Books on Prayer
Foster, Richard. Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home (HarperSanFrancisco, 1992).
In this book, Quaker theologian and prolific writer, Richard Foster, begins with a foundation from St. Augustine—“True, whole prayer is nothing but love”—to build a view of prayer that is more about love and relationship with God than it is about habits, experiences, or techniques. Foster’s disarming honesty is appealing and nurtures a practice of prayer that may at times be uncomfortable, even if it is a coming home to God. The book explores 21 different ways of praying that reflect the diversity of the Christian tradition, including Simple Prayer, The Prayer of Examen, The Prayer of Adoration, Meditative Prayer, Intercessory Prayer, and Healing Prayer. Foster writes: “Nothing feels more right, more like what we are created to be and to do. Yet at the same time we are confronted with great mysteries. Who hasn’t struggled with the puzzle of unanswered prayer? Who hasn’t wondered how a finite person can commune with the infinite Creator of the universe? Who hasn’t questioned whether prayer isn’t merely psychological manipulation after all? We do our best, of course, to answer these knotty questions but when all is said and done, there is a sense in which these mysteries remain unanswered and unanswerable . . . At such times we must learn to become comfortable with the mystery.”
O’Connor, Flannery. A Prayer Journal (Farrar, Straus and Giroux: 2013).
A Prayer Journal is a collection of personal prayers, rough around the edges, composed by the great American writer, Flannery O’Connor, before she became famous, found after her death among her papers. Composed at age 22 while studying writing, they reveal O’Connor’s deep love for God, reminiscent of some of the great classical writers in the Christian mystical tradition. She reflects on how her God-given gifts might be used for God’s service, but she is also completely honest about her own doubts and anxieties. While they reflect a deeply Catholic faith, these prayers will be a blessing to any Christian seeking to grow in their intimacy with God.
Yancey, Philip. Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? (Zondervan: 2006).
In this very readable book, popular writer Yancey addresses the gap between what many Christian believe about prayer and what they actually practice. He divides his material into five parts: Keeping Company with God, Unraveling the Mysteries, The Language of Prayer, Prayer Dilemmas, and The Practice of Prayer. It’s not so much a “how-to guide” for developing prayer techniques, as it is a personal reflection on some of the deeper questions regarding prayer—complete with humility, honesty, and a willingness to admit what he doesn’t know. He writes: “If prayer stands as the place where God and human beings meet, then I must learn about prayer. Most of my struggles in the Christian life circle around the same two themes: why God doesn’t act the way we want God to, and why I don’t act the way God wants me to. Prayer is the precise point where those themes converge.” This should be helpful for Christians seeking some encouragement in prayer.
Even though it is now some 40 years old, this book continues to speak with clarity and relevance to those who wish to grow in prayer. Huggett’s focus is not so much on what we say to God, but on how we sense what God is saying to us. She interweaves reflections from her own experience with those of other Christian writers—e.g., Thomas Merton, David Watson—and with biblical characters. Even though hers was a busy life of raising teenagers and helping her husband pastor a vibrant church, Huggett emphasizes the importance of keeping silence as a requisite for hearing God’s voice—a process that is necessarily complemented with reflection on scripture. She shares some of the disciplines that many have found helpful in growing in prayer—reading spiritual classics, keeping a prayer journal, listening to music, making retreats, fasting—which, at the same time, while recognizing that each person is unique, will lead to distinctive approaches in prayer.
Coming from the spiritually-minded pastor and author of The Message version of the Bible, Praying with Jesus (republished as A Year with Jesus) is a collection of 365 daily devotions guiding the reader, via reflection and prayer, through the life of Jesus. Each day consists of a Gospel text, a brief reflection, and a prayer where we are invited to slow down, listen to Jesus, and become his companion. Peterson writes: “Prayer is a way of living. It is not a subject to be studied. It is not a technique to be learned. It is a life lived in response to God. We do not learn about prayer, we learn to pray; and the prayer, as it turns out, is never just prayer, but involves every dimension of our lives—eating, drinking, loving, working, walking, reading, singing. The way we follow Jesus must be internalized and embodied. That is what prayer does, gets Jesus inside of us, gets his Spirit into our muscles and reflexes. There is no other way.”
Baillie, John. A Diary of Private Prayer (Scribner: 2014).
Originally published in 1936, A Diary of Private Prayer has become a devotional classic, written by Scottish theologian and minister of the Church of Scotland, John Baillie. Now updated and revised for readability, this book contains a morning and an evening prayer for each day in a month. Coming from a life of deep piety, Baillie’s prayers help us to appreciate God’s perspective rather than just ours, and to pray for others—both those we know and those we don’t know. Here is an excerpt from one of his prayers: “O God, give me today a strong and vivid sense that you are by my side. In a crowd or by myself, in business and leisure, in my sitting down and my rising, may I always be aware of your presence beside me. By your grace, O God, I will go nowhere today where you cannot come, nor seek anyone’s presence that would rob me of yours. By your grace I will let no thought enter my heart that might hinder my closeness with you, nor let any word come from my mouth that is not meant for your ear. So shall my courage be firm and my heart be at peace.”