Intimate Prayer, contemplative, meditative, Christian, creative

Whole Life Prayers
(c) Victoria ReVera 2001

What does it mean to "pray continually?" Surely it doesn't mean that we spend our entire lives on our knees before God. I elicited the help of a few friends and asked for their ideas on how to pray continually. Whole Life Prayer is based on I Thess. 5:17 "pray continually."

In First Thessalonians 5:17, the Apostle Paul urges us to "pray continually,"something I often refer to as a "whole life prayer." I struggle with the idea of whole life prayers. What does it mean to "pray continually?" Surely it doesn’t mean that we forsake all our earthly responsibilities and spend our entire lives on our knees before God. The light of the world can't shine very brightly if it’s locked up in a prayer closet! So what is it? What is a whole life prayer and how do we effectively practice this biblical principle? I elicited the help of a few friends and asked for their ideas on how to pray continually. Here is one of my favorite responses:

A gentlemen by the name of Wil emailed this response: “To pray without ceasing means to be in constant communication as to a "how Jesus would handle this" way of thinking. Then, when trouble comes, we have a finely tuned network of communication already open and working - sort of like the difference between a DSL connection and trying to log-on to AOL during peak user hours.

The conclusion I come to is this: a whole life prayer is more of a continual acknowledgement of God’s presence. It means keeping an open-heart dialog, not necessarily a verbal one. It’s being sensitive to the moving of the Holy Spirit. Whole life prayers help us to keep one foot, so to speak, in the heavenly realm. It keeps at least part of us where we truly belong, with our Heavenly Father. The peace and the guidance that come from that type of prayer are life changing!

Evaluate your connection to God. Would you say it more closely resembles a DSL line or a 28.8K modem?
What keeps you from having an open-heart dialog with God? What blocks your connection? Anger, selfishness, lust? Confess these things to Him, and ask Him to free you from their bondage.
During what daily activities could you keep a better connection with God? In the lunchroom at work? During meetings? Communicating with loved ones? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the times during which you need to have more open communication with God. Ask Him to help you be more sensitive to your need for communicating with Him.

“As I draw closer to God, He is teaching me wonderful things about prayer, and I'd like to be able to share them with others. I have been writing most of my life. Since I came to know the Lord, God has shown me wonderful ways to use my gift/passion for writing. Recently I wrote several devotionals for my church’s Gen-X service, and have just begun writing for our church-wide publication, called ‘NorthRidge Now.’ While Themestream.com was up and running, I had a featured political column called "Perspectives." Though I prefer political writing, I also enjoy writing devotionals and bible study research material. I am also involved in my churches Community Outreach ministry, which partners with volunteer organizations to offer service projects for our church members."

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Intimate Prayer celebrates the mysterious flow of love between God, you and others through prayer. Featured here are a variety of prayer styles which aim to direct your heart toward God.
*"Prayer is the inner bath into which the soul plunges itself." - St. John Vianney*
DRAWING NEAR	Whole Life Prayers (c) Victoria ReVera 2001 What does it mean to "pray continually?" Surely it doesn't mean that we spend our entire lives on our knees before God. I elicited the help of a few friends and asked for their ideas on how to pray continually. Whole Life Prayer is based on I Thess. 5:17 "pray continually." In First Thessalonians 5:17, the Apostle Paul urges us to "pray continually,"something I often refer to as a "whole life prayer." I struggle with the idea of whole life prayers. What does it mean to "pray continually?" Surely it doesn’t mean that we forsake all our earthly responsibilities and spend our entire lives on our knees before God. The light of the world can't shine very brightly if it’s locked up in a prayer closet! So what is it? What is a whole life prayer and how do we effectively practice this biblical principle? I elicited the help of a few friends and asked for their ideas on how to pray continually. Here is one of my favorite responses: A gentlemen by the name of Wil emailed this response: “To pray without ceasing means to be in constant communication as to a "how Jesus would handle this" way of thinking. Then, when trouble comes, we have a finely tuned network of communication already open and working - sort of like the difference between a DSL connection and trying to log-on to AOL during peak user hours. The conclusion I come to is this: a whole life prayer is more of a continual acknowledgement of God’s presence. It means keeping an open-heart dialog, not necessarily a verbal one. It’s being sensitive to the moving of the Holy Spirit. Whole life prayers help us to keep one foot, so to speak, in the heavenly realm. It keeps at least part of us where we truly belong, with our Heavenly Father. The peace and the guidance that come from that type of prayer are life changing! Evaluate your connection to God. Would you say it more closely resembles a DSL line or a 28.8K modem? What keeps you from having an open-heart dialog with God? What blocks your connection? Anger, selfishness, lust? Confess these things to Him, and ask Him to free you from their bondage. During what daily activities could you keep a better connection with God? In the lunchroom at work? During meetings? Communicating with loved ones? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the times during which you need to have more open communication with God. Ask Him to help you be more sensitive to your need for communicating with Him. © 2001 Victoria ReVera “As I draw closer to God, He is teaching me wonderful things about prayer, and I'd like to be able to share them with others. I have been writing most of my life. Since I came to know the Lord, God has shown me wonderful ways to use my gift/passion for writing. Recently I wrote several devotionals for my church’s Gen-X service, and have just begun writing for our church-wide publication, called ‘NorthRidge Now.’ While Themestream.com was up and running, I had a featured political column called "Perspectives." Though I prefer political writing, I also enjoy writing devotionals and bible study research material. I am also involved in my churches Community Outreach ministry, which partners with volunteer organizations to offer service projects for our church members." RECOMMENDED READING:
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