What Is Centering Prayer?

“When you pray, go to your inner room, close the door,…

(Matthew 6: 6).


Centering prayer is a practice that opens us to the gift of contemplative prayer.  During contemplative prayer we sit with God.  We open our mind, heart and body to God who is beyond thoughts, words and emotions.

Contemplative prayer is like when we sit with a lover or a friend. No words need to be said.

Centering prayer does not replace other forms of prayer.  It complements them.  It is both a relationship with God and a discipline to foster our relationship with God.

God is delighted that we take time to sit.  I invite you to take time to sit with God and see what happens.

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Summarized in my words, Centering Prayer is four simple steps.

  1. Select a sacred word as the symbol of your intent to open yourself to God’s presence and action within.
  2. Sit comfortably, close your eyes and internally repeat the sacred word slowly and silently.
  3. When you become aware of thoughts, emotions and physical sensations, return ever so gently to your sacred word.
  4. At the end of the centering prayer session, remain in silence for a minute or two before you resume your daily activities.

In the next four meditations I will discuss each step of the Centering Prayer practice.  I hope you will join me.

Go Further:

Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening was the first book I read on Centering Prayer.

The Path of Centering Prayer  by David Frenette helped me go deeper in my Centering Prayer practice.

Healing the Divide: Recovering Christianity’s Mystic Roots by Amos Smith

Be Still and Listen: Experience the Presence of God in Your Life by Amos Smith

Open Mind, Open Heart 20th Anniversary Edition  by Thomas Keating

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One on One Coaching with Rich

Does this sound like you?

“I am bored with my life?”

“I am not doing the things that I want to do in all areas of my life:”

-career, personal, family, community.

I feel unfulfilled, like I am just going through the motions everyday.

I have dreams and goals, but I am afraid to show up and take action on them.

I don’t want years to pass and be disappointed when I look back on my life.

Integrating Centering Prayer practice with your everyday life addresses all of these thoughts.

Do you want to obtain the freedom to become your true self,  the person I’m created to be?

How do I create a long lasting and sustainable centering prayer practice?

I am currently taking on clients for Centering Prayer One on One Coaching sessions.

I will work with you to setup a program designed to meet your specific needs.

 

Holy Silence: The Quaker Way by J. Brent Bill:  Quaker silence is not about stillness, as such, but rather about encountering God in a living and vital holy hush. This e-course encourages women and men to undertake a journey of spiritual silence. The destination is a quiet inner place where God teaches us directly. Friends (as Quakers are formally known) have been honing their take on silence for more than 350 years. It’s a silence that invites us to an immediate and personal encounter with God. That’s because Quakers believe that when we are silent, then the Spirit of God grants us insights, guidance, and understanding of spiritual truth.

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