I never thought of myself as a prayer warrior but then I started to count up all of the prayers I say that get me through the day. I realized that I consistently pray memorized prayers. For some of these, they surface without me even trying to pray them.
I use the Jesus Prayer the most when I am in line at the grocery store or trying to get food in a buffet line. Apparently, these are very anxious moments for me.
I say a prayer of St. Aidan’s, “I am going now into the sleep: O be it in Thy dear arm’s keep, O God of grace, that I shall awake” at bedtime. I say this not just for myself but everyone of my kids has had this prayer said over them throughout their life, especially when sick or disturbed.
The first few lines of the Lord’s Prayer always seem to be on my lips when I have my prayer time each morning.
I say Philippians 3:10-11 when I want to be reminded of my deepest desire and the sacrifice I need to be able to endure. Sometimes I just say, “Lord help me,” over and over.
When I am at church I ask for God’s power to be present. This is my prayer because I once read a book about deep Christian spiritual experiences and it seemed that this was a common prayer voiced by great Christian leaders of the past.
When I am in a deep quandary and despondent about the state of the world and the hopelessness I see, I pray some of the final words of the Bible, “Come, Lord Jesus.”
On long runs, I will recite the 23rd Psalm. There is something about saying, “He leads me on paths of righteousness…,” while actually on a path that helps drive home the point.
This is my way of praying without ceasing. These prayers are half out of desperation most of the time but they keep me connected to God, keep me looking around for God’s work, and convict me when my thoughts and my worries, instead of God’s promises and reassurances, have taken over.
What are your go to daily prayers or Godly reminders?
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