Praying

[autismmum]

hi

This will sound an odd question but I am wondering how you all fit prayer into your lives?

Do you tend to have set times in your day when you do it or is it more of an as and when type of thing?

I am new to this and am learning about the Book of Mormon etc at the moment and trying to get into the habit of prayer.

Do you have a certain place you tend to use in your house to pray? Also is it ok to use something like a picture of Christ and a candle when you pray...I know we are not supposed to pray "to objects" so to speak.....I am praying to God and Christ but using the candle and picture as a focus really to focus my mind more on it.

I know he is listening as I have had occassions recently when I have been having difficult days ( autistic son) and I have prayed for the strength to get through the day and the day has become easier from then on.....some may say this was coincidence...I prefer to think he was listening to me.

Sorry for all the questions...I feel like it is all I do on here;)

[Dravin]

Fairly common times/events to pray:

• Upon waking
• Over meals
• Before going to bed
• A separate family prayer, often combined with scripture study
• Couple's prayer with spouse
• Before studying scriptures individually
• As needed/desired

In my experience they tend to be event driven rather than time driven, but if someone has a schedule for their events then it'd end up being at 'set' times of day for those particular events. For instance if you pray first thing upon waking up and you always get up at 6:30am, then that's effectively a set time even though it's not, "Oh, 6:30am, time to pray."

As far as places, solitude for individual prayers, or at least quiet is often sought. So bedrooms are a fairly common place to pray. When we're talking a family prayer though, that'll tend towards the living room or den, and meal prayers, those at home, will tend towards the dinner table. In my opinion, excluding group prayers, quiet and solitude are the biggest factors in determining where I will pray. When I was living at home with a bunch of people and sharing a room I had gone into the back yard to pray to seek that solitude/quiet.

On the other hand, if you feel a desire to pray sometime you don't have the option of seeking seclusion you'll just give a silent prayer in your heart right then and there.

Concerning the candle and picture, as long as you are praying to the Father in Jesus' name and not to the object I'm unaware of a doctrinal prohibition. However a lot of LDS, myself included, are going to have some level of aversion to it because of the whole appearing to be praying to the picture issue. That and how most of us where taught to pray included having our eyes closed, so having them open would feel weird.

Edited April 26, 2012 by Dravin

[autismmum]

Thank you for that:)

You see I didnt know about the praying with your eyes closed thing..when you havent been brought up LDS you miss out on these little details. I will concentrate on doing that and not with the picture.

The only other problem I have is that not being brought up LDS I don`t really know the prayers people use...how on earth do I go about learning them? For example a prayer to say with my 8 year old at night.

Gosh this makes me realise I know next to nothing and I have a very long road:eek:

[IamMe]

Prayer doesn't need to be some big production. Sure, it's eyes closed, arms folded for a more formal approach. But prayer can be anything at any time and anywhere. While it's nice to be reverent, I believe Heavenly father wants to hear from us at any time. Sometimes it's a soft thought of thanks as you see something beautiful in nature, or when something amazing happens, when needing just a little bit of strength, barrelling down the freeway at 90 miles an hour and discovering your brakes don't work..you get the idea.

There's no need to memorize a prayer. Say what YOU feel. Do you have any idea how boring it has to be to listen to the same thing over n over? Usually prayers start with "Our dear Heavenly Father" and close with "In Jesus name, Amen"

This is part of the first discussion (maybe the second) with the missionaries. You may want to speak with them.

[Dravin]

Thank you for that:)

You see I didnt know about the praying with your eyes closed thing..when you havent been brought up LDS you miss out on these little details. I will concentrate on doing that and not with the picture.

Please note that I'm not trying to tell you that praying with your eyes open is wrong or ineffectual. Just letting you know how LDS go about it. You'll hear a lot of phrases for instance that are cultural not doctrinal in their origin. For instance "Please bless this food that it will nourish our bodies and minds" is cultural, there is no doctrinal rational for that particular manner of expression. The same sentiment of gratitude expressed a different way is just as valid.

The only other problem I have is that not being brought up LDS I don`t really know the prayers people use...how on earth do I go about learning them? For example a prayer to say with my 8 year old at night.

Gosh this makes me realise I know next to nothing and I have a very long road:eek:

Aside from a few set prayers in the Church there aren't really things equivelent to say the prayers of the Rosary. The most general form of a prayer that you'll see among members of the Church is:

1) Direct it to the Father. Most LDS will say, "Dear Heavenly Father" or "Dear Father in Heaven" but there isn't a specific phrase required.

2) Give thanks. The general point of this portion of the prayer is to be thankful for that which we've been given, be it the roof over head or our testimony and knowledge of Christ and his atonement.

3) Ask for blessings. The idea here is that our Father in heaven loves us and desires good things of us. We humbly ask for blessings from a loving Father in heaven.

4) Close in the name of Jesus Christ. Once again most LDS will say something similar to, "We say these things in the name of thy Son Jesus Christ, Amen." Once again specific phrasing isn't required. A simple, "In Jesus' name, Amen." will do.

Note this is a very generalized form, and there is nothing magical about the order of 2 and 3. Also I'd suggest if you ommit 2 or 3 occasionally (I think a prayer of just gratitude every once in a while is a good thing, and sometimes in a moment of need all we can think to do is cry out for aid and comfort from a Loving Father in heaven) that's perfectly fine. The most important thing to keep in mind while praying is its purpose. I'm going to quote from the Bible Dictionary found in the back of LDS Edition of the KJV.

As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are his children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part (Matt. 7:7–11). Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God, but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant, but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work, and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.

The whole entry is available here: Prayer

Also as mentioned, what I've given above is more for when you are specifically taking the time aside to specifically pray. We should have a prayer in our heart and if throughout the day we cast our mind and thoughts to God in petition or gratitude I argue that is prayer. It shouldn't be the only means of prayer, I think we do need to set aside time when the only thing we are doing is praying, but it is prayer.

Edited April 26, 2012 by Dravin

[autismmum]

Thank you...I have the LDS edition of the KJV and will have a look at the entry.

Thanks all for helping,....in the C of E religion there are specific prayers for specific things so was checking there wasn`t an equivalent in the LDS

[skalenfehl]

Some of my prayers are quick, though heartfelt, like meal prayers, invocations, benedictions at church, etc. My personal prayers, however, are far different. I hesitate to share this because I don't want this to be a trumpet sounding. I can spend from a half hour to hours on end in personal prayer and supplication. A serious study of the Book of Mormon has given me much to consider in light of how our Book of Mormon brethren prayed. Enos alone is a perfect example of how and why we should pray. He had so little room on the plates to write, but he spoke volumes! It has made a tremendous difference in my relationship with my Savior.

[friedmann]

Enos alone is a perfect example of how and why we should pray. He had so little room on the plates to write, but he spoke volumes! It has made a tremendous difference in my relationship with my Savior.

Thanks for bringing up Enos! I would have if you hadn't.

I know his story is quite idealized though. It's not easy to pray ceaselessly through a night and a day. In fact, it's really difficult and often hard work for me to pray longer than for a minute. But usually, these occasions are when I feel that I no longer pray with the intend to pray, but with the intend to receive answers. You don't need those every day (I assume), so there's no need to pray permanently like Enos did. Although those specific prayers have always felt for me as really conducted by the Holy Spirit and not so much by costums. Imagine you are asked to give the closing prayer for a sunday school class and you have to hurry because Sacrament Meeting is about to start. Over time you will realize that they always sound the same, and say 90% the same things - Don't worry now about what they are. You will grow into it pretty quickly. To a lesser extend, most of my "regular" prayers also tend to sound about the same each time, safe exceptions due to special circumstances.

My suggestion to you for those Enos-like prayers is that you find yourself a quiet place, preferably outside in nature (like a forest, a small hill or something alike) where you can be alone with the Lord. Kneel down and let the Spirit take over. Open your heart to the Lord and tell Him anything that concerns you. Ask Him any question. Some of the world's most moving prayers have occured in situations like this.

I also like to pray in the locker room before my soccer games (quietly, just moving my lips and asking the Lord for no one to get injured) or before important exams. Both keeps me very calm, which is actually one of the main intensions of prayer in general.

You didn't ask, but it will be something that will confront you someday. It's how you position yourself for prayer. Although differences might be acceptable, this is how I would suggest you to do it, based on my personal experience:

SIT, as you are seated anyway. During Church meetings, at the dinner table before meals, during lessons with the Missionaries. So, on most occasions.

STAND, when you are asked to offer a prayer for your congregation (during Sacrament Meeting, you will sort of be forced to stand when you come up front), or anytime you feel like it, although this doesn't happen the whole time. It's more for special public occasions.

KNEEL, like most members I know do when they pray personally before going to bed. I personally like to kneel on the floor and lay my hands folded onto my bed. Variations are possible and seriously, no one will ever punish you for doing it differently. I strongly suggest you to kneel during the "Enos-like prayers" mentionned above. Plus, there are two occasions when you will be asked to kneel while praying. This is either when you are blessing the Sacrament (which you won't do), or prior to receiving your Patriarchal Blessing (which you'll do exactly once in your life). Use it for special occasions, and wisely.

All this being said, only one thing is really important: Pray sincerely with all of your heart. God cares a lot less about order and procedures than we do. :)

[skalenfehl]

Wonderful post, friedmann. Praying as Enos did is indeed for specific reasons. It's not necessary that every prayer lasts hours or days. Unless you are on a personal journey, however, as Enos was due to his concern for his own salvation, relatively short, yet meaningful prayers are received by the Lord. Prayers by those who truly bear broken hearts and contrite spirits are always received by the Lord.

[autismmum]

Thank you everyone you have all been so helpful.

I am starting to understand it all more and have even managed to start incorporating prayer into my 8 year olds bedtime routine....as he has autism it is no mean feat! he has taken to it really well though which I m happy about.