Prayer for All Occasion
An Examination of the Power of Prayer Through Deep Storytelling
By Clint Wilson
Beginner’s Grace is more than learning about grace; this book is almost a guidebook on prayer. Prayer is one of the most common facets of piety that I hear most people struggle with. I personally fail with prayer on a regular basis. Recently, at a men’s retreat, one of the chapel attendants confided in me that he did not know how to pray. I wish I had this book at that time to offer to him, as it truly outlines everything a person would need to know about prayer.
As a licensed minister, I am asked to pray quite often, but it wasn’t until just a few short years ago that I felt comfortable praying out loud. I was caught up, just as the man I mentioned earlier, in the “art” of prayer. What is the art of prayer? Here is the answer: there is no art to prayer. Kate Braestrup reinforces this thought throughout her book. There is a misconception among many Christians that prayer has to be some type of formality, with extravagant words and proclamations to God while kneeling with your hands interlaced. Thankfully, Kate Braestrup debunks these misconceptions in the opening chapter.
Kate Braestrup challenges us, in an indirect way, through the art of storytelling, on how to pray. Throughout the book, there are several stories that focus on different everyday occurrences we may find ourselves in. These stories will touch you, make you laugh, and some will make you cry, but they all end with a feeling of absolution in the prayers that are presented. As I read the stories, I tried to place myself in the situation of the protagonist. By placing myself in this mindset, it allowed me to go to a deeper place and really feel the power of the story, making the prayers so much more meaningful to me.
As I was reading, I had some reservations about Kate Braestrup and her use of other religions and spirituality outside of the Christian context in a book about grace that seemed to be Christian-centered. However, Kate Braestrup has a profound and unique way of engaging other religious beliefs and presenting them in a way we can relate to in our own Christian faith. She incorporates Buddhist thoughts on unraveling our minds to put us in a mindset to pray. This may seem odd for a Christian reading a book on grace, but the examples used are universal to all religions.
Kate Braestrup herself is a Unitarian Universalist Chaplain, so her overall audience is broader than just those of Christian faith. I almost feel that this book was written for those of no faith, or for those who are disenchanted with their current faith or their church. As you read this book, you have to approach it objectively and try to take the principles presented and apply them to your Christian faith. Don’t let Kate Braestrup’s use of other religions be a stumbling block to reading this book; instead, allow it to be a building block.
Whether a Christian or not, we all can take several lessons from Kate Braestrup in learning a deep spirituality. The type of spirituality presented in this book leads to grace that can be shown to others—whether they are in the hospital, in prison, an atheist, an agnostic, a Buddhist, a Muslim, or any other faith or situation. We are to show grace to them, and we can learn some of the steps to that grace through prayer in this well-written book for all religions and people of any faith.
In the end, after completing this book, I found that I now have a better prayer voice, and I realize that my prayers for others can have a true impact. I no longer feel that I have to be kneeling at an altar with hands folded in front of me to have a meaningful prayer to God. I can be laying in my bed, supine with my hands behind my head, or even driving down the highway and have my time with God.