Prayers from the Heart: Finding God's Presence and Love Amid the Stresses of Contemporary Life

by Richard J. Foster

My whole life, in one sense, he has been an experiment in how to be a portable sanctuary," writes Richard Foster, "learning to practice the presence of God in the midst of the stresses and strains of contemporary life." So begins Foster's most personal work yet, a book of prayers that seek to lead us to experience "the reality of God in the midst of going to work and raising kids and cleaning house and paying the bills." Drawing on the structure of his awardwinning Finding the Heart's True Home, Foster presents this collection of prayers according to the three aspects of the human looking inward to the heart, reaching upward toward God, and moving outward to care for others. These prayers speak to moments in our days and events in our lives. Simply and powerfully expressing such basic human experiences as wonder, stillness, the loneliness of anonymity, and the search for faith, Foster encourages us to explore the transformative power of prayer that draws us into the love of God and gives Christian community its life. Longtime Foster readers and newcomers alike will cherish this rich and thoroughly contemporary book from one of our most respected spirtual leaders.

Genres: Prayer, Christian, Nonfiction, Religion, Spirituality, Christian Living, Reference

144 pages, Hardcover

First published June 18, 1994

About the author

Richard J. Foster is the author of several bestselling books, including Celebration of Discipline, Streams of Living Water, and Prayer, which was Christianity Today's Book of the Year and the winner of the Gold Medallion Award from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. He is the founder of Renovaré, an intrachurch movement committed to the renewal of the Church in all her multifaceted expressions, and the editor of The Renovaré Spiritual Formation Bible.

Reviews

[Cheryl Neer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prayers from the Heart is a book of heartfelt poems and prayers ranging from St. Patrick, Francis of Assisi, Mother Teresa to the current day. Beautiful, pure they are a wonderful addition to devotions and meditation time.

[Victor Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an amazing little prayer and meditation book. I wrote a number of prayers down on index cards to pull out when needed.

Highly recommend if you need an additional resource for your daily study.

[Evan Hoekzema · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this little collection of prayers. Foster both writes personally and collects prayers from others throughout church history. Great devotional resource to spur on some different types of prayers.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A treasure trove of prayers, old and new, many collated and collected, but some original from Foster himself.

The book is in three parts,
1) The journey onward
2) The journey upward
3) The journey outward

[Tami Hawley · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful little prayer book! I'm sure I'm not alone in that I have a hard time finding the right words when I pray. I could probably write some, but to make one on the fly is very difficult. To have these prayers to use in various situations will be helpful. They are simple and eloquent and speak from the heart. This would make a wonderful gift for someone on a spiritual journey.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and helpful collection of topical prayers by historical church mystics and leaders, including some of Foster's own prayers. While the Psalms and other Scriptures provide good examples to guide our own prayers, Foster helps apply those truths to his own (and hopefully our) context. Worth reading!

[Emily Goldberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of prayers.

[Ngelay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want to read again and again

[Darcy Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little book helped me with my prayer-time in January. Richard Foster combines his own prayers with those of other Christians both past and present.

[Greypilgrim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short concise prayers on various situations the believer encounters in life. I find myself spending more time with this book every year. He uses prayers from various traditions and even writes his own, although I have gotten more out of the former than the latter