Prayer - 10th Anniversary Edition: Finding the Heart's True Home

Oh, how I love this book. From start to finish and all points in between it is and has been a joyful companion along the way of my personal prayer journey. My only regret regarding this book is not finding it sooner."Prayer is the inner bath of love into which the soul plunges itself." St. John VianneyThere is almost too much I could say that is good about Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home for a single review article, so I will mention the points that are some of my favorites. First, the form that Foster uses to navigate this journey into prayer is delightfully instructive. He has chosen to outline the book into three major sections he titles Moving Inward: Seeking the Transformation We Need, Moving Upward: Seeking the Intimacy We Need, and Moving Outward: Seeking the Ministry We Need. Each of these sections contains seven chapters respectively, which form the many facets that make prayer the beautiful diamond it is in the relationship between man and God.Second, regarding these individual chapters, I thoroughly enjoyed the exploration into ancient prayer practices that have helped form disciples into the image of God throughout the history humankind's reconciliation to Him. A few examples of these prayer practices from the first section are The Prayer of Examen, developed by Ignatius of Loyola, The Prayer of Relinquishment, modeled by the self-emptying life of Jesus Christ, and what Foster calls Formation Prayer, which is modeled in the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius, the Rule of Benedict, and the Little Way of Therese of Lisieux. Section two is vertically focused (Love God) and more on the relational facets of prayer as the title Seeking the Intimacy We Need suggests. In this section, we find prayer practices and exercises that lead us into acts of adoration, rest, meditation, and contemplation. The third section, Moving Outward, follows a more horizontal aspect (Love man) and practices prayer exercises that manifest themselves in community relations; for example, Petitionary Prayers, Intercesssory Prayers, and Healing Prayers are included in this collection.When the Spirit has come to reside in someone, that person cannot stop praying; for the Spirit prays without ceasing in him. No matter if he is asleep or awake, prayer is going on in his heart all the time. He may be eating or drinking, he may be resting or working-the incense of prayer will ascend spontaneously from his heart. The slightest stirring of his heart is like a voice which sings in silence and in secret to the Invisible. -Isaac the SyrianAnother point of mention that I enjoyed greatly about this book is the diversity of source material that Foster includes in his teaching. In addition, the great majority of this source material is well annotated in the index section of the book, which includes a bibliographical reference in the notes, a subject index, and a Scripture index as well.One more very nice feature that brought smiles to my heart was the opening quotes from influential Christians spanning the history of our faith; I loved receiving these words as encouragement, inspiration, and challenge. Additionally, each chapter ends in a prayer or benediction relative to the exercise and practice that was previously described.In my opinion, this book has been sorely missed in the circles of Evangelical Protestant churches of which I have been a part. The prayer experiences I have encountered and shared with others have been largely one-dimensional and often self-focused and self-directed. Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home is a wonderful and helpful corrective step in the right direction. As I said in my opening statement, my one regret is this book was not known to me sooner. If you are curious about the Christian prayer experience, this is a good place to start."May you now, by the power of the Holy Spirit, receive the spirit of prayer. May it become, in the name of Jesus Christ, the most precious occupation of your life. And may the God of all peace strengthen you, bless you, and give you joy. -Amen." (p.256)

Enjoyed this book immensely. Practical, broad range of topics, biblical. I am going to read it a second time to digest the broad range of things that can be implemented into my life.

I Jutta started this book and read the first few chapters. I’ve already underlined some good lessons learned and ways I can incorporate these suggestions into my own prayer life. Thank you!

Richard J. Foster wrote Prayer in 1992. It is a remarkable book in that it takes one through all of the various disciplines of prayer in a very practical manner, giving suggestions for each type of prayer along with an explanation of how to say the prayer. Until I came across this book I found it difficult to pray in a manner that felt right for me. What the book did for me was to help me to understand better the process of prayer and to use the examples in the book whenever I lacked the inspiration to come up with something of my own. The explanations are very clear and understandable; they illustrate the many ways to pray behond simply asking for something - petitionary prayer as Foster calls it. The genres of prayer described by Foster include the prayers of adoration, of formation, of suffering, of tears, of the forsaken, of examen, and of relinquishment. He even uses a little humor by citing a Tolstoy story (p.80) about a bishop who learns from three hermits. For anyone who has the same problem as I of struggling to find a way of praying that feels personally right, I recommend the book unreservedly.

This book is an excellent introduction to, and survey of, the practice and experience of prayer for Christians. Richard Foster draws from many different traditions and experiences and distills them into this very fine and accessible work. It's very practical, unpretentious and inspiring. Foster helps us examine the many facets of prayer grouped according to three intentions on personal transformation, intimacy with God and ministry to others. Among its 21 chapters you may find aspects of prayer that are very familiar to you (maybe you had never thought of them as prayer before) along with encouragement to focus and deepen your efforts in those areas. Other types of prayer may be completely foreign to you but offer an invitation to explore. For those who want to take prayer more seriously this book is a very good place to begin. It is not an introduction in the sense of being superficial or shallow. It treats each aspect of prayer in enough depth to get the willing reader well on his or her way to a more effective and vital life of prayer. But it also shows us prayer as a vast, life long and life changing endeavor and points to the work of others who have explored the various disciplines of prayer more deeply. This books is essential reading.

This is a great book, especially if you are looking for new and different ways to incorporate prayer into your life. There is a great deal of variety here, and this book is both invitation and practical manual. If you are struggling with the theology of prayer, however, this is not the book for you. If you are wrestling with the invitation to intercessory prayer, but not quite understanding why anyone would try to convince God to act in one way over against another (since most Christians assume God is already working towards our best interests), this book doesn't really answer your question.Having said that -- as a book of invitation, encouragement and practical application, this book is great!

I love the way the book is organized. Also the author seems like a very wise person, obviously writing out of considerable depth of personal experience as well as research and reading.

Wow! This book really surprised me with how GOOD it is! I took my time to read it only 1 chapter at a time and really really enjoyed it. It's one of those books that you really want to take in and sit with.

This may be an old book but it is one of the best on prayer I have read and this book explains the varierty of prayers as well and the purpose of prayer. Whether you believe in the power of prayer or area seeking a greater understanding of what praying is all about , this book will give you clear and sound teaching.

An excellent book that I would strongly recommend to anyone serious about learning about prayer. I learned a lot from this book and have passed it around a few of the people at my church who have all found it a useful encouragement to their prayer lives.

We used this book as the primary source for an eleven session course on prayer which was life transforming for us all. The book needs to be read and reread as it is so packed with wisdom and guidance that much would be missed on a single read.