Activity: Modeling Communication

Objective(s): to show a class the basic components of prayerful communication

Time: 5 minutes of conversation, 15 minutes to debrief

Materials: none

When teaching formation into prayer, it is very important for me, particularly with groups who may not have experience with a wide range of prayer styles/forms, to introduce new ways of communicating with God. I will lead classes in an imaginative encounter with a story of Jesus. I will give students an opportunity to pray for healing. I will facilitate a nature (or urban) walk with God. I will lead a session of contemplative silence. The possibilities are endless. It all depends on the needs of the class. But something I have found helpful to communicate the basic principle of communication that grounds much of what I say in chapter 7 is to model communication publicly in the class. I ask for two volunteers. They stand at two ends of the front of the class, walk toward each other, “meet and greet,” have a very brief conversation, and then depart. When the public conversation is over, we deconstruct what is going on. What did the students notice? Depending on how well they are thinking about the material of the chapter, usually they will all notice hearing and listening. It takes more to notice “the space in between,” but sooner or later it comes out. Why did this person speak in this manner with that person? What about the literal silences? What was going on between the people? What would it have been like if this same conversation were conducted between a married couple? And so on. We explore the nature of communication in general as displayed in class. We ask what it might look like for people to improve their communication: What is involved in listening, in speaking, in the space in between?

When we have sufficiently explored the conversation displayed in class, we then move to explore prayer: speaking, listening, and the space in between. What is it like? How do we listen to the Spirit? What is improvement in speech like in prayer? What about this space in between thing? The illustration of the people in front of the class serves as a great stimulus to help the class explore prayer in a way that is fresh and engaging.

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Assignment Set 1

1. Composing Collects: A Guide to Powerful (but Brief) Prayers

I have taken to writing and praying “collects” these days. And I have found it to be a wonderful confidence builder in my prayer life.

First, it might help to know just what a “collect” is. Our English noun collect comes from the Middle English collecte, which may be a shortened version of the Latin oratio ad collectam or “prayer at the collection.” Other historians identify the roots of the collect in the function of these prayers: a “collecting” of the intentions of the gathered people into one common prayer. Early in the history of the church, prayers were written that expressed particular themes of the church’s celebrations and then were offered during the common service of worship. For example, someone would summarize the church’s gratitude for the resurrection of Christ and its hope and prayers for new life in a single prayer offered during an Easter service. Over time, the writing and reciting of such prayers multiplied. Entire books of such prayers were published for use in the practice of common and personal prayer. The Book of Common Prayer, a very influential guide to common and private worship, has sections devoted to “collects” appropriate for certain days and occasions and to other similar prayers and thanksgivings. One collect for the unity of the church prays:

Almighty Father, whose blessed Son before his passion prayed for his disciples that they might be one, as you and he are one: Grant that your Church, being bound together in love and obedience to you, may be united in one body by the one Spirit, that the world may believe in him whom you have sent, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Beyond the possible occasion of these prayers (at the collection of offerings? before the readings?), I see two important other “collections” involved in the making of collects:

• First, they collect the common and sincere intentions of the people of God around a single topic. Our common desire as Christians for the unity of the church is expressed in a few phrases. “Be one,” “bound together,” “unity,” and similar images and words are used to give voice to a prayer that we all might have but might express in slightly different terms. A collect uses a few of these to indicate both the single theme and the different ways of expressing our common prayer to God. Thus we can all join in.
• Second, they collect biblical and theological language together around a theme into a single prayer. You can see in our example how Jesus’s prayer in John 17 stands behind this collect. Other passages from 1 Corinthians and 1 John are also reflected in this prayer. This is characteristic of collects. They are summaries of biblical truth in the form of prayer.

The result of this is a brief, easy-to-understand prayer that expresses both the heart of God and the will of the people—a wonderful “collection.”

Sometimes I struggle with knowing what to pray. I am grateful for the ministry of the Holy Spirit who, in times like this, offers my truest heart to God through “sighs too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26–27). But I have also learned to read Scripture regarding a topic and summarize my learnings into a prayer that I then use to communicate both my prayers and those of others. I write my own collects.

For example, I may wonder how to pray for the influence of the Holy Spirit for people who don’t have a relationship with God. So I meditatively read passages that speak about this ministry of the Spirit (e.g., John 3:5–8; 15:26; 16:8–11; Acts 8:29; 9:17; 13:2). Then I write the following prayer summarizing these passages and my desire for the Spirit’s work among unbelievers (or a particular unbeliever):

O Holy Spirit, who links those you have made new with those who need your newness, who empowers the message of those you have made new and accompanies their message with signs of your powerful presence, please arrange divine appointments. Bring conviction to ______ and lead them into new life, all so that you may be honored and they might have the fullest possible life. In the name of Christ the risen Lord. Amen.

This is really a very simple task:

1. Identify a theme for your prayers and those of others.
2. Find Scripture passages and theological summaries relevant to this theme.
3. Read and meditate.
4. Summarize in a single prayer.

I have written many of these prayers over the years. I continue to use them in my prayers for and with others.

Perhaps you would like to join me?

Your assignment is simply to write a collect. You are to submit the following:

• A list of the biblical passages and theological resources that informed the composition of your prayer. You might also like to explain how they influenced the prayer.
• The prayer itself.
• A summary of your own experience doing this exercise (insights, spiritual noticings, etc.).
• Conclude with any ideas, thoughts, lessons, or questions you have gained from this exercise regarding the meaning of collects for personal and private Christian worship.

2. Reciting Morning and Evening Office Together

Prayer is central to our Christian faith. And the pattern of the first Christians—following Jewish custom—was to pray multiple times each day. The New Testament portrays Jesus praying in the morning (Mark 1:35) and also in the evening (Matthew 14:23; Luke 6:12). In Acts, the early disciples are mentioned praying at the third (2:1, 15), sixth (10:9), and ninth hours (3:1; 10:3, 30). Prayer together at least in the morning and evening was an established practice for the earliest Christians. Christian monastic practice simply expanded on this, devoting seven or more distinct times throughout each day to the work of prayer. This pattern of praying a number of times throughout the day is called an “horarium” or the “divine office.” Morning and evening prayer was the foundation and the bare minimum.

Morning and evening prayer have had special meaning from the beginning. In evening prayer we reflect on the day as it ends, and we remember that our life is short and someday we will rest eternally. We remember Christ who died for us. We examine our day and our life at the end of things. We confess. We repent. And we choose to make a new beginning when the sun rises again. Morning then, is a small celebration of the resurrection. We greet the rising of the sun by remembering the rising of the Son. We look forward to what lies ahead in the day and in eternity. These themes have always guided the content and structure of morning and evening prayer.

It is good to remember our Lord throughout the day. We reorient ourselves to what is valuable, to what is beautiful, to what is true. Certainly a full seven-times-per-day horarium is more than the average Christian can muster. But perhaps we can at least learn to offer our mornings and evenings to the Lord and perhaps even to offer them together with others of like mind or similar geography.

Your assignment is simply this: gather together a few people and pray morning and evening prayer, like many Christians have always done.

• Select. First select your times and people. You must gather at least three people. You must do one morning and one evening prayer, though they need not be on the same day.
• Prepare. Then select your resources. You must choose one “old” resource (common resources are the Orthodox Horologion, the Roman Catholic Liturgy of the Hours, and the Book of Common Prayer). You may use other “old” resources (the Coptic Agpeya, etc.), but they must be appropriate. You may need, depending on the resource, to do a bit of homework to find out how to use the resources. Looking up the troparion for the day for the Horologion might be difficult. Just do the best you can; look online or ask somebody. You must also choose one “new” resource (common resources used by new-monastic communities are Common Prayer, Celtic Daily Prayer, and the Divine Hours compiled by Phyllis Tickle). You can use another or even invent one if it is appropriate. Part of your planning will also include scheduling the times for folks to meet and getting materials ready so all can participate well (sheets of paper or books; musical instruments; props like candles, art, etc.). If you want you can plan your worship space. Monasteries old and new frequently celebrate seasons and themes by the way a room is arranged. You all might want to wear robes and have special colors hanging in the room. Got that? You need one morning and one evening prayer, one “old” and one “new” resource, and at least three people.
• Participate. Then meet and celebrate. Invest in worship together in both the morning and the evening office.
• Report. Write a report of the event. State the reasons for your choices of people, resources, and times. Describe the event itself. What did you do and how did it go? Give me a sense of your own (and the group’s) experience of the times of prayer. Finally, say something about how this practice was relevant to your education in prayer and Christian spiritual formation. How does our daily rhythm of prayer form us into prayer?

3. One Night of Vigil

When Jesus wanted to hear from God about who to choose as disciples, he “went to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God” (Luke 6:12). When morning came, he was ready to select his closest disciples. And thus was born the practice of Christian vigil. People have been staying up at night to pray ever since. All-night prayer meetings have long been a staple of Christian life. Pachomius, founder of one of the early monastic communities in Upper Egypt, tells how he learned his practice from a mentor named Palemon. Palemon described the practice of the elders—what he calls the “law of monastic life”—as follows: “We always spend half the night, and often from evening to morning, in vigils and the recitation of the words of God, also doing manual work with threads, hairs, or palm-fibres, lest we be overcome by sleep.” Similarly, in the Celtic tradition we learn that “they fasted, abstained from certain foods, performed manual labour, kept vigils, and sang psalms, all as part of their normal religious regimen.” The night “vigil” or “matins” has been a significant element of monastic prayer since its inception, and it continues to be practiced today, for example by groups of people participating in 24/7 prayer movements.

Vigils often involve a good deal of reading the Psalms, along with other passages of Scripture and other readings, hymns, and prayers of various sorts. The point is to devote ourselves to undistracted prayer for a significant period of time. It is both worship and asceticism. As the quote from Palemon indicates, care must be taken to maintain attention to prayer. A blend of activities nourishes our ability to stay awake and focused in prayer. And as many people will testify, a lot of spiritual work can be accomplished in the middle of the night. There is a special kind of freedom in the middle of the night that is not present at other times.

Your assignment is to do a single stint of prayer vigil. You can choose either to schedule a session from 9:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m., or to schedule a session between 2:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.

• Select. You will need to select your time and place for vigil in advance. That’s about it for selection.
• Prepare. If you want, you can prepare the room for your time with decorations and resources. You will need resources for prayer (and perhaps for basket weaving). Some people have a rotating rhythm of Psalm-reading, looking up Scriptures, writing prayers, listening to worship music, intercession, and walking around the room. Some use readings, psalms, hymns, antiphons, and such to give variety to the evening, along with standing, bowing, sitting, singing, and so on. Prepare for your time by having a plan ready, even though you might find yourself modifying the plan once you are there.
• Participate. When the time comes, just do it, paying attention to what happens and how it feels.
• Report. When your time is up, finish the vigil, and at some point (before your memory of the experience fades), write a report of the experience. What did you do? Why did you do it? What were your resources? What was it like? Finally, say something about how this practice was relevant to your education in prayer and Christian spiritual formation. Draw from the resources of the week and the course. How does the practice of vigil serve to form us into prayer?

4. Personal, Private Retreat with the Lord

This assignment, along with the other practice assignments, is designed to improve your capacity to engage in activities and exercises related to Christian spiritual disciplines and Christian spiritual formation. Your assignment will be tied closely to your associated reading for this assignment: “Treasure from the Desert: A Brief Guide to Personal, Private, Retreats with the Lord.” I wrote this guide long ago to assist people in taking private, personal retreats. Your assignment is simply to prepare for, to take, and then to reflect upon one half-day retreat (four hours in retreat) as directed in the guide.

When you are finished with your retreat, submit a report sharing something from your experience of solitude. Areas you will want to cover include the following:

• General information. What, where, when, and how?
• Preparation. What did you do and why did you do it? Include body, location, what you took with you, spiritual preparations, etc.
• Distractions. What did you experience and what did you do about it? (See the guide for an outline of this.)
• Presence and rest. How (if at all) did you experience rest and the presence of God in this retreat?
• Time with the Lord. Was this more of an “agenda” or a “non-agenda” retreat? What did you do (or not do) on this retreat? What did you experience? What did you notice regarding your relationship with God in the midst of this retreat (tensions, healings, questions, feelings, or the like)?
• Closing. What were your takeaways from this retreat? What might you look forward to in future retreats? What are the implications for your future practice of worship living? What invitations did you sense (if any), and what responses might be appropriate? Did you share any content of the retreat with someone else? If so, what was that like?

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Assignment Set 2

1. Academic—Mining the Riches of Prayer Literature

Christians over the centuries have written about prayer, and some of it is really good. Now, a lot of the best resources are available online. This assignment is an opportunity to introduce you to the gold mine of resources on prayer. Browse through two or three of the resources listed below. Read samples of these classics and compare their approaches to being formed into Christian prayer. What do you learn from what you read?

• Augustine’s letter to Proba on prayer (AD 412). The resource www.newadvent.org has lots of historical resources as well as materials related to the Roman Catholic Church.
• Bernard of Clairvaux’s (d. AD 1153) On Loving God is a popular reflection on different types of our spirit of prayer. Christian Classics Ethereal Library (https://www.ccel.org/) is a marvelous collection of classic Christian works.
• Chapter 42 from Julian of Norwich’s Revelations of Divine Love (AD 1400). Click on the proper chapter in the table of contents on the left margin.
• “A Simple Way to Pray” by Martin Luther (1535) to his barber.
• Theophan the Recluse’s (1815–94) “Prayer Rule” might be a good example of Russian Orthodox prayer practice.
• E. M. Bounds’s (1835–1913) books on prayer, like The Weapon of Prayer, are classic evangelical treatises on the value and practice of prayer.

2. Personal—My Portrait of Prayer

This is your chance to review your own relationship with God (you will review your relationships with other Christians, with yourself, and with the world later). I already gave you the chance at the start of the chapter: “Think about your prayer life for a moment. When you read the term prayer life, what came to mind? Did you think about something you do (or should do)? Do you picture yourself in church and praying with others? . . . Just what is prayer to you, and what might it mean to be formed into prayer?” (p. 127). For this assignment, I want you to take a close survey of your prayer life according to the principles outlined in the chapter. Summarize what you think prayer is. Then examine yourself. What types of prayer are common for you? Intercession, praise, confession, lament, or other types? Which types come easily, and which are more difficult? Why? How do you pray? Do you use body, imagination, silence, reason? Do you have special techniques, places, times for prayer? Then spend some time thinking about your “spirit” of prayer. Do you have any reflections when you examine your own spirit of prayer in dialogue with what I presented in the chapter? Take a look also at the aims of prayer and how you have pointed yourself toward any of these. Finally, review all of these questions and ask yourself, “What might be an appropriate next step for me right now in my own formation into prayer?”

3. Spiritual Practice—Lord’s Prayer in a Group

This is a practice I did with my children when they were younger. You can do it with a few family members or friends. It is basically based on the chart of the Lord’s Prayer found in my Praying the Scriptures and in my brief guide to praying the Lord’s Prayer online. All the instructions are there on the website. The only difference with this assignment is that you are to do this as a group. While sitting with your friend, for example, one of you says, “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name.” Then the two of you spend a bit of time in worship and praise. After that, one of you says, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,” and you spend some time in submission and prayer for restoration. This continues through the entire Lord’s Prayer. I have done this many times in different groups. It makes a simple and easy framework for personal and group devotions. Give it a try. I think that it is just the kind of thing Jesus wanted!

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