The 15-Minute Prayer Solution: How One Percent of Your Day Can Transform Your Life

by Gary Jansen

2017 Catholic Press Association Book Awards, Honorable Prayer, Books About Prayer What might happen if you gave just ONE PERCENT of your day to God? I don’t have time to pray. I don’t know how to pray. I don’t know what to pray for. Perhaps you identify with one or all of these statements; most people do. But with Gary Jansen’s The 15-Minute Prayer Solution, anyone can learn to turn those “I don’t” statements into “I do” declarations— and be transformed in the process. Drawing on spiritual practices from the Christian tradition throughout the centuries, Jansen offers numerous and wide-ranging prayer exercises that can be completed in less than fifteen minutes. The Jesus Prayer, lectio divina, the Examen, imaginative prayer, and many more ways to joyfully encounter the Living God are explained. Deeply personal stories, thought provoking modern-day parables, and even humorous anecdotes bring spiritual ideas down to earth, revealing the practical side of prayer. And, as Jansen himself discovered, if you’re willing to take just fifteen minutes a day to pray, you may soon find that the entirety of your life has become a prayer, a relentless desire to place God at the center of everything.Now in Gary Jansen's bestselling Exercising Your Soul retitled, repackaged and revised!

Genres: Faith, Christian, Nonfiction

195 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 29, 2015

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Looking for more book reviews? Check out Rachel Reading for more like this

My prayer life has always kind of sucked, and I’ve tried many books to improve it. I am just not very good at just sitting down and talking with God for time on end. I tend to just talk to him throughout my day, thanking Him, petitioning Him for something, or reaching out to hear His voice about a situation. Prayer just always seemed something “prayer warriors” were always good at and I just wasn’t. I could do it in the moment, if needed, and I’m really good at praying for people publicly.

What I loved about this book is that it gave multiple, practical solutions to my problem. Fifteen minutes is something I can build to (I know, to those of you who can pray for hours on end I bet that seems so short!) but the author gave multiple ways to pray, so that depending on how I’m feeling on a given day, I’m able to find a way to pray.

I will say that I believe the writer was Catholic, however I didn’t find any gaps in theology being a Protestant. There were a few references to things that had different names but Google was my friend in this. Overall, I found this book really awesome for people who are super pressed for time and don’t know where to start in prayer. Or even people like myself who just feel behind and trying to catch up.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looked the author's writing style--practical, funny, imaginative, and poetic. I've heard him on radio a number of times and he's a great speaker. Has a unique way of looking at spirituality. Highly recommended.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Means to Pray

He has some very good ideas which I can incorporate into my prayer life. I would recommend reading this book.

[Ioana Barcan · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a book starts with two quotes, "pray constantly" and... "don't be an idiot", I can tell that I'm gonna love that book :). I really like Gary Jansen's witty, funny writing, and the things he writes about, and his stories - the one at the end brought me to (little) tears:
"Pray always" - Brother Lawrence, the Re-Brainer

[Laureen Nowakowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many good prayer ideas. At first I thought it was a little simplistic, but it turned out I was wrong. I am glad I bought the book because I underlined so many things. I had not known about the Jesus Prayer, Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Now I say it all the time. He reviews all kinds of prayers, formal prayers, meditation, the Examen, and very simple prayers. Come Holy Spirit, Come. He makes Pray Always seem possible.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The practice of Praying.

An interesting and thought provoking book on prayer which I feel should be read and re-read for reference rather than read once then forgotten having been "box ticked". As in all things worthwhile some effort from the reader will be required in the application of its exercises.

[Chuck Harry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well-written, inspiring, and sometimes funny book on spirituality. Very practical. Really loved how beautiful the Coda of the book was. Will recommend to others.

[Maksym Gontar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit too artistic, sometimes it's difficult to distinguish true and fiction in the book. But it may be a good introductory to the Christian prayer - of different techniques and approaches.

[Jillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read and I'll probably end up reading it again at some point. In our busy lives, it is sometimes easy to forget our daily prayers or to recite a familiar prayer without any feeling or thought. This little book provides many meditations and prayers that are short, but powerful. When you take just 15 minutes to bring all your attention and focus to God, some of the familiar prayers we grew up reciting can take on a new meaning and feeling. And even if you don't have an extra 15 minutes, there are still plenty of exercises that you can do throughout the day to stay close with God. It can feel almost as if you're having a constant conversation with God. Read it, you'll be glad you did.

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hadn't realised this was a Catholic book so was surprised when I came across a prayer exercise regarding The Sacred Heart of Christ. This did put me off the book somewhat being an Evangelical!
There were however parts I did enjoy. I had appreciated the book up to that point not knowing the author's faith and I also enjoyed the week spent focusing on the Parables and the coda about the paintbrush.
There is something to be gained by all in this book.
ARC from NetGalley for an impartial review.

[Phyllis Ketchersid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book because I grew up in church but I never felt like I was taught how to pray. The way this book was written was like it was specifically for me. The author used practical examples & stories from his own life experiences to demonstrate how to apply the principals that he teaches. He also includes lessons & exercises to guide you & help you begin to pray consistently. A lot of spiritual books are very dry & can be hard to understand. This book is not like that. Gary Jansen does a very good job of explaining things without being preachy or boring.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's given me a whole new way to pray, new images of God to ponder as I pray, new ways to experience creation and to thank God for making me a part of it. New ways to look at other people, at my place in time and space. And what made it really great is that it was a fun read, one I'm about to start all over, this time more slowly with putting the prayer exercises into practice. Check it out!