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Dear Members and Friends
of St. Bartholomew,
Often times during Lent
people think about giving something up. This year I encourage you instead
of just giving something us to also add something to your life. Add
something that builds your relationship with God. You can add weekly
worship on Wednesday evenings. You can add daily reading of Scripture. If
you don’t know where to start you can pick up a devotional at church with
readings and reflections for each day. Or add in a focused time of daily
prayer. This one is often time the most difficult because there is no
structure or format. If you decide to add focused daily prayer to your
Lenten Disciples I have included the following suggestions on how to develop
a prayer discipline. These suggestions come to us from the New Jersey Synod
Disciplining Team.
Ten Keys to a Successful
Personal Prayer Plan
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Schedule a time to
pray each day.
The earlier in the day, the better for your day.
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Select a location that
inspires you to pray.
Make it a creative, restful and quiet place. It may be a small corner
with a shelf in your bedroom or a corner in your yard.
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Set aside a niche for
collecting small items that remind you of significant times with God.
If you are new to this, the collection can be as simple as a seashell, a
rock, or a dried flower.
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Select a few Christian
symbols to inspire you
such as a cross, a candle or a Bible.
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Remove distractions.
Tell others that you want 15 minutes alone. You do not need to answer the
telephone, pager, or doorbell during this time.
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Start small, like
10-15 minutes a day, so that you do not get discouraged.
Once you discover the value of this time, you will want to expand it.
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Try different ways to
pray until you find a structure that works for you.
Some people like more structure than others.
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If you have a day
where you do not keep your prayer time, do not allow guilt to bury you.
Simply plan to pray again tomorrow.
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Many people find an
advantage in being accountable to another person about their prayer plan.
Weekly check-ins can help to keep you focused and present legalism or
apathy.
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Schedule your prayer
time for tomorrow at the end of today’s prayers.
This helps to prevent you from forgetting this priority in your life.
During this Lenten
Season I encourage you to take time to build your connection and
relationship with God. Join us in worship, spend time in prayer, or pick up
a devotional at church to guide daily Bible reading. Make a commitment to
add something into your life.
In Christ,
Pastor Sonja
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