An Introduction to Praying Through Minister’s Prayer Book

Preparing the Book:

Minister’s Prayer Book recently came out. Once you receive it I recommend you get two book marks, one to keep track of where you are at in the Prayers and Readings for the Church Year section, and another to keep your place in the Order of Prayer for the Days of the Week section. Additionally, it might be worth dog-earing page 151, which begins the Prayers of Preparation for Ministry and each of the daily anthology sections, found on pages 199, 233, 261, 291, 313, 351, and 369.

Praying:

            The Prayer Book recommends the following:
“Morning: Invitation to prayer, morning prayer, psalm, lesson from the lectionary, meditation and free prayer, prayer for the week, benediction.

Noon: Invitation to prayer, hymn for the week, text for the week, lesson on the ministry, prayer, benediction.

Evening: Invitation to prayer, confession, psalm, lesson from the lectionary, reading from the anthology, evening commendation, intercessions, evening prayer, benediction.” (xv)

            I pray a modified version:
Morning: invitation to prayer, morning prayer, lesson from the lectionary, prayer for the week, brief passage for meditation, free prayer, benediction.

Noon: invitation to prayer, profession of faith, lesson on the ministry, noon prayer, benediction.

Evening: invite, confession, lesson from the lectionary, reading from the anthology, intercessions, evening prayer, commendation, benediction.

            This way to pray flows more closely to the ordering of the book. For example, praying the prayer for the week after the lesson from the lectionary saves you the distraction of flipping back and forth from the Church year and Order section. Similarly the reordering of prayer in the evening follows the order the prayers are found in the book. Additionally, adding the profession of faith to noon prayers and eliminating the psalm reflects the content in the prayer book.

            On the other hand, the reordering of my daily practice may wrinkle Luther’s meditation, tentatio, oratio  way to pray. I’m still thinking and praying through that question.

Happy praying!