your wild soul, yet tender enough for your shy and awkward vulnerability; that has enough healing to gain the ointment of divine forgiveness for your wounds; enough truth and vigour to challenge your blindness and complacency; enough graciousness and vision to mirror your immortal beauty. Write a prayer that is worthy of the destiny to which you have been called.

JOHN O'DONOHUE Excerpt from ETERNAL ECHOES

I arise today

In the name of Silence

Womb of the Word,

In the name of Stillness

Home of Belonging,

In the name of Solitude

Of the soul and the Earth.

I arise today

Blessed by all things,

Wings of breath,

Delight of eyes,

Wonder of whisper,

Intimacy of touch,

Eternity of soul,

Urgency of thought,

Miracle of health,

Embrace of God. May I live this day

Compassionate of heart,

Clear of word,

Gracious in awareness,

Courageous in thought,

Generous in love.

John O’Donohue,“Matins” (Morning Prayer) From To Bless the Space Between Us