Hands together, eyes shut!

You maybe someone who is used to praying every day, it maybe an activity you have not given much thought to, but in the weeks ahead I do suggest you give it a try. When I was at school we were told to put our hands together and close our eyes, largely in order to ensure we were not distracted, though I found holding my hands in a funny way and being surrounded by people while we all kept our eyes shut distracting as well!

There are lots of ways of praying, you can try just talking to God, saying what's on your mind. I find it helpful to remember all the people I care about especially at the moment when I can not be physically with them.

You can use words that have been used by many people over hundreds of years, you may know the Lord's prayer:

Our Father,
Who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses 
as we forgive those who trespass against us
and lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil
for thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
forever and ever Amen.

I like arrow prayers, short and succinct, someone's situation comes to mind and you just pray God, keep them safe. You can read bits of the bible, the Church of England includes short readings in its prayer during the day webpage, or you may want to use their whole prayer service that incorporates the psalms and other poems called canticles. There is something reassuring about praying with others, using prayers that are ancient (even if they are written in modern English), finally you can try being quiet and still and just listening. Which takes me back to where we started, hands together and eyes shut.