Orthodox Spirituality: The Power of Prayer

The Importance of Prayer in Orthodox Spirituality

• Prayer is an essential part of Orthodox spiritual life, and an Orthodox believer's life is incomplete without prayer.
• The fathers say that "prayers are the door to heaven" and that they help build a connection with God, leading to companionship.

The Power of Prayer

• Pope Kyrillos the sixth said that "prayers move the hand of He who moves the universe."
• The parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8) teaches that God will avenge His own elect who cry out to Him day and night.

Levels of Prayer in Orthodoxy

• There are different levels of prayers in Orthodoxy: Liturgical Prayers, Family Prayers, and Individual or Personal Prayers.
• Liturgical Prayers are prayers prayed as a community of believers inside the church, and they help teach us the faith and how to pray.
• Family Prayers are a mix of memorized and personalized prayers, and they help keep the peace of the home, bring joy, and bring blessings.
• Individual or Personal Prayers are prayers expressed in our own words, and they can be silent prayers.

The Jesus Prayer

• The Jesus Prayer, also known as the Arrow Prayer, is "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
• It is a powerful introduction to personal prayers, and it can be used to ask God for the ability to pray when we are at a loss for words.

Integrating Personal Prayers with Liturgical Prayers

• The ultimate goal is to integrate personal prayers with liturgical prayers and bring liturgical prayers into our individualized prayers.
• We can incorporate parts of liturgical prayers into our personal prayers, and focus on supporting our liturgical prayers with our personal prayers.

The Importance of Persistence in Prayer

• Praying is a skill that requires practice, and the more we pray, the better we get at it by God's grace.
• We should not get discouraged if we do not pray enough, but instead, we should strive to maintain the blessing in our daily life through prayer.
• The parable of the persistent widow teaches us that persistence in prayer is important, and that God sees our determination and persistence in prayer.

Remembering Others in Our Prayers

• It is important to remember others in our prayers as they remember us.
• We should pray for others, and ask God to help us attain virtues.

The Correct Way to Pray

• The correct way to pray is to ask for God's will to be done, regardless of what our will is.
• We should pray with hope, patience, and perseverance, and remember that prayer brings fulfillment within itself.
• Effective prayers bring joy to the believer's life when they are rested in the assurance that the Lord is in control of everything.