A Child's Guide to Prayer

A CHILDâ€™S GUIDE TO

PRAYER

A Childâ€™s Guide to Prayer

Illustrated by Tara Pappas

Ancient Faith Publishing chesterton, indiana

A Child’s Guide to Prayer Text copyright © 2020 Ancient Faith Publishing Illustrations copyright © 2020 Tara Pappas Published by: Ancient Faith Publishing A division of Ancient Faith Ministries PO Box 748 Chesterton, IN 46304 ISBN: 978-1-944967-74-1 Printed in the United States of America All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. All Old Testament quotations are from the Orthodox Study Bible, © 2008 by St. Athanasius Academy of Orthodox Theology (published by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee) and are used by permission. New Testament quotations are from the New King James Version of the Bible, © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc., and are used by permission. store.ancientfaith.com Interior book design of A Child’s Guide to the Divine Liturgy by Amber Schley Iragui. Elements of that design are repeated here in A Child’s Guide to Prayer. A special thanks from the Ancient Faith editors to Fathers Nabil Hanna, Stephen Freeman, and Evan Armatas, and to Edith M. Humphrey, Katrina Bitar, Dr. Jeannie Constantinou, and Kristina Wenger for giving input on the text.

For my son, Symeon—TP

CONTENTS

Welcome • 7 What Is Prayer • 9 Morning Prayers • 15 Evening Prayers • 21 Words of the Faith • 27 Prayers During the Day • 35 Prayers for Mealtimes • 47 Prayers for Family and Friends • 51 Prayers of the Saints • 63 Prayers to the Saints • 75 Psalms to Pray • 79 Communion Prayers • 97 Prayers Before and After Confession • 105 Ways to Pray • 107 Praying for . . . • 115 Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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W E L C O M E to A Childâ€™s Guide to Prayer!

We at Ancient Faith Publishing are excited to offer this small book as an aid for young children who are developing the beautiful habit of prayer. This book was designed with several things in mind:

C We divided the book into color-coded sections so that each part is easy to find.

C In order not to overwhelm the child, we have kept the number of prayers in each section small.

C We included illustrations to add another element

of inspiration and as visual aids to help children remember the various prayers.

C Several blank pages were added at the end so

children can keep track of those they are praying for.

We wish you, and all the children of the Orthodox Faith, continual growth toward Christ as we seek to be lights to the world, helping each other toward the Kingdom of Heaven! Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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WHAT

IS

PRAYER?

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. —philippians

4:6-7

W

H A T I S P R A Y E R ? Is it just closing our eyes and saying words out loud in church, or bowing our heads and crossing ourselves before we eat? Prayer is talking to God and listening while God talks to us. It’s reaching our minds and hearts out to the Creator of the universe and being in conversation with Him. We pray because we want to be with God and know Him better. We pray because He loves us more than we can imagine and we want to love Him back. Prayer can be as small as saying “Lord, have mercy” when we are sad. Prayer can be as big as staying up all night and reading through the whole Book of Psalms!

Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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Small or big, prayer is about reaching out and holding God’s hand instead of trying to go through our lives alone. At your baptism, you were filled with God’s Holy Spirit. He is a helper given to us who helps us learn how to pray. You were also given a guardian angel, someone who is always looking out for you, protecting you, praying to God for you. The best thing about prayer is that you can do it anytime, anywhere! It’s wonderful to start your day by telling God you love Him and asking for His help. It’s comforting to pray before you go to sleep, thanking God for the day that has passed. But you can also pray with your body, by crossing yourself or by closing your eyes to simply listen to God. At the back of this book is a list of many different ways to pray, and the next couple of pages talk about a prayer rule. 10

What Is Prayer?

a b ov e a l l ,

when learning to pray, try to do these three things.

Be quiet for a moment before you begin.

Pray slowly and really think about the words you are saying.

Pray to God and His saints as much as you can!

Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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Hear my cry, O God. Listen to my prayer.

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What Is Prayer?

A

is a group of prayers that you say faithfully every day. A prayer rule can also include things like lighting a candle, reading a Bible verse, singing a song, or bowing down and crossing yourself. Talk to your parents or the priest at your church to decide which prayers to include in your daily prayer rule. And keep in mind, your daily prayer rule will change and grow as you do. p r ay e r r u l e

In this book are many prayers that would work well in your prayer rule. For example, in the Morning Prayers section are several prayers that would be great to say every day, but saying them all might be too much for you right now. Saying a few prayers from your whole heart is better than saying a bunch of prayers just from your lips. remember,

if you pray slowly and truly think about the words you are saying, your conversations with God will bring you great joy! Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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MORNING

PRAYERS

Before praying, stand quietly in front of an icon or a cross and take a few deep breaths. Quiet your mind and your body, then cross yourself as you begin to pray.

of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. a m e n .

in the name

o h e av e n ly k i n g ,

O Comforter, Spirit of Truth, who are in all places and fill all things, Treasury of good things and Giver of Life: Come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain, and save our souls, O good One.

h o ly g o d ,

Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.

Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/a-childs-guide-to-prayer/

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A Child's Guide to Prayer

Published on Dec 12, 2019

Ancient Faith Publishing

A Child's Guide to Prayer is a beautifully illustrated prayer book for Orthodox Christian children aged 5-10 who are just developing a habit of prayer. The selection includes morning and evening prayers, prayers during the day, at mealtimes, for family and friends, and prayers of and to the saints—along with psalms to pray and prayers that have to do with communion and confession. All the prayers were carefully selected by priests and youth workers to ensure their age-appropriateness. The 120-page guide also includes brief instructions on how to pray, why we pray, and a list of different ways to pray. The book concludes with several blank pages for personal prayer requests. Illustrated by Tara Pappas.