{"id":1109,"date":"2017-07-11T20:36:36","date_gmt":"2017-07-11T18:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/?p=1109"},"modified":"2023-03-28T10:37:02","modified_gmt":"2023-03-28T08:37:02","slug":"on-writing-prayer-poems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2017\/07\/11\/on-writing-prayer-poems\/","title":{"rendered":"On Writing Prayer-Poems"},"content":{"rendered":"
Psalm-inspired prayer poems for LENT 2021 (Year B)<\/strong>
\nNot unless<\/a> | Not forsaken<\/a> | Sweet words<\/a> | Talk about it<\/a> | You are right<\/a> | Cornerstone<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"prayer<\/p>\n

PDF handout<\/a><\/p>\n

I confess. I tend to borrow prayers from others. See the prayer sheets<\/a>, for example, which are collections of prayers on a theme, sourced from books or other websites like re:Worship<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But sometimes you have to stretch yourself<\/strong>, so when I was putting together the series that became “The Gift<\/a>” (Preparing for Pentecost) I decided to try my hand at writing some original prayers to accompany the Scriptures I had selected.<\/p>\n

I’d like to share what I learnt<\/strong> from writing the twelve prayer-poems I wrote for the series. I hope you, in turn, will be inspired to write prayer-poems of your own. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Prayer-Poems<\/h1>\n

The goal is to capture the essence of the source Scripture and turn it into a prayer enriched by poetic devices. Like the psalms, but then in your own words, as an expression of who you are, especially who you are in relation to the God who inspired your source text. For the joy of creating and of having something life-affirming to share with others (including your future self).<\/p>\n

My prayer-poems tend to be 100 words or less.<\/p>\n

Poetic<\/h3>\n

I opted for free verse, but with an in-built rhythm or cadence that becomes evident when the prayer-poem is read out loud. I used the odd metaphor as well as simile, assonance and alliteration. <\/p>\n

metaphor<\/em>
\n“I am a building site<\/u>, \/ under construction, \/ and the building company \/ is called Trinity.” (Re-minder, The Gift #3<\/a>)<\/p>\n

simile<\/em>
\n“Like<\/u> ripples, \/ like<\/u> soundwaves, \/ like<\/u> seeds carried aloft by the wind” (Traces, The Gift #7<\/a>)<\/p>\n

assonance<\/em>
\n“words that protect<\/u> and reflect<\/u> \/ the new life taking root in me. \/ Holy Spirit, be my defence<\/u>.” (Defence, The Gift #4<\/a>)<\/p>\n

alliteration<\/em>
\n“the new<\/u> of this now<\/u>” (Tell me, The Gift #5<\/a>)<\/p>\n

I also experimented with line breaks, white space and punctuation to regulate the rhythm and pace of the words. On occasion I used lists to tie things together or to broaden or intensify. Repetition and ‘compare and contrast’ are also useful devices.<\/p>\n

Inspiration<\/h3>\n

Each prayer-poem is anchored in the particular Scripture that inspired it. Sometimes additional Scriptures are used to extend the source text.<\/p>\n

Models<\/h3>\n

Psalms
\npaintedprayerbook.com<\/a> (especially the blessings)<\/p>\n

To whom<\/h3>\n

The prayers usually include a form of address (e.g. “Jesus, baptized baptizer”, “Our Father in heaven”, “Father-sent Advocate”), and might reflect a specific aspect of God’s character suggested by the source text.<\/p>\n

Getting started<\/h1>\n

Selecting a source text<\/h3>\n

Select a verse or passage as inspiration.<\/p>\n

Connecting<\/h3>\n

Meditate on your source text, asking the Holy Spirit to let it speak to you. You might like to learn it off by heart to further internalize it.<\/p>\n

Long-hand<\/h3>\n

I find it helpful to write out the words of my source text in long-hand, using pipes to separate the words as appropriate. <\/p>\n

For example: Luke 11:13<\/em>
\nIf | you | then | though | you | are | evil | know | how | to give | good gifts | to | your children | how | much | more | will | your Father | in heaven | give | the Holy Spirit | to | those | who | ask | him! <\/p>\n

(Notice that I combined some of the words – nouns with their qualifiers, like “the Holy Spirit”, and verbal phrases like “to give”. That seemed to make more sense to me than separating them out.)<\/p>\n

Somehow, by dividing the text into its constituent parts, things jump out at you more easily. In this case I noticed the words, “Father”, “in heaven” and “give” and saw the link with the Lord’s Prayer, which became an essential reference point in the resulting prayer-poem. <\/p>\n

Our Father in heaven
\ngiver of good gifts
\n– good to the core –
\nyou know what we need
\nto live
\nand move
\nand have our being.
\nWe ask you
\n– because Jesus said we could –
\n– because Jesus said we should –
\ngive us our daily bread
\ngive us your Spirit, we pray.
\nAmen
\n(For the asking, The Gift #2<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Two-step: right brain\/left brain<\/h3>\n

Chew on the words and let your imagination, memory and associative faculties (right brain) loose on the text. Write everything down. Stay in the flow till you run out of ideas. <\/p>\n

Later, after you’ve taken a break, you can give your left brain (critical faculties) access to your notes, to evaluate, sift and order your collection of thoughts, and to help you shape it, pruning and strengthening the impact re: form and focus. It helps to have a central unifying image<\/strong> to hold the whole thing together. <\/p>\n

If you don’t have enough material after the first round and\/or your ideas spark fresh ideas, repeat the process.<\/p>\n

Helpful Tools<\/h3>\n

1. Different translations of your source text. This often prompts fresh thoughts and perspectives.<\/p>\n

2. A good dictionary and thesaurus.<\/p>\n

3. A concordance and\/or the search facility of a website like BibleGateway.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ideas<\/h1>\n

1. Ask a friend or family member what their favourite verse is. Read and reflect on it together, and find out why the verse means so much to them. Take notes during or after the conversation. Then write a prayer-poem inspired by the verse and your conversation and give it to the person. In the process they’ll be blessed, but so will you.<\/p>\n

2. Read through the Bible readings for the service coming up and select a (short) passage that particularly resonates with you. Write a prayer-poem based on that passage.<\/p>\n

3. If you have a role in the service yourself (preaching, leading prayers or doing the readings) consider writing prayer-poems by way of preparation.<\/p>\n

4. Write a prayer-poem as a response to a sermon that moved you, or as a follow-up to a Bible Study.<\/p>\n

5. Write a prayer-poem as a prayer for someone, and consider sending it to them.<\/p>\n

6. Write prayer-poems with a group (using a common text or individual texts). Include time to brain-storm and share ideas. Consider finishing the prayer-poems at home. This gives your ideas time to mature.<\/p>\n

In closing<\/h1>\n

Like poems, I suspect prayer-poems work best on the page. Use them in service sheets or the church magazine, or send them to friends, hand-written on a card or by email.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Psalm-inspired prayer poems for LENT 2021 (Year B) Not unless | Not forsaken | Sweet words | Talk about it | You are right | Cornerstone   PDF handout I confess. I tend to borrow prayers from others. See the prayer sheets, for example, which are collections of prayers on a theme, sourced from books … Continue reading “On Writing Prayer-Poems”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7,13,28,63,3],"tags":[29,30],"class_list":["post-1109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","category-bible","category-creativity","category-poetry","category-prayer","tag-creative-expression","tag-writing"],"yoast_head":"\nOn Writing Prayer-Poems - Prayer matters<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Lessons I learnt from writing 12 prayer-poems for the series, "The Gift". 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Maybe the best things. The Gift This time 3 years ago I was working on 12 prayer poems for my series on the Holy Spirit which I entitled The Gift. You might like to revisit the series as Pentecost 2020 approaches.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "creativity"","block_context":{"text":"creativity","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/creativity\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/lavendar_rotterdam.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/lavendar_rotterdam.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/lavendar_rotterdam.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/lavendar_rotterdam.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10768,"url":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2021\/02\/19\/yield-as-sacrifice\/","url_meta":{"origin":1109,"position":1},"title":"Yield as sacrifice","author":"Irene Bom","date":"February 19, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Frosty winter morning \u00a0(Photo: Irene Bom) \u00a0 Prayer of Confession God, penetrate those murky corners where we hide memories, and tendencies on which we do not care to look, but which we will not yield freely to you, that you might purify and transmute them. The persistent buried grudge, the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "poetry"","block_context":{"text":"poetry","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/poetry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/frosty_leaves.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/frosty_leaves.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/frosty_leaves.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/frosty_leaves.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16266,"url":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2025\/05\/12\/memory-trigger\/","url_meta":{"origin":1109,"position":2},"title":"Memory trigger","author":"Irene Bom","date":"May 12, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A prayer God, remind us again and again of your presence, and help us to be that memory for others. Amen. \u00a0 \u00a0 from Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove and Enuma Okoro, p. 264 From the blog Sabbath rest Up to us On\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "prayer"","block_context":{"text":"prayer","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/prayer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/worlds_apart_reflections.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/worlds_apart_reflections.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/worlds_apart_reflections.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/worlds_apart_reflections.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":871,"url":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2017\/05\/28\/pentecost-2017-gift-6\/","url_meta":{"origin":1109,"position":3},"title":"The Gift #6 : Guidance","author":"Irene Bom","date":"May 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u2018Keerom\u2019 (turn around), Cape Town, South Africa (photo: Irene Bom) \u00a0 The Gift booklet 12-part series of readings and prayer poems on the Holy Spirit On writing prayer poems \u00a0 John 16:13 (NIV) Jesus said: \u2018When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "meditation"","block_context":{"text":"meditation","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/meditation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"'Keerom' (turn around), Cape Town, South Africa","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_6_keerom.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_6_keerom.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_6_keerom.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_6_keerom.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":806,"url":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2017\/05\/25\/pentecost-2017-gift-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":1109,"position":4},"title":"The Gift #2 : For the asking","author":"Irene Bom","date":"May 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Muizenberg, Western Cape, South Africa (photo: Irene Bom) \u00a0 The Gift booklet 12-part series of readings and prayer poems on the Holy Spirit On writing prayer poems \u00a0 Luke 11:13 (NIV) Jesus said: \u2018If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "meditation"","block_context":{"text":"meditation","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/meditation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_2_rainbow.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_2_rainbow.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_2_rainbow.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_2_rainbow.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":845,"url":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2017\/05\/25\/pentecost-2017-gift-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":1109,"position":5},"title":"The Gift #3 : Re-minder","author":"Irene Bom","date":"May 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"'Entrance other side' (photo: Irene Bom) \u00a0 The Gift booklet 12-part series of readings and prayer poems on the Holy Spirit On writing prayer poems \u00a0 John 14:26 (NIV) Jesus said: \u2018The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "meditation"","block_context":{"text":"meditation","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/meditation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Gift #3 - construction site","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_3_sign.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_3_sign.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_3_sign.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/pentecost_2017_gift_3_sign.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"rttpg_featured_image_url":null,"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"Irene Bom","author_link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/author\/irenebom-com\/"},"rttpg_comment":2,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/article\/\" rel=\"category tag\">article<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/bible\/\" rel=\"category tag\">bible<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/creativity\/\" rel=\"category tag\">creativity<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/poetry\/\" rel=\"category tag\">poetry<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/category\/prayer\/\" rel=\"category tag\">prayer<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Psalm-inspired prayer poems for LENT 2021 (Year B) Not unless | Not forsaken | Sweet words | Talk about it | You are right | Cornerstone   PDF handout I confess. I tend to borrow prayers from others. See the prayer sheets, for example, which are collections of prayers on a theme, sourced from books…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1109"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1109\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}