learning to pray


'Consider the way children learn to talk. Notice how they imitate the sounds they hear. The same thing is true of us as we learn to pray. We begin with imitation, copying the phrases and ideas that we hear in the community around us. Soon, these become more and more personalized, until we have a freedom and dexterity in prayer to improvise, which feels wholly personal'
Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel