Lenten Prayer Stations at Mount Olivet

Blog Post by Pastor Michelle Lewis, Interim Associate Pastor

When I was younger, I had a pretty rigid image of prayer in my mind: wake up early, read the Bible, journal, and write out prayers for the people I had promised to pray for. In the intervening years, I have learned that there are so many more ways to pray. And that prayer is as much for grounding and connecting to God, as it is for praying for others.

When I think about Jesus retreating up the mountain to pray or falling asleep in the boat that was in the storm, I can find new images for prayer that help me remember that God holds me in the crook of God’s loving and good arms and hands.

During Lent at Mount Olivet, there will be several prayer stations that will set aside space for praying. Spaces that are meant to help you talk with God in the same candid way that you might talk with a close friend. For when we do this, when we bring our whole heart and our whole self to God, we foster that intimate relationship with God that God yearns for with us.

In prayer, we can honestly share our hearts, our fears, our hopes, our joys and yes, even our disappointments, anger and doubts. God wants to hear it all, because “it all” is who you are.

Note that prayer is not a one-way street. It is a conversation. In prayer, we are seeking to align our will with God’s will. We come to God seeking guidance and attentiveness to the Holy Spirit in our lives, and to prayerfully listen to what God might be saying to us as we read scripture.

Take a walk around (inside) the church building and allow yourself 10-20 minutes to focus your body, your breath, your mind, your spirit – all of who you are – into God’s presence. Then, if you’re willing, tell someone about your experience with God through prayer – how are you being held close?

Peace and Joy be with you,

Pastor Michelle