I’ve been reading Ruth Haley Barton’s book on spiritual disciplines called Sacred Rhythms: Arranging our Lives for Spiritual Formation. I’ve been drawn to spiritual disciplines and to a more contemplative way of relating to God since I was introduced to it in high school. But, Barton offers new insight and wisdom into these disciplines that is helpful to me.
Barton’s main premise is that each of us eventually gets to a place in our spiritual lives in which we hunger to go deeper, and the practices and strategies that used to work for us don’t seem to work anymore. For example, when we first come to faith or really discover prayer for the first time, there tends to be great joy and satisfaction in experiencing intimacy with God through the words we say to God. But, there comes a time when praying to God with words no longer seems to “work.” Perhaps we feel like we’re talking to the wall; perhaps our prayers feel empty or disingenuous. Such experiences can cause us to doubt our faith or our relationship with God.
But, this kind of struggle may signal a desire within us to grow more deeply in our relationship with God. When words no longer “work,” we’re invited into prayer that is beyond words; prayer that moves us beyond mere communication with God and into communion with God. Barton acknowledges that this kind of deeper invitation can be unsettling, because intimacy with anyone – a loved one, a friend, and God – puts us in a vulnerable place. We’re no longer in control, and we risk the other person hurting us. We may know with our minds that God loves us faithfully and without conditions, but it’s more difficult to convince our hearts that this truly is so.
Yet, it’s only when we risk intimacy with another that the relationship can actually deepen and grow. And so we’re invited to trying praying without words. Here is what Barton says about this kind of prayer:
“This is a prayer of self-emptying that enables us to receive whatever it is that God wants to give. We come to him with empty hands and empty heart, having no agenda. Half the time we don’t even know what we need; we just come with a sense of our own spiritual poverty… Emptiness is the prerequisite for receiving” (page 69).
I think this is what distinguishes Christian contemplative prayer from meditation as it has been popularized in our culture. I sense that the purpose of meditation is to empty your mind – and that’s where the exercise stops. It is a stress reliever. This is very different than recognizing your emptiness and looking to God to fill it.
Barton offered a great exercise using “breath prayer.” I learned this originally as the Jesus prayer (“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”). The purpose of a breath prayer is to give us something so simple to pray that it eventually becomes as natural as breathing in and out. If we pray it long enough, it can begin to “pray itself” without us consciously thinking about the prayer. It’s a helpful way to pray when we don’t have words or when we’re longing to simply rest in God’s presence and don’t know how to calm our distracted, busy selves in order to do so.
According to Ruth Haley Barton, your breath prayer is something you discover “by listening to your deepest longings and desires in God’s presence.” So, Barton encourages these steps as a way to discover one’s breath prayer (this all comes from page 76):
- Imagine Jesus calling you by name and asking, “________________, what do you want?” How would you answer him?
- Choose your favorite name or image for God as you are relating to God right now, in this season of yourIt could be simply “God” or “Jesus” or “Holy Spirit” or “Creator” or “Mother Hen” or “Father” or “Lord” or “Shepherd” or…. You get the idea…
- Combine your name for God with a few words or a phrase that captures your heart’sArrange the words in the phrase so it fits easily into the rhythm of your breathing. Something like, “Jesus, heal me; Spirit, lead me.”
I strongly recommend Ruth Haley Barton’s book. I’ve had it on my shelf for over a year. But, I think there are times when we pick up a book at just the right time for us. This book is one of those experiences for me. Happy reading!
Rachel Young is the associate pastor of spiritual formation at Clear Lake Presbyterian Church, in Houston, TX. She is married to Josh, who also serves on staff at Clear Lake Pres. as the Director of Contemporary Worship and Media. She blogs weekly at reverendrachel.wordpress.com.
