This is a guided prayer/meditation that can be used while sitting or walking. The prayer is structured around the Lord’s Prayer.
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Take several deep breaths to release stress and help you focus; as you breathe in, imagine you are breathing in the light of God. Name the good things in your life, and thank God for them. If you are outdoors, notice the beauty of creation surrounding you.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Think about how God is working in your life; what might be God’s intentions for you? For the world around you? Ask God to help you be open and receptive to God’s voice and direction.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Lift up your needs, as well as the needs of those around you, to God – be they physical, emotional or spiritual. You may choose to pray for specific outcomes, or you may simply feel and describe the needs and hurts to God.
Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Spend some time in retrospection, observing the ways in which you hurt others or yourself. Ask God for forgiveness, as well as help in forgiving others and forgiving yourself. Prayerfully let go of bitterness and resentment, and know that this may be a process. If you have felt hurt by God, name your feelings and lift them in prayer. God’s love is big enough to hold all of them.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Search inside your heart and find the sources of your fears, lifting them up in prayer. In what ways are those fears manifested in your life? Ask God to free you from those fears. While it is fine to ask God’s help in preventing undesirable outcomes, consider also asking for God’s peace no matter what happens – even if the worst nightmare comes true.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Take several deep breaths again as you surrender your innermost needs to God. If you tend to hold on to worries, consider tensing the muscles of your hands in a tight fist, and then suddenly releasing them. As you relax your hand, envision that you are letting go of your burdens. Ask for help in entrusting those burdens to God.