What do you understand contemplative prayer to be?

Question

I was just wondering what other people thought to sort out my own feelings

Answer 1

Prayer is a means by which we draw nearer to God. As we pray contemplatively we speak with our inner voice to God, a private voice that we would never speak aloud. When I pray to God, he hears me as no one, my wife, my son, etc. has ever heard me.

God hears all the prayers of the righteous. But consider the following:

A Christian hunter is hunting bears in the woods. While walking up a hill he grabs a branch for leverage and it breaks sending the hunter tumbling down the hill, gun flying off elsewhere. When the hunter dusts himself off he sees a huge bear charging him. The hunter begins running, but trips and falls, landing on his knees. Seizing the opportunity, and being a good Christian, the hunter begins to pray, "Lord, make this bear a Christian."

The woods are quiet, the hunter turns and, Hallelujah! He sees the bear on his knees, paws together, praying! Listening, he hears the bear praying, "Father, bless this food to my body."

The key point here is that God answers prayers of the righteous, but the answer you get may not be the answer you wanted, BUT it will always be the right answer.

Use the following pattern in all your prayers and you will see them answered: Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. See the llinks below for more information. (acronym: ACTS)

http://www.prayerguide.org.uk/actsmodel.htm

http://www.powertopray.com/howto/ACTS.html

Answer 2

Contemplative Prayer is something that I've been working on in this new year. To me it's keeping a prayer in my heart throughout the day, so that as situations and circumstances arise I might see them in a new perspective that will guide my thoughts and decisions. It's keeping my opinions and verdicts on other people in that perspective so that I find it harder to offend or be offended. Usually by the end of the day when I'm able to kneel in prayer again, in my quiet spot, I am in a more humble place where I can find answers to my questions and hear what I need to know.

Answer 3

I think its when you think on several aspects of one thing. For instance, consider nature in its cycles. A tree loses its leaves during the fall and appears as if dead during the winter, while some trees remain green throughout the cold season. Finding the spiritual or religious symbolism within that brings us closer to our Creator. At the end of each contemplation, a sense of peace and enlightenment, sometimes enough to last your life. These little "lessons" are like treasures you keep close to your heart to remember in future nastier situations.

Answer 4

I think contemplative prayer involves more listening than asking. It is not a set prayer. It means that you have to have a quiet place, to go deep and not shallow. It means that you have to be willing to take time to invest in prayer, to slow down, to recognize that you want answers from God and not from your own worldly knowledge.