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INTRODUCTION

In recent years the spiritual disciplines have become a topic of great interest and discussion. Some will attest that the disciplines help them to enter into a more intimate relationship with God. There are others who want to, but do not know how, to integrate them into their daily life. It seems that the issue of time is the greatest road block in the development of the disciplines as an integral aspect of life. We are so busy ‘doing’ we do not have enough time to ‘be still’ in the presence of God to discover intimacy with him. We need to find a way to ‘reconnect’ with God.

This workbook is designed to help us to do that. The focus is on the discipline of prayer which is simply listening to God and then responding to God. One request of the disciples of Jesus was that he teach them to pray. They heard him teach, they saw him perform miracles and they witnessed his life of prayer. Ultimately they came to the conclusion that if they were to continue the ministry he began it could only be accomplished through an intimate relationship with God. They knew they needed to stay connected to God.

If you desire to draw closer or reconnect with God these exercise will help you. The material is designed in such a way that the daily exercises will help you not only learn about the discipline but actually experience doing the discipline. This workbook covers a period of seven weeks and if you follow it carefully you will notice a change in your spiritual practice and devotion.

We begin the exercises with the discipline of ‘Silence and Solitude’. This practice enables us to learn to be still and to wait in quiet expectation so we can hear God as he speaks to us. The second discipline is learning to listen to God speak before we speak to him. This comes through the ancient practice of ‘Holy Listening’. The third prayer discipline is learning to ‘Pray the Scriptures’. These are scriptural texts that have formed the prayers of God’s people for generations. The Fourth discipline is learning to pray ‘Prayers of Confession’ using an ancient form of prayer called ‘The Prayer of Examen’. The fifth discipline is focused on ‘Lament’. Most of us go through times or pain and anguish, the ‘Prayers of Lament’ enable us to be authentic before God as we cry out to him. In the sixth discipline we encounter ‘Petitionary Prayers’. This is where we intercede for ourselves and for others. The final discipline is ‘Thanksgiving and Praise’, with a focus on the names of God as the basis of our prayer.

A final chapter is devoted to an explanation of the church year with exercises to help direct your prayers during these seasons of the year.

The key to experiencing the book is to complete the exercises each day.

Enjoy!