Prayer Stations
Thanksgiving (Round Table by Media Console)
Pick a psalm that speaks to you. Take a copy of the psalm, a pen, and a clipboard to the table. Write your own psalm of thanksgiving to God. Remember, it doesn’t have to be all good things; we can thank God while also recognizing the hardships of life. You can use the format of the psalm you chose, even picking up on some of the words, or simply have it there as general inspiration.
Trust (Lounge Area)
We associate Psalm 23 with death because it is often read at funerals. But it is a psalm about comfort when we are afraid and trusting God when that fear overtakes us. We are sometimes reluctant to trust as the psalmist does, we recite, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” But do we live this way? Yet we live in a way that says, “The Lord is not my shepherd; I do want.”
Take a copy of psalm 23 provided. Spend a few minutes turning each positive into a negative and each negative into a positive. See how this changes the psalm. Notice what feelings arise in you with these changes. How does this change your view of the prayer? Then spend a few moments rereading the original psalm. Do you see it differently? What changes do you need to make in order to live the words of the original psalm?
Lament (Baptismal Font)
Psalm 6:3, “My soul is in deep anguish. How long, Lord, how long?”
Psalm 1, “They are like trees, planted by streams of water.”
Water is a symbol of life in scripture; it represents the presence of God. Our bodies are made up of mostly water. Sometimes in the course of a lifetime, the pains and struggles in our lives build up. We shove down the pain or the injustice or grief and do not lament our struggles to God. Over time, this has an effect on our souls.
Take a piece of ice, hold it in your hand, and offer God a lament. Let God have it; God can take it. All the pain that is there, God can hold. As you do, the ice will dissolve into the hope that we, too, can be relieved of our pain through this offering. That what was once hardened can become life-giving again.
Praise (in front of the Praise Team)
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary!
Praise God in his fortress, the sky!
Praise God in his mighty acts!
Praise God as suits his incredible greatness! (Psalm 150)
What are 5 landmarks or seasons on your horizon for which you can praise God now in anticipation? Perhaps they are joyful or perhaps overwhelming. Write it out and post it to the horizon.
Visio Divina
When the time for Prayer Stations is over, a video of Psalm 4 will play,
find your way back to your seat and as you watch it,
notice what words or images stick with you.
What questions arise for you?
What is God asking of you in this moment?
