Lutheran Church of Mahomet, The Invitation Lent 2018 | Page 7

Our world is busy, and it makes our minds busy, too. When our minds are
unsettled, unfocused, and overactive, prayer becomes a difficult thing to
do. We might say to ourselves I’m just not feeling prayerful right now or the
words just won’t come how I want them to or even I’m just too busy to give
prayer the time it deserves. When we get into these frames of thinking, it
can sometimes be helpful to establish a new prayer routine by creating a
specific space in which prayer can happen.
Choose A Place: Pick a physical place where prayer will happen. This
doesn’t have to be anything special—it could be your car, bedroom, cubicle,
gym, etc. Every time you visit this space, you will say a prayer—or maybe
once a day. By picking a place, you remind your body and brain that this is
an opportunity for prayer, which will in turn empower you to pray even
when you don’t feel up to it.
Choose A Time: Set an alarm on your phone, to repeat every day. When the
alarm goes off—no matter what you’re doing or who you’re with—take just
a small moment to say a prayer. By picking a time to pray every day, you
are creating a prayer routine, like muscle-memory, that builds your prayer
practice into your busy schedule. You can bring this to the family or a
group of people too: have everyone set the same alarm on their phones, so
that the entire group stops to pray at the same time, no matter if you’re to-
gether or apart.
Create A Space: If you’re like me, I like to have a specially-arranged
space to concentrate on prayer. Take your choosing a place/
time a step further by changing that place/time to fit your
prayer needs. Make a new playlist of music that will help cen-
ter you in prayer; keep a list of things to pray for and bring it
with you to help you focus; dim the overhead fluorescents and
instead light some candles; keep some pillows and a blanket in
your prayer space so that you’re comfortable there. Make the
space your own.