The Woman's Book of Prayer. Becca Anderson

of attending a talk by Huston Smith, a preeminent scholar of the world’s religions who first came to the attention of the world when he brought a young Tibetan Buddhist monk—His Holiness the Dalai Lama—to America for the first time. Smith spoke about the continuing impact of religion in our world, most notably, the strife in the Middle East over religious differences. He was at his most joyous when he described his own spiritual practices to us. They were beautiful in their simplicity. Smith said that, upon rising each day, he did Hatha yoga for some minutes followed by reading a few pages of sacred text, after which he meditated or prayed for at least five minutes. He would finish his morning ritual by doing a bit of yard work and some composting, which resulted in rich, dark soil and a beautiful garden that he greatly enjoyed.

      The entire audience smiled as they listened to this great and humble man describe the simple spiritual practices with which he began each day. These were Huston Smith’s personal morning rituals. I loved the irony that this premier academic, who has such a deep understanding of all the religious rituals throughout history, had created such an uncomplicated practice for himself. I left the talk inspired and soon felt compelled to gather prayers that could bring meaning into our lives.

      Whether people are conscious of it or not, our lives are centered upon daily ritual. Prayer is one of the most important of our human rituals. The Wednesday night pizza and movie with the kids is a family ritual. It could be greatly enriched by adding a spiritual aspect—perhaps children could share the highlight of their week so far, and photos or memories could be added to a family album to be treasured for generations to come. A prayer of grace should happen before the breaking of bread in the form of pizza, too! The Saturday night date is a romantic ritual, knitting circles are a growing trend, and doing yoga is replacing going to the gym as a spiritual and physical workout. People need ceremony to inform and enrich their lives, to deal with stress, and above all, to create meaning in their lives.

      Although I was brought up as a First Day Adventist, when I studied history, I kept discovering global prayers and practices from the past that I felt were just as relevant today. The beauty of knowing history is that we can learn from the past and take the best to heart by applying it to our lives. Various approaches to prayer are very much a part of our history and should be studied and applied to our lives today. Prayer gets us out of or heads and back into our bodies. It gets us into a place of spirit. By praying every day, you can grow in wisdom and feel an increasing sense of your aliveness. At the end of this book, I am including the guide that my Gratitude and Grace Prayer Circle used to start our gatherings. I can tell you it works, as we have gotten each other through illness, divorce, pregnancy, sick children, loss of parents, widowhood, job loss, financial crises, and a lot of weddings, babies, holidays, and happy days. Honestly, I don’t know where I would be without this prayerful sisterhood and the deep bonds of love and spirit.

      Many blessings to you and yours!

      Becca Anderson

      January

      New Year, New Beginnings, New You

      “The beginning is always today.”

      —Mary Wollstonecraft

      “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do.”

      —Amelia Earhart

      “An exciting and inspiring future awaits you beyond the noise in your mind, beyond the guilt, doubt, fear, shame, insecurity, and heaviness of the past you carry around.”

      —Debbie Ford

      “Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.”

      —Wilma Rudolph

      “Take a breath, and when you do, realize that you can make all your dreams come true: Wish upon the breeze that softly blows

      Think about the steps that on your path you must go

      Send your intentions back upon the wind

      And get ready to pick up the journey to your dreams again.”

      —Jasmeine Moonsong

      1

      Rise Up, O Woman of God

      Rise Up, O Woman of God

      In what He has given you,

      The things God has laid on your heart,

      Rise up, go forth, and do

      Unlock what God has placed within,

      The potential you have inside

      The world is waiting for your release

      To expand your wings and fly

      Arise in your God-given gifts

      For this is your finest hour

      Arise in the Lord’s holy might,

      Ignited and empowered

      For God is calling you to come forth

      To impact this world for Him,

      Don’t hold back or limit yourself

      Let His power arise within

      And take His message to the world

      To those that have lost their way,

      For you can surely make a difference

      If you’d hear His voice and obey

      You shall be strengthened in the Lord

      As you begin to arise,

      Conquering those doubts that pull you down

      And believe who you are in Christ

      For you shall surely be transformed

      As, in you, God increases more

      And become a woman of true excellence

      Bringing honor to her Lord.

      —M.S. Lowndes

      2

      Cast Your Mind Forward

      The future is made of the same stuff as the present.

      —Simone Weil

      3

      Flying to New Heights

      If you wish to fly to new heights,

      begin by setting your sights

      on a destination you can reach

      and then create a flight plan,

      a map, that will be your guide.

      —Debbie Ford

      4

      Dreaming and Doing

      Without leaps of imagination,

      or dreaming,

      we lose the excitement of possibilities.

      Dreaming, after all,

      is a form of planning.

      —Gloria Steinem

      5

      A Parable of the Mustard Seed

      Never lose an opportunity

      of urging a practical beginning,

      however small, for it is wonderful

      how often in such matters

      the mustard-seed germinates

      and roots itself.

      —Florence Nightingale

      6

      Gratitude to the Heavens Above

      Thank you, God, for this new day, for the