Prayer, Plain and Simple

“For many years I was bothered by the thought that I was a failure at prayer. Then one day I realized I would always be a failure at prayer; and I’ve gotten along much better ever since!” Brother Lawrence   Nicholas Herman wanted to find God. Like almost all his contemporaries, he believed that God…

One of the reasons why I started this blog was to serve as a place for prayer on breaking news. A little while ago, it was brought to my attention that Byrd and Melanie Billings, a couple in Beulah, Florida who had opened their hearts and their home to 12 adopted children, were slain in…

Today marks the 500th birthday of John Calvin, the father of Reformed Theology. To commemorate the occasion on Prayer Plain and Simple, I’d like to share a quote from him on prayer:   “Our prayer must not be self-centered. It must arise not only because we feel our own need as a burden we must lay…

My wife Jill and I just had our 26th anniversary. If you could only know what a miracle that really is! Obviously, I married up.  And even then, we almost never got started. The day I met her I made a complete idiot of myself. Her first impression of me: “Weird and Rude.” Stick with…

I suppose one of the reasons I got this gig to do a prayer blog for Beliefnet is because I’ve co-written two books with my friend Jennifer Schuchmann about communicating with God. Our first, “Six Prayers God Always Answers – Results May Vary,” deals with how we talk with God. The second, “Nine Ways God…

I’m in no shape to pray. So I will.  At the moment I feel anything but spiritual. I’m exhausted, hungry, in need of a shower and buzzing with that vague sense of irritation I often pass off as my “moodiness.”  I’m a far cry from experiencing the “aura of the sacred. “ So, I’ll talk…

Hi, I’m Nicole Symmonds, the Prayer Editor here at Beliefnet.com, who has chosen to go on this journey with Mark Herringshaw of making “Prayer Plain and Simple”. Now let it be known that I am not the most eloquent pray-er. I am not even the most consistent pray-er. But what I am is a person with a…

At this moment, like many across the world, I am watching/listening to the Michael Jackson memorial service. It has been a deeply spiritual affair with the singing of “Soon and Very Soon” when his casket was being brought into the Staples Center to the singing of “Jesus is Love” to his celebrity friends acknowledging that…

My name is Mark. I’m a recovering religious addict.   You should know this on day one of this blog about prayer. Truth be told, launching “Prayer Plain and Simple” with Nicole Symmonds is part of my treatment. We want this to be a forum of discovery, a place where we can discuss the spiritual…

Prayer Plain and Simple is a blog about prayer, but not in the traditional bowed heads, clasped hands, on your knees sense. This is about making prayer as routine as brushing your teeth and as easy as ABC and 123. Both Mark Herringshaw and I understand that prayer is a seemingly difficult spiritual practice and a…

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