Centering Prayer

Jason Phillips

Prayer is not a request for God’s favors. True, it has been used to obtain the satisfaction of personal desires. It has even been adopted to reinforce the prejudices, justify violence, and create barriers between people and between countries. But genuine prayer is based on recognizing the Origin of all that exists, and opening ourselves to it…In prayer we acknowledge God as the supreme source from which flows all strength, all goodness, all existence, acknowledging that we have our being, life itself from the supreme Power. One can then communicate with this Source, worship it, and ultimately place ones very center in it.Piero Ferrucci

Instructions:
The first step is to find a one-syllable word like “God”, “King”, “Love”, or “Abba”. Repeat this word only as a thought comes to mind not over and over like a mantra. It doesn’t matter what word it is or that the word might have special meaning, it may take you some time to find the word but never use different words in one session of prayer. If you focus on the word it will become a distraction and the point is to get rid of all distractions.Spend at least 20 minutes in this prayer and follow the method below.

• Find a quiet spot with a chair. Sit upright and be as relaxed and comfortable as you possibly can be. If you can be in the same space every time it is better. You could have pictures of your family, a cross, icon, or picture anything that might draw your attention towards God’s love. Keep your eyes closed unless you start to fall asleep.
• Take some time and settle. Recite the Lord’s Prayer, Psalm 23, or another passage to begin centering your attention on God.
• Once you have settled sit silently. Every time a thought or anything comes to mind recite your word releasing the thought.
  The Four R’s: (Cynthia Bourgeault Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening)
  Resist no thought
  Retain no Thought
  React to no thought
  Return to your sacred word.
• At the end of your time (20 minutes) recite a bible passage as you did at the beginning to re-enter into the world.

Bibliography and Suggested Reading
Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Cloud of Unknowing by unknown English monk
Contemplative Prayer by Thomas Merton
Merton’s Palace of Nowhere by James Finley
Dark Night of the Soul by St. John of the Cross

Why Meditate on Scripture?
Meditation helps us to become “careful to do everything written in the Word” (Joshua 1:8).
It is mentioned more than 15 times in the Psalms (Ps. 48:9; 77:2; 143:5; 145:5; 119:15)
It’s a spiritual discipline, which is: practicing how to become attentive to that small voice and willing to respond when we hear it.

How is meditation on Scripture different from study of Scripture?

How do we do this?

• Be a “fly on the wall”: If you had been present, what sights, sounds, tastes, smells and textures would you have experienced?
• Let God put you in the passage, perhaps becoming the person Jesus is speaking to. Let Jesus look you in the eyes, sitting face to face, and speak to you. What do sense as Jesus speaks to you? What facial expressions do you notice?
• Use your imagination, but still be WORD-centered
• Approach Scripture in non-controlling manner: Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. (James 1:21)

Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (Luke 15:1-7)

Lectio Divina (the Sacred Reading of Scripture)

Lectio Divina (pronounced LEX-ee-o dih-VEE-nuh) is a Latin phrase for the sacred reading of Scripture

History

• It is a method of reading Scripture that innumerable monks, nuns, and followers of Christ have used since the earliest days of the church.
• For both the Israelites and the earliest Christians, the Psalter (Psalms) was their songbook.
• It was St. Benedict (ca.480-ca.550) who cemented the practice in Western monasticism, and Guigo II (ca. 1115-ca.1198) who articulated the practice even further in his book Scala Claustralium (The Ladder of Monastics).

Description

• It is a method of reading the Bible in a devotional way (as opposed to literal, moral, or allegorical) – believing that, because it is God’s inspired Word, it’s a living and active text, that has something to say to each individual believer.
• Lectio divina assumes that, by entering deeply into the text of God’s holy Word, God will be made known to us, speak to us, and shape our lives.
• It is reading the Bible with no agenda, no presuppositions.
• One needs to purposefully shed the common methods most of us use in our everyday reading (such as reading for entertainment or information).

Practice

• Find a Bible translation or paraphrase that is easily readable.

Use a Bible without notes, underlining, or study helps – anything that will distract you from what God is saying to you today.

• Pay attention to your surroundings – you want quiet or silence, enough light to read but not so bright to be distracting, and no other distractions (like phones).
• Choose a time of day when you are wide awake and set aside enough time to hear from God.
• Choose a text of Scripture that you sense will be a good source of devotion for you. While all of Scripture can be used for this, as you are beginning it might be best to choose a Psalm, something from the gospels, or a short paragraph from one of the epistles.
• You might begin with a prayer requesting and expecting God’s presence and direction.

Structure

Reading a passage of Scripture (lectio)
• Read the scripture slowly, repeatedly, and aloud if possible
• Allow the text to trigger memories and associations that reside below the threshold of awareness
• Be calm, deliberate, gradual, and listening hard for what God has to say to you
• Imagine what your temperament will be in heaven sitting at God’s feet
• Listen for a word or phrase that rises above the rest of text (“rings”) and grabs a hold of you
• Reading aloud helps the words and phrases resonate in the ear

Meditation on that passage (meditatio)

• This is the “interior intelligence” of the text – what seem to be the values, the underlying assumptions and presumptions of this passage?
• How is my life touched today by this passage?
• What is this passage inviting me to do?
• As you attend to those deeper meanings, begin to meditate on the feelings and emotions that are conjured up in your inner self

Prayer (oratio)

• Although it is all prayer, here one deliberately asks God for illumination
• Respond to God, telling your desire to respond to the invitation or asking questions

Contemplation (contemplatio)

• Silent waiting on God
• Where your prayer moves beyond words and intellect into a place where time and eternity almost touch
• This final step takes patience and practice, and is often the most difficult to achieve
• It may be merely a moment of silence, peace, and rest in the midst of 10 minutes of struggle to quiet your mind

Group Lectio

• After an opening prayer, a passage is read two or three times, slowly and deliberately, and participants are asked to find the word or phrase that speaks to them (stands out, or “ring”, or rises above the others)
• Share that word of phrase with the group
• Read the passage two or three more times (different reader)
• Participants again reflect on the word or phrase that speaks to them, this time attending to the emotions or feelings that it conjures.
• Share these emotions or feelings with the group.
• Read the passage two more times, again in a distinct voice, with a longer period of silence asking God why this word or phrase provoked this feeling.
• A final and more lengthy time of sharing ends the session with each person telling the others what God is saying to them through the text.

For More Information

Go to: www.valyermo.com

The following sources were used: “Classic Meditation – Lectio Divina” by Jan Johnson and The Sacred Way by Tony Jones (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005).

Solitude is the practice of being alone. Dallas Willard says, “Of all the disciplines of abstinence, solitude is generally the most fundamental in the beginning of the spiritual life, and it must be returned to again and again as that life develops.”

Silence is the practice of being in a quiet place and/or not speaking. Solitude and silence together provide a foundation for prayer that will radically transform your communication with God.

Many people in the Bible made solitude a part of their lives. Jesus practiced solitude throughout his life and ministry. At the beginning of his ministry he went to the wilderness for an extended period of fasting and prayer (Matthew 4:1-2). He sought solitude prior to preaching (Mark 1:35-39), after he had healed a leper (Mark 1:45), after hearing about the death of John the Baptist (Matthew 14:13), after his followers had been involved in ministry (Matthew 14:23), and before he chose the disciples (Luke 6:12-16). At the end of his life he sought solitude in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36ff).

What makes solitude so important?
John Ortberg says, “Solitude is the one place where we can gain freedom from the forces of society that will otherwise relentlessly mold us.” Henri Nouwen describes solitude as “the furnace of transformation.” If Jesus needed time to be with the Father, how much more do we need this time? The reason Christians are to seek solitude and silence is the same reason Jesus did – to be able to hear from God.

What do you do during time in solitude?
The best answer to this question is: “Nothing.” While at first you might feel like this is a waste of time, allow these feelings to cause you to consider that your worth is not determined by you always needing to keep busy or be “doing” something. For many it is a temptation to take things with them such as books, worship music, a “to-do” list, your calendar, or even that project you’ve been meaning to get done. One of the most important principles to grasp is that solitude is not about doing something . . . it is about not doing something. Richard Foster says: “What we must clearly understand and underscore is that our real task [in solitude] is to create a space in our lives where God can reach us. Once that space has been created we wait quietly, expectantly. From this point on, the work belongs to God.”

In solitude & silence, it is important to listen… to pay attention to what comes to you. It’s like being on the phone with a friend who has something important to tell me. I will move out of a noisy room so that I can hear what my friend is saying. When our desire is to hear Jesus, there will be many competing “voices.” One of the greatest challenges is to sort through these “voices” and learn to put them aside so that we can hear Jesus. A first step here might be to identify these other voices and what it is they are saying. You might even take time to write these down. If you can identify the influence these voices are having on your life, you will have a much easier time moving beyond these influences to the voice of God.

There are many ways to build the practice of solitude into your life. These include regular alone times with God, preferably on a daily basis. It is good to plan special times maybe weekly or monthly where we can spend a few hours to a day in solitude. We also need periodic extended times, once or twice a year, where we can have several days.

• Solitude rarely happens unless we schedule it. Therefore, the first step is to get out your calendar and schedule the time in. Determine where you might be able to spend some daily time in solitude. Schedule it just as you would an appointment. Then schedule a time where you can spend 4-6 hours alone. If possible, schedule several days where you can get away for an extended time sometime in the next 6 months.
• Think about where you feel most at peace. Some people like the beach, some like the mountains, some might be able to find it in their own back yard. It is important to note that it is usually very helpful to be out in nature. Write out several places where you might be able to spend some solitude time.
• Find a place this week where you can practice solitude in the midst of your work day. It might be finding a quiet, peaceful spot during the lunch hour. Experiment with this to see how God uses it in your life.

Dallas Willard, The Spirit of The Disciplines (San Francisco: Harper & Row Publishers, 1988), 161.
John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997), 89-90.
Henri J.M. Nouwen, The Way of the Heart (New York: Ballantine Books, 1981), 13.
Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline Study Guide (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1983), 45.

Spiritual Friendship

Spiritual friendship (also called spiritual companionship) is a relationship where the individuals see themselves as companions on a spiritual journey, and commit themselves to taking the time to ask each other specific and relevant questions and then listen to the details of each other’s lives in a way that encourages the spiritual growth of the other person.

Sharing the deep parts of ourselves
Many of us long in our hearts to have a friend where we can share the deepest parts of ourselves. Those of us who know the Lord also desire a friend or two in whom we can share our relationship with God and all that God is doing in our lives. One of the greatest benefits of spiritual companionship is a place where I have the freedom to be “me.” This relationship provides a place to interact with one another as a triad – the two of you and God. It is in this kind of relationship that lasting change can take place.

Importance of friendship
In his book Healing Grace, David Seamands points out the importance of friendship:
We talk a lot about being honest with ourselves and with God. And we sincerely – sometimes desperately – try to do this in our times of Bible reading and prayer. But the kind of honesty and self-knowledge which will bring about lasting changes in our lives almost always requires another person. It is when we disclose our true, private selves to someone else that we fully come to know ourselves for real. Down deep we may dimly perceive the truth about our real selves, yet we go on denying or covering it with our superselves – even in prayer. However, once we have actually put the truth into words and shared with another, it becomes increasingly difficult to continue deceiving ourselves.
[David A. Seamands, Healing Grace (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1988), 180.]

In the twelfth century, Aelred of Rievaulx (1109-1166) wrote Spiritual Friendship. In this book he writes:
What happiness, what security, what joy to have someone to whom you dare to speak on term of equality as to another self; one to whom you can unblushingly make known what progress you have made in the spiritual life; one to whom you can entrust all the secrets of your heart and before whom you can place all your plans.

A formal intentionality
While most of us have people in our lives that we consider close friends or with whom we can discuss spiritual subjects, having a “spiritual friendship” involves an intentionality that moves the informal friendship to a different level where there is a formality of meeting either at certain times, at certain places, or according to a certain schedule. This will allow friends to challenge each other spiritually in appropriate ways.

Practice
Idea #1: One idea you might try is to commit to meeting at a neutral location where the two of you will spend several hours in solitude, silence, and prayer. Then at the end of this time, meet together to debrief and discuss how you sensed God working in your life.

Idea #2: Another idea is to meet for lunch once or twice a month where a certain amount of time (e.g. ½ hour to 1 hour) is committed to discussing how each of you is sensing God work in your life.

Spiritual Direction

Spiritual direction is similar to spiritual friendship, but involves meeting with a professionally trained spiritual director that attempts to emulate the Jesus-disciple relationship in a way that therapy, mentoring, and pastoral counseling do not. People seeking spiritual direction are looking for ways to see how God is working in their lives, wanting accountability in their prayer practices, and attempting to discern the Spirit in their lives.

A Spiritual Director is someone who is experienced in life and faith and able to help others notice the movements of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

The core question: Where do you sense God in that?
The center of spiritual direction is looking for or noticing how and where God is working in the details of one’s life. Spiritual direction emphasizes the place and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. One must believe that the Holy Spirit is alive and active in the world, constantly moving in the believer’s life. A simple question such as this has the ability to pull you out of your narcissistic world and into a realization that God has created me and is intricately involved in all the details of my life. One will hopefully begin to notice God at work in places he or she hadn’t considered and in ways he or she hadn’t even imagined. The question then, which might at first seem rather simplistic or even annoying, is exactly the type of question that someone who is following hard after Jesus will want to live their life by. Insight and joy can result when the thread of God’s Spirit working in one’s life can be seen over a period of months and years.

Spiritual Direction is not…
One book on spiritual direction points out that
Spiritual direction is not psychotherapy nor is it an inexpensive substitute, although the disciplines are compatible and frequently share raw material. Spiritual direction is not pastoral counseling, not is it to be confused with the mutuality of deep friendships . . . in this covenanted relationship the director has agreed to put himself aside so that his total attention can be focused on the person sitting in the other chair. What a gift to bring to another, the gift of disinterested, loving attention!
[Margaret Guenther, Holy Listening: The Art of Spiritual Direction (Boston: Cowley, 1992), 52.]

Spiritual Direction is…

• Formalized in its structure – involves meeting at a set time and place.
• Received from a spiritual director who has formal training
• Usually an hour long session
• Something you usually pay for ($35-$75 an hour)

Pastors as Spiritual Directors
Some believe (Eugene Peterson for example) that spiritual direction is the neglected role of pastors. There is an increasing trend for pastors to see their primary role as that of “spiritual director” to those in their congregation. And while most pastors cannot have individual appointments with everyone in their congregation, they should be available to offer spiritual direction in both personal and corporate ways. More pastors are receiving formal training in spiritual direction because of this refreshing perspective.

Jason Phillips

I choose to think about every word of a prayer before I vocalize it. Prayer without interior feeling is not very effective either for the one who recites it or for the one who listens to it: everything depends on interior life and on attentive prayer! But how few people are occupied with the interior activity! The reasons for this is that they don’t really want it; they have no yearning for spiritual life and interior enlightenment.(Anonymous priest from The Way of the Pilgrim)

Biblical History of daily prayer hours

• Daniel 6:10 – Daniel prayed ‘three times a day’
• Acts 2:15 – On the day of Pentecost Christ’s disciples had assembled for prayer at “the third hour” (9 am)
• Acts 10:9 – When the Holy Spirit came upon them with dramatic force. Peter went up to the flat roof of the house to pray at “the sixth hour” (noon)
• Acts 3:1 – When he had a vision when led him to welcome the Gentile, Cornelius, into the Christian church. The apostles Peter and John went up to the temple at “the ninth hour” (3 pm) and healed a cripple on the way.

Daily Rhythms of Prayer
These come from a long tradition in the church that goes back to the early centuries and the desert fathers. They drew upon Psalm 119:164, “Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws” as one indicator of a daily pattern of prayer. They took this literally and designed seven times of prayer each day:

• Lauds–at sunrise–about 6:00am
• Prime–first hour of the day
• Terce/Midmorning–third hour of the day (about 9:00am)
• Sext/Midday–sixth hour of the day (about 12:00pm)
• None/Midafternoon–ninth hour of the day (about 3:00pm)
• Vespers/Evening–sunset (about 5:00pm)
• Compline/Night–just before tiring for bed (about 7:30pm)

In addition to this daytime pattern of prayer, the early desert fathers and many who have followed in their footsteps have also arisen in the middle of the night (at about 2:00am) for vigils. They drew this pattern from Psalm 119:62, “At midnight I rise to give you thanks for your righteous laws.” The Benedictine communities developed the pattern of praying a dozen Psalms every night at this time.

Resources

“But if roteness is a danger, it is also the way liturgy works.
When you don’t have to think all the time about what the words you are going to say next,
you are free to participate in the life of God.”
(Lauren F. Winner, Mudhouse Sabbath)

Jason Phillips

1 Thessalonians 5:17 – “Pray without ceasing”

The Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.

Biblical origins:

• Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me (Luke 18:38)
• the ten lepers who “called to him, Jesus, Master, take pity on us’ ” (Luke 17:13)
• the cry for mercy of the publican, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner” (Luke 18:14)
• Matthew 12:34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.
• Matthew 15:18 But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’
• Matthew 23:25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

“The Prayer of the heart is a prayer that does not allow us to limit our relationship with God to interesting words or pious emotions. By its very nature such prayer transforms our whole being into Christ precisely because it opens the eyes of our soul to the truth of ourselves as well as to the truth of God.”
The Way of the Heart, Henri Nouwen

What are the fruits of the prayer?
“When I prayed in my heart, everything around me seemed delightful and marvelous. The trees, the grass, the birds, the air, the light seemed to be telling me that they existed for man’s sake, that they witnessed to the love of God for man, that all things prayed to God and sang his praise.”

“Again I started off on my wanderings. But now I did not walk along as before, filled with care. The invocation of the Name of Jesus gladdened my way. Everybody was kind to me. If anyone harms me I have only to think, ‘How sweet is the Prayer of Jesus!’ and the injury and the anger alike pass away and I forget it all.”