Prayer--10th Anniversary Edition: Finding the Heart's True Home by Richard Foster

Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home

Having not paid much attention to developments in the practice of Christianity in America for many years, I am only now discovering important books that some of you have probably known about for a very long time.

Case in point is Richard Foster's classic book on prayer. Even its 10-year anniversary release was over a decade ago.

Foster is part of the Renovare movement, which focuses on Spiritual Formation. This book is one of its many truly wonderful resources.

Weighing in at 473 pages, in it Foster (a Quaker) writes a chapter on each of the many unique types of prayer.

Can you name them? Prior to reading many books on prayer, in addition to this one, I would've thought there might be a half-dozen distinctive types of prayer.

But no. There are 22 styles of prayer, which Foster writes about in this book. Each one comes straight out of the Bible, which he supports with numerous biblical references.

Over the millennia, various Christian traditions have focused more on some types of prayer than others. For example, Catholics have practiced Ignatian and Benedictine prayer, which Protestants, in general, have not--to their great loss.

All types of prayer are good, to bring us closer to God. Here are the 22 types of prayer, about which Richard Foster writes.

1. Simple prayer
2. Prayer of the forsaken 
3. Prayer of complaint (lamentations)
4. Prayer of Examen (Ignatian Prayer)
5. Prayer of tears
6. Prayer of relinquishment
7. Formation prayer: This one is Benedictine Prayer. Here's a snippet of what Foster says about it: 

“Prayer changes things,” people say. It also changes us. The latter goal is the more imperative. The primary purpose of prayer is to bring us into such a life of communion with the Father that, by the power of the Spirit, we are increasingly conformed to the image of the Son. This process of transformation is the sole focus of Formation Prayer." 

He goes into some of the Rules of St. Benedict, or the twelve steps, which include humility; The Little Way; The Communion of Solitude; Peering into the Abyss.

      8. Covenant Prayer.  A profound interior heart call to a God-intoxicated life.
      9.The Prayer of Adoration
    10. The Prayer of Rest
    11. Sacramental Prayer, (Liturgical prayer)
    12. Unceasing Prayer
    13. The Prayer of the Heart
    14. Meditative Prayer
    15. Contemplative Prayer
    16. Praying the Ordinary:

"The discovery of God lies in the daily and the ordinary, not in the spectacular and the heroic. If we cannot find God in the routines of home and shop, then we will not find him at all."

    17. Petitionary Prayer
    18. Intercessory Prayer
    19, Healing Prayer
    20. The Prayer of Suffering
    21. Authoritative Prayer
    22. Radical Prayer:

"Radical Prayer refuses to let us stay on the fringes of life’s great issues. It dares to believe that things can be different. Its aim is the total transformation of persons, institutions, and societies. Radical Prayer, you see, is prophetic." 

This is a wonderful resource on types of prayer that each of us can practice, every day. The goal is not, of course, to check off the list and boast about having done them all.

However in trying them all, we will find some draw us closer to God than others. It's those prayers that will become the most useful to us in our daily walk.

Adventures in Prayer: Praying your Way to a God You Can Trust by Sharon Connors

Adventures in Prayer ... When I bought this, I was put off at first about the subtitle: Praying Your Way to a God You Can Trust. But the truth is, our deep seated beliefs about God were formed when we were children. Often, our imaginations created God in the image of our parents or guardians. If these people could not be trusted, how could we extend the trust to God?

I read recently that trust is one of the first things we are taught, and one of the last things we learn, and especially the ability to trust God. (Taken from God Hunger, by John Kirvan.) It is so true! 

Worse than parents who can't be trusted is the image of a God who cannot be, which was often fostered by early experiences in church. 

It's no secret that the faith of many people was destroyed by churches that presented God as angry and vengeful, ever-ready to punish and cast (most of the world) into an eternity of burning Hell. 

In this book, Sharon Connors helps believers to believe in a bigger, kinder God who is the solution to our problems. She encourages people to create a prayer space in their homes and to pray regularly. She uses affirmations and releases, which feel a little too new-agey to me, but apart from that, she gives much sound advice about prayer and forging a closer relationship to God.  

Mansions of the Heart: Book Review

Mansions of the Heart: Exploring the Seven Stages of Spiritual Growth 

by R. Thomas Ashbrook 

Ashbrook shows that there can be much more to being a Christian than church attendance, prayer, Bible reading, missions, service, and tithing, as vitally important as all of those things are.

There is also the opportunity for a deep, deep relationship with God. Drawn from Teresa of Avila’s classic, The Interior Castle, written in the 1500’s, Mansions of the Heart guides the reader through deeper spiritual growth.

First, Ashbrook defines each of the seven mansions, which allows the reader to see where he currently resides. Here’s a list of the mansions:

Outside: Lost; not yet a Christian

• First Mansion: New beginnings
• Second Mansion: Between a rock and a hard place (Here’s where a lot of Christians shipwreck and either go back to their old ways, or remain Christians, but don’t progress
• Third Mansion: Following Jesus
• Fourth Mansion: Discovering the love of Jesus
• Fifth Mansion: Longing for oneness with God
• Sixth Mansion: The passion of God’s love (Here’s where Ashbrook described the Dark Night of the Soul)
• Seventh Mansion: A life of love in the Trinity

After describing each of the stages (which are fluid), Ashbrook suggests ways to progress into further mansions, thereby deepening our relationship with God. Within each chapter, Ashbrook touches on the following areas with respect to the mansion in which we currently reside:

• “Your Heart’s Desire” in relationship with God
• “Key Activities” in response to God
• “Changing Patterns of Prayer” in communication with God
• “Jesus’ Initiatives” to draw us into a deeper intimacy with God
• “Schemes of the Enemy” to try to destroy our growth in God
• “Keys for Growth” that help us cooperate with God

Mansions was not a quick read. In fact, I expect to be working with it for a long time to come. But it was just what I needed at this time, along with a number of other books that I have recently discovered.

If you feel you are being called into deeper intimacy with God, this book is a great addition to your spiritual library.

Organizing your Prayer Closet: Book Review

I’ve read a number of books on living a spirit-filled Christian life over the past several months. Several have dealt specifically with prayer. When I ran across Organizing your prayer closet: a new and life-changing way to pray by Gina Duke, I hate to admit it, but I was somewhat put off by the title. Not by the prayer closet aspect of it, after all, Jesus told us to pray in secret:

But you, when you pray, enter into your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father which is in secret; and your Father which sees in secret shall reward you openly. Mt. 6:6.

Oddly enough, it was the word, “Organizing” that put me off. Being someone who strives to be organized, you would think I would’ve bought this book the moment I learned about it.

It took me nearly a week to buy it, but during all that time, while I was also reading a book on Christian mysticism (Mansions of the heart: exploring the seven stages of spiritual growth by R. Thomas Ashbrook–which I will review next week)–God kept prompting me to take another look at it, maybe buy it. 

When I did, I found, not surprisingly, that it is a wonderful tool for organizing our prayer life. It is indeed a method that, if followed, would revolutionize nearly anyone’s prayer life. It will revolutionize mine, for sure.

After reading brief, introductory chapters that explain (and give scriptural references) for Gina’s reasons behind her organizing strategy, the rest of the book offers templates to fill in your own daily prayer requests. 

Gina suggests beginning by offering “Praise and Thanksgiving,” followed by “Freedom and Forgiveness.”

Freedom and Forgiveness is where we speak with God about our struggles with sin and bad habits.

Then there is a category called “Prayer Petitions,” where we intercede on behalf of others. There’s an area for “My heart/My passion,” where we talk about the desires God has put into our hearts. Generally, these are the talents God has given us, which we are developing and using in some way.

There’s a section called “Ambassador Notes,” where we we write about instances in which we were able to share our faith. There’s a section called “Insights & Updates,” where we examine our prayer life and see what God is doing with our prayers.

There’s a section where we record God’s Answers to our prayers. And a section called, “At the Right Time,” where we record when the prayer was answered.

There’s a section called “Ears to Hear,” where we record instances where God speaks to us through the Word or through spiritual mentors, or in other ways.

Finally, there is a section called “Faith & Follow-through,” where we record instances where we felt prompted by God to do something special for someone. Here we record what we felt prompted to do, as well as what our follow-through was. Or if we did not get to it this day, what we intend to do, soon.

I am very excited about this new plan for organizing my prayers. Over time, I will have a record of how God has been working in my life, as well as the lives of those people for whom I pray.

Do you pray in an organized manner such as this? Do you find the idea appealing?