You woke up early, you have your Bible and a cup of coffee, and you are ready and willing to spend time with the Lord. Now what? Your prayer list is full, but your mind is scattered. Maybe you do not know where to begin or how to proceed. Perhaps you start to pray but quickly run out of words to say. It may be that you finish your time of prayer discouraged and dry rather than with the joy and peace you hoped to find. Not everyone will have this experience, but it is not uncommon. One way to avoid this problem is to use a more structured, historic, and biblical discipline of daily prayer.
In some ways it is unfortunate that many evangelical Christians think of daily prayer as “devotion” or “quiet time.” Neither of these names are inappropriate, but they can create confusion about the real work of such exercises, their focus, and the best way for structuring such periods each day. Much of evangelical Christianity overemphasizes individuality, whereas daily prayer, even in the privacy of one’s prayer closet, ought to be approached as a common, corporate exercise. The Lord enjoins his disciples to pray in secret in the language of common prayer: Our Father… (Matt. 6:6, 9). Even when we are praying alone, we are praying with the catholic Church, both in heaven and on earth. We are not praying to the saints, but we are praying with them (cf. Rev. 5:8). As the martyrs pray for justice, the Church militant prays for it also (Rev. 6:10). As the Church in heaven sings “Holy, Holy Holy,” the Church on earth sings the same (Rev. 4:8). Every creature, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, gives thanks and praise to the Lamb (Rev. 5:13). Therefore, rather than thinking of daily devotions as something we do alone, we need to see this time as private worship which we exercise in common with our brothers and sisters throughout the world and in glory. The focus of this worship is the Triune God, not our personal edification, and the period should be structured liturgically. After all, this is worship, not an intellectual practice of Bible study or reciting the names of sick people about whom the Lord already knows.
Historically the Church’s daily worship has been largely structured by the Psalms. You can see this in ancient forms of prayer and liturgies from the early Church, the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic traditions, the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, Lutheran services, and the Reformed commitment to psalm-singing. The Psalter is the prayer and hymnbook of God’s people. Beyond the prominent place of the Psalms, daily prayer has typically included preparation for entering God’s presence, self-examination and repentance, songs of praise, and prayers of petition, intercession, and thanksgiving. Older editions of the Book of Common Prayer are an excellent resource for learning these patterns of daily prayer. My own prayer life has been structured and greatly blessed by the 1662 and 1928 editions for many years. But anyone can adopt the same patterns of historic, biblical, common prayer by following a simple, sevenfold structure.
Preparation
At the beginning of your prayer time, read or recite a simple sentence of Scripture. This may be a text that calls God’s people to worship or one that helps to prepare our hearts.
Penitence
Begin by examining your heart and life, becoming aware of your sinful desires, thoughts, words, and deeds. You may find it helpful to read or recite prayerfully the Ten Commandments or another portion of God’s Law. Then confess your sins to God. You may need to confess particular sins particularly, or a general prayer of confession may suffice. You might use one of the penitential psalms (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143) or a historical form for confession.
Promise
Having confessed your sins to God, read or recite a short summary of the Gospel. Rejoice that this promise of pardon and reconciliation is yours by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. This is a good time to recite the Apostles’ or Nicene Creeds if you wish to include it in your time of worship.
Praise
Having heard God’s assurance of pardon, you are now ready to praise your Redeemer and Savior. Choose one of the biblical canticles or a favorite hymn of the Church. This is a good time to learn new hymns by singing the same one every day for a week. You might sing just one short verse or a longer song depending on your available time.
Precepts
Having worshipped in penitence and praise, you are now able to hear God’s Word. Consider reading at least one portion of the Old Testament and one portion of the New Testament in your daily reading, or follow a structured plan so that you will cover the entire Bible on a systematic and regular basis.
Psalms
Having heard God’s Word, you are now prepared to sing it back to him in prayer. Plan to sing, pray, chant, or recite at least one of the psalms during this time. The Book of Common Prayer has a schedule of morning and evening psalms that covers the entire Psalter every thirty days.
Prayers
Finally it is time to offer petitions and intercessions for yourself and others. Many Christians spend their daily prayer time almost entirely on these requests, but consider how much richer and more appropriate it is to subordinate these concerns to the more important work of repentance, rejoicing, and responding to God’s Word. These prayers and intercessions do not have to be lengthy, eloquent, or anguished, though they will sometimes be depending on the circumstances. You may find specific forms of prayer or passages of Scripture helpful in praying for yourself, the needs of your loved one, and the world.
You might also pray the collect for the week knowing it is being prayed by many Christians throughout the week in many places. The time of intercession and supplication can be opened or concluded by praying the Lord’s Prayer.
How long does this sevenfold pattern for daily prayer take? You can complete all seven steps in as little as 5-10 minutes, or you could easily fill an entire hour, or more. It is not important how long or eloquent our prayers may be. What is important is that we pray, that we pray biblically, that we pray consistently, and that we pray sincerely.
I pray these ideas will be a blessing and help to you in drawing near to God in prayer.
--JME
A Pattern for Daily Prayer based upon the Church’s historic practice of prayer
Preparation: A sentence or short text of Scripture preparing our hearts to come before God
Penitence: A prayer of confession using an established form and/or penitential psalm followed by personal confession
Promise: A short text of Scripture or gospel summary assuring believers of God’s grace and pardon
Praise: A hymn of praise and thanksgiving or canticle may be used in responding to God’s grace
Precepts: A regular and systematic plan of Scripture reading should be followed
Psalms: A psalm or psalms may be read, prayed, chanted, or sung, ideally following a regular pattern
Prayers: Prayers of thanksgiving, intercession, and supplication may be offered including a weekly collect and beginning or ending with the Lord’s Prayer
Resources for Daily Prayer
PREPARATION
A sentence or short text of Scripture preparing our hearts to come before God
The LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him. (Hab. 2:20)
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
(Psalm 19:14)
Oh, send out Your light and Your truth!
Let them lead me;
Let them bring me to Your holy hill
And to Your tabernacle.
(Psalm 43:3)
For thus says the High and Lofty One
Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:
“I dwell in the high and holy place,
With him who has a contrite and humble spirit,
To revive the spirit of the humble,
And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
(Isa. 57:15)
The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. (John 4:23)
PENITENCE
A prayer of confession using an established form and/or penitential psalm followed by personal confession
ALMIGHTY and most merciful Father; We have erred, and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against thy holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done; And we have done those things which we ought not to have done; And there is no health in us. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare thou those, O God, who confess their faults. Restore thou those who are penitent; According to thy promises declared unto mankind In Christ Jesus our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake; That we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, To the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.
PROMISE
A short text of Scripture or gospel summary assuring believers of God’s grace and pardon
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. (John 5:24)
Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. (John 14:1-3)
For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures (1Cor. 15:3-4)
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. (Eph. 2:8-9)
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. (Rom. 3:28)
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1Jn. 1:9)
PRAISE
A hymn of praise and thanksgiving or canticle may be used in responding to God’s grace
“Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty,
Who was and is and is to come!
“You are worthy, O Lord,
To receive glory and honor and power;
For You created all things,
And by Your will they exist and were created.”
(Rev. 4:8, 11)
“You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals;
For You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
And have made us kings and priests to our God;
And we shall reign on the earth.”
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
To receive power and riches and wisdom,
And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”
“Blessing and honor and glory and power
Be to Him who sits on the throne,
And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”
(Rev. 5:9-10, 12, 13)
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name.
And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and to his seed forever.”
(Luke 1:46-55 - The Magnificat)
“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited and redeemed His people,
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been since the world began,
That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
To give knowledge of salvation to His people
By the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us;
To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”
(Luke 1:68-79 - The Song of Zechariah)
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
(The Common/Lesser Doxology)
PRECEPTS
A regular and systematic plan of Scripture reading should be followed
PSALMS
A psalm or psalms may be read, prayed, chanted, or sung, ideally following a regular pattern
PRAYERS
Prayers of thanksgiving, intercession, and supplication may be offered including a weekly collect and beginning or ending with the Lord’s Prayer
Forms for Family Prayer from the 1928 BCP
MORNING PRAYER
Acknowledgment of God's Mercy and Preservation, especially through the Night past.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, in whom we live and move and have our being; We, thy needy creatures, render thee our humble praises, for thy preservation of us from the beginning of our lives to this day, and especially for having delivered us from the dangers of the past night. For these thy mercies, we bless and magnify thy glorious Name; humbly beseeching thee to accept this our morning sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving; for his sake who lay down in the grave, and rose again for us, thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dedication of Soul and Body to God's Service, with a Resolution to be growing daily in Goodness.
AND since it is of thy mercy, O gracious Father, that another day is added to our lives; We here dedicate both our souls and our bodies to thee and thy service, in a sober, righteous, and godly life: in which resolution, do thou, O merciful God, confirm and strengthen us; that, as we grow in age, we may grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prayer for Grace to enable us to perform that Resolution.
BUT, O God, who knowest the weakness and corruption of our nature, and the manifold temptations which we daily meet with; We humbly beseech thee to have compassion on our infirmities, and to give us the constant assistance of thy Holy Spirit; that we may be effectually restrained from sin, and incited to our duty. Imprint upon our hearts such a dread of thy judgments, and such a grateful sense of thy goodness to us, as may make us both afraid and ashamed to offend thee. And, above all, keep in our minds a lively remembrance of that great day, in which we must give a strict account of our thoughts, words, and actions to him whom thou hast appointed the Judge of quick and dead, thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Grace to guide and keep us the following Day, and for God's Blessing on the business of the Same.
IN particular, we implore thy grace and protection for the ensuing day. Keep us temperate in all things, and diligent in our several callings. Grant us patience under our afflictions. Give us grace to be just and upright in all our dealings; quiet and peaceable; full of compassion; and ready to do good to all men, according to our abilities and opportunities. Direct us in all our ways. Defend us from all dangers and adversities; and be graciously pleased to take us, and all who are dear to us, under thy fatherly care and protection. These things, and whatever else thou shalt see to be necessary and convenient to us, we humbly beg, through the merits and mediation of thy Son Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. Amen.
EVENING PRAYER.
Prayer for Grace to reform and grow Better.
Lest, through our own frailty, or the temptations which encompass us, we be drawn again into sin, vouchsafe us, we beseech thee, the direction and assistance of thy Holy Spirit. Reform whatever is amiss in the temper and disposition of our souls; that no unclean thoughts, unlawful designs, or inordinate desires, may rest there. Purge our hearts from envy, hatred, and malice; that we may never suffer the sun to go down upon our wrath; but may always go to our rest in peace, charity, and good-will, with a conscience void of offence towards thee, and towards men; that so we may be preserved pure and blameless, unto the coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Intercession.
AND accept, O Lord, our intercessions for all mankind. Let the light of thy Gospel shine upon all nations; and may as many as have received it, live as becomes it. Be gracious unto thy Church; and grant that every member of the same, in his vocation and ministry, may serve thee faithfully. Bless all in authority over us; and so rule their hearts and strengthen their hands, that they may punish wickedness and vice, and maintain thy true religion and virtue. Send down thy blessings, temporal and spiritual, upon all our relations, friends, and neighbours. Reward all who have done us good, and pardon all those who have done or wish us evil, and give them repentance and better minds. Be merciful to all who are in any trouble; and do thou, the God of pity, administer to them according to their several necessities; for his sake who went about doing good, thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Thanksgiving.
TO our prayers, O Lord, we join our unfeigned thanks for all thy mercies; for our being, our reason, and all other endowments and faculties of soul and body; for our health, friends, food, and raiment, and all the other comforts and conveniences of life. Above all, we adore thy mercy in sending thy only Son into the world, to redeem us from sin and eternal death, and in giving us the knowledge and sense of our duty towards thee. We bless thee for thy patience with us, notwithstanding our many and great provocations; for all the directions, assistances, and comforts of thy Holy Spirit; for thy continual care and watchful providence over us through the whole course of our lives; and particularly for the mercies and benefits of the past day; beseeching thee to continue these thy blessings to us, and to give us grace to show our thankfulness in a sincere obedience to his laws, through whose merits and intercession we received them all, thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prayer for God's Protection through the Night following.
IN particular, we beseech thee to continue thy gracious protection to us this night. Defend us from all dangers and mischiefs, and from the fear of them; that we may enjoy such refreshing sleep as may fit us for the duties of the coming day. And grant us grace always to live in such a state that we may never be afraid to die; so that, living and dying, we may be thine, through the merits and satisfaction of thy Son Christ Jesus, in whose Name we offer up these our imperfect prayers. Amen.
Prayer for Civil Magistrates from the 1928 BCP
O LORD our Governor, whose glory is in all the world; We commend this nation to thy merciful care, that being guided by thy Providence, we may dwell secure in thy peace. Grant to THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, and to all in authority, wisdom and strength to know and to do thy will. Fill them with the love of truth and righteousness; and make them ever mindful of their calling to serve this people in thy fear; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.
Prayer for a Sick Person from the 1928 BCP
O FATHER of mercies and God of all comfort, our only help in time of need; We humbly beseech thee to behold, visit, and relieve thy sick servant [N.] for whom our prayers are desired. Look upon him with the eyes of thy mercy; comfort him with a sense of thy goodness; preserve him from the temptations of the enemy; and give him patience under his affliction. In thy good time, restore him to health, and enable him to lead the residue of his life in thy fear, and to thy glory; and grant that finally he may dwell with thee in life everlasting; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
