Advent Writing Prompts Week 1 Link-Up

I came up with such good writing prompts for this first week I even had a hard time deciding which prompt to write about this week.

I decided to choose to write about my favorite way to pray prompt this week. If you share your post, photos, or videos on social media use the hashtag #AdventPrompts. Can’t wait to read everyones posts. If you link-up I will share your post on twitter and my facebook page.

 

I chose to write about my favorite way to pray because it’s a tad different than the traditional ways we pray. Most people have never heard of this form of prayer as it cannot be prayed everywhere. My favorite way to pray is using a Labyrinth.

Some parishes  have installed labyrinth’s on their grounds in place of prayer gardens. The most popular place to find a labyrinth is on the grounds of a retreat center. The above photo is a labyrinth that is inside of a Cathedral.

I knew a priest that talked about a labyrinth that was outside a church and it was placed there to encourage people to walk through the labyrinth before entering the church. I thought that was a wonderful place as it can be very difficult to empty ourselves of life’s distractions before going into a church to pray.

Most people know a Labyrinth as a maze..which is partially true. However Labyrinth’s are also known as a form of meditation. Unlike a maze in a labyrinth there is only one way in and one way out.

There are a lot of different ways to pray a labyrinth. You can pick a scripture or word you want to focus on and focus on it on the way in then when you reach the center you say a prayer about it and then reflect on it on the way out. Some people pray a rosary as they walk it. Some listen to meditative music. One labyrinth I used to walk often had music playing along the walls so you were always going in and out of the meditative music and it was really calming to go in and out of the silence.

For me it is really hard to sit still and pray. I like going to adoration but an hour is a really long time for me to focus on prayer. The labyrinth is a good way to pray for me as you can do it while moving/walking. If you don’t have a labyrinth near you you can also print out a labyrinth and use a pen/pencil/finger to follow the path and meditate….I know that isn’t nearly the same but it can work. I think another way could be to map out a specific walk in your neighborhood or walking trail. Decide at what point your “middle” is going to be stop and pray and turn back.

I hope this will encourage you to find a labyrinth, meditation, or another unique way to pray this Advent season.

An InLinkz Link-up