HOW TO PRAY WITH SHALOM
for individual or personal prayer

  1. Reverence
    We are invited by desire of God's presence to sit in His shadow and listen to His words. So we create in our minds a sacred space and time ? that is, we offer our time to God. We withdraw from our preoccupations and welcome God into our conscious selves. For this we need a quiet place, be it in our office, home, school or factory.

  2. Invitation
    Then in our openness to God, we call on the Holy Spirit to stay with us as we sit before the Lord. According to the availability of our time:-

    1. in the morning, we pray as Jesus did (MK. 1:35) using Ps. 92:2 :
      It is good to give thanks to the Lord
      Pray to Your name, O most High
      To declare Your steadfast love in the morning.    Amen      .

    2. or in the evening:
      O, Spirit of our Lord Jesus
      Stay with us, for it is towards
      evening and the day is now far spent.  (Lk. 24:29)

  3. Open Your Bible
    Look for the day's readings as indicated for each day in SHALOM. For example, for August 1, 2014, Jerimah chapter 26 verses 1 to 9; and the Gospel reading from Matthew (Mt.) chapter 13, verse 54 to 58.

  4. Read
    Read the passages slowly, as God reveals Himself in words.

  5. In Silence
    Pray: Lord move my heart and help me to become a receptacle of Your Word!

  6. Read SHALOM and Reflect
    Read the reflection for the day, and ask:
    - is there a special invitation or challenge offered to me?
    - how can I respond?

  7. Pray
    Remain in the presence of the Lord who challenges or inspires you to yield to Him in prayer:
    • with the insight you have gained, thank God for the gift of life.
    • then ask for God's merciful love to cover you with newness and confess your shortcomings as you reflected today.
    • pray for your needs.
    • pray for your neighbour's or BEC/BCC's needs.
    • conclude with the monthly Daily Offering and an Our Father.


- END -