Day 1: Breath Prayer Part 1, How to Pray

“What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.
Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.”
Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God.
When all the people saw it, they also praised God.
Luke 18:41-43

A “breath prayer,” is so titled, because you can say it in one breath. The famous “Jesus Prayer” from our brothers and sisters in Eastern Christianity is one of those prayers: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Try saying the words out loud:

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

You just prayed.

And that is how it is done.

That’s how easy prayer can be. This is a pretty good prayer if you just must start praying only one prayer. It recognizes Jesus Christ as Lord, Son of God, and Christ (which means our King), confesses sin, and asks for mercy.

This prayer is very similar to the prayer of the blind men, who begged Jesus to heal them (Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43). In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, this story of the blind receiving their sight follows stories where the disciples do not understand Jesus or the Kingdom of God. The disciples physically saw Jesus, yet were spiritually blind, and the blind men physically couldn’t see Jesus, yet truly saw Him for who He is.

Let’s pray the prayer again, but this time, use the prayer to ask Jesus to help you see. Imagine Jesus is above you, seated on His throne in heaven, listening with a smile, because you wanting to pray fills His heart with joy. Direct your words to Him, and say these words out loud:

“I want to truly see. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Well, you’ve done it. You’ve really prayed and God really listened. I wonder how He is going to answer your prayer?

Prayer work: Practice saying the Jesus Prayer out loud until it is memorized.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Then whenever you think about it throughout the day, say it out loud to Jesus, or say it in your mind to Jesus (don’t worry, if you only whisper your thoughts, He can still hear you, and He is pleased with your prayer). If you repeat the Jesus Prayer often enough during the day, you will be closer to fulfilling the command from the Apostle Paul to pray without ceasing.

“Rejoice always, pray continually,
give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18