Ways to Pray
Ways to Pray
We pray because God wants us to tell him what is on our minds. Even though he sees and understands our situations better than we do, he still wants to hear from us in our own words. There are five basic types, or sorts, of prayer – praise, thanksgiving, confession, supplication and intercessory prayer.
There are also four styles of prayer, which depend on our own personalities:-
Devotional, or scripture-based, prayer. Many people like to read a Bible verse or passage that opens a way for them to talk to God. They often begin their prayers by reading a psalm.
Spontaneous prayer. This prayer comes from our hearts almost without thinking, and it is usually a prayer of thanksgiving: “Thank you, God, for the beautiful sunset” or “thank you for the kindness of my friend”.
Conversational prayer. Many people have long and involved conversations with God, where they talk things over with him, always sure that he is listening.
Action prayer. Some people pray best while walking or moving or doing something. Sitting still is hard for them and they need to add movement to their prayers. For them doing something (an act of kindness for example) can be praying.
Walking the labyrinth while praying can be an extremely deep form of prayer.