Praying

WHAT IS A PRAYER?

To pray means to stand before God with our minds and our hearts open, and to remain in His presence continually, day and night, for the rest of our lives.

To pray means to abide before God. You don’t always have to ask Him for something. You don’t always have to use words. The deepest prayer is simply to wait before God.

Prayer may sometimes be a plea, but in its deepest form, it is not a plea – it is a relationship.

Prayer is communication between God and man. Through prayer, a person relates to God personally. Prayer is primarily a two-way communication between God and man – it is not a monologue, but a dialogue.

Usually, prayer is divided into three stages:

• It begins as prayer on the lips – an oral prayer expressed in words.
• It then becomes more internal, turning into prayer of the mind or intellect. This is the beginning of true prayer.
• In the next stage, it becomes prayer of the heart, or more precisely, of the mind within the heart.

In the Bible, the heart refers not only to feelings and emotions, as in its contemporary meaning, but to our deep inner self – the inner sanctuary, the spiritual center of the entire human personality. Therefore, prayer of the heart means the prayer of the whole person – body, mind, soul, and spirit.

Only through prayer can we receive Divine Grace. We must clearly understand that what is up to us in the process of the salvation of our Soul is the human part – prayer – while we leave the rest to God, which is the divine part – our salvation.

A Christian who prays should expect a word from the Lord and answers from the Lord. Fellowship with God is the personal foundation of prayer. We communicate with God because we are His children (1 John 3:1).

However, sinners who have not accepted the Lordship of the Lord Jesus Christ for their salvation remain separated from God. Even though unbelievers may pray, they do not have the foundation for a solid fellowship with Him.

This should lead us to appreciate the great privilege of prayer.

There are many ways in which we may categorize the types of prayer. A simple distinction is the following:

The Confessional Prayer

The first kind is prayer in one’s own words – the personal, “confessional” prayer. This form of prayer brings comfort and should be practiced, for it helps the soul overcome loneliness and isolation. In such prayer, a person speaks openly before the Lord, revealing the thoughts and concerns of the heart to the Heavenly Father.

Since this prayer springs from the depths of the heart, it is never disregarded by God. Yet, two difficulties may arise. First, we often attempt to confine the infinite and perfect God within the narrow limits of our own understanding, expecting Him to act according to our will and timing. Second, there is the wandering of the mind, which weakens attention and distracts the soul from true communion.

The Linear Prayer

The second kind is the linear prayer. This form follows a sequence, like a sacred text or a short spiritual “path” – for example, the Lord’s Prayer (“Our Father”). Such prayers are of great beauty and authority, for they are handed down through the saints and are deeply rooted in the life of the Church. They are widely used in liturgical worship and personal devotion.

However, this type of prayer is not without difficulty. Like the confessional prayer, it is subject to the wandering of the mind. Because of the richness of meaning contained within it, the mind may become occupied with various thoughts and associations. Thus, instead of remaining in prayer, one may begin reflecting on secondary matters—for example, while praying for “our daily bread,” the mind may drift toward earthly concerns and distractions.

The Cyclical Prayer: The Jesus Prayer

For this reason, the most powerful and spiritually effective form of prayer is the cyclical prayer, known as the Jesus Prayer:
“Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.”

Its power lies in the invocation of the holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to the teaching of the Church Fathers, carries divine grace. At the same time, its simplicity guards the mind, as it contains few words and therefore fewer opportunities for distraction.

Even when the mind begins to wander, this is quickly perceived, for the prayer itself is interrupted. Thus, the Jesus Prayer becomes a means of gathering the mind, bringing it into the heart, and establishing inner stillness (hesychia). Through perseverance, this prayer may descend from the lips to the mind, and from the mind into the heart, becoming unceasing prayer.

Besides this, Soul Energy Noosphere Regulators may serve as an additional aid, as engaging with them through touch involves the tactile sense, which produces strong sensory awareness. In this way, they can help focus attention during prayer and meditation.

However, it must be understood that any increase in spiritual strength, light, and transformation comes from God alone. Through sincere prayer, one seeks to grow in the Divine Light of God and to overcome the instability of the fallen human nature.

The Types of Prayer: Conclusion

These, then, are the main types of prayer: confessional, linear, and cyclical. Remember them, and also remember when and how to use each one. We must choose wisely according to the situation, always seeking what leads us more deeply into communion with God.

BENEFITS OF PRAYER

Prayer has many spiritual benefits, including:

• God’s intervention in our circumstances.
• The overcoming of fears and passions, especially pride.
• Spiritual strengthening.
• Knowing the mind of God concerning a matter.
• Accepting our own powerlessness and the power of God.
• The ability to discern temptations.
• Through prayer, we seek inner stillness – not emptiness, but a turning of the mind toward the heart, where we seek the grace of God in the soul, from which it extends even to the body.
• A transformed awareness of the world around us, free from indifference and filled with spiritual attentiveness.
• Total trust in and dependence on God.

We are called to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17; Luke 18:1).

Prayer is an act of complete trust in the Almighty God for all our needs. To pray is to acknowledge that we cannot rely on our own strength alone.

Prayer produces virtues through the union of the human spirit with the Spirit of the Lord.

In prayer, we surrender everything to God. A believer cannot grow spiritually without prayer. Most importantly, the privilege of prayer is a great and precious gift given by God to every believer.