Prayer Practices: Beads

Prayer Practice: Prayer Beads

     The use of Prayer Beads can be an accompaniment to other prayer forms, helping kids – or the easily distracted – maintain focus. My family/community likes to use them as a separate prayer practice, with the beads created to provide guidance through the following prayers (like a rosary for non-Roman Catholics):

1.    The Jesus Prayer – “Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

2.    The Lord’s Prayer/Our Father

3.    3 Beads Together, for the Trinity (The Apostle’s Creed may be said).

4.    Gloria Patri or Doxology (we say, or sing, these historic praises).

5.    The Kyrie (“Lord, have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.”

6.    Confession: we use 7 beads to recite the 7 deadly sins… in our version we use, “Pride, Greed, Luxury, Anger, Gluttony, Envy, Acedia.”

7.    We typically return to the Jesus Prayer (#1), and start the process again, but we skip the 7 deadly sins on the repeated time, and instead move to…

8.    Discipleship: we use 9 beads and recite the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23): “Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control.”

9.    We end with the 1^st bead, and say the Jesus Prayer together one last time.

     In Community, we will sometimes expand the confession/discipleship time by having each one share either a sin they are struggling with (this usually includes a confession of the struggle and prayer to God for help), or a fruit of the spirit they are working on, or are struggling with, or are desiring to see more fruitful in their life.

     My daughter and I actual make Prayer Beads (in necklace form (dual chain) or "strand" form (single chain, suitable for a pocket). You can contact us if you're interested in obtaining some from us.