Prayer: 40 Days of Practice

by Justin McRoberts, Scott Erickson (Illustrator)

Religious tradition can and often does provide language, shape and space for prayer, but the primal instinct to pray does not emanate from or begin with religion. Instead, something in our nature points beyond itself; something in us searches for and appeals to The Divine. We wrote this book to help you find language, shape and space for the basic, human, spiritual and beautiful need to pray. Yet, as natural as prayer is, the practice of it often seems to take place behind closed doors in exclusive clubs with language and imagery exclusive to that club. We have created a work that provides language and imagery accessible to people from a multitude of religious backgrounds as well as for those with no real religious background at all. - Justin McRoberts has written 40 guided prayers. - Scott Erickson has paired each prayer with beautiful, contemplative imagery. - Each of the book's seven sections is capped by reflections on the practice of prayer and each of those reflections points toward specific, suggested practices.

Genres: Faith, Christian, Prayer, Spirituality, Devotional, Theology, Nonfiction

114 pages, Paperback

Published January 20, 2016

About the author

Justin McRoberts is an author, coach, speaker, and songwriter. He is the author of six books, including the upcoming, Sacred Strides (May 2023).

For over 20 years, Justin has helped artists, ministers and entrepreneurs find their way. From the stage, though his stories in books or during coaching sessions, he leans on his years of work and expertise as a minister and artist to help individuals and teams solve problems in their creative processes.

When he’s not writing, speaking or coaching, you can find him as the host of the At Sea Podcast.

He lives in the East San Francisco Bay Area.

Reviews

[Raymond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good set of prayers by Justin McRoberts and images by Scott Erickson. I've added a few prayers to my commonplace book for future reference.

Thanks to NetGalley and Waterbrook Press for the free ARC copy in exchange for a honest review.

[Annette · Rating 2 out of 5]

With this book the author tried to create:
- A piece of art
- An act of love
- A redemptive tool
- A resource
- An inspiration
- An ongoing conversation with God

My philosophy is the simpler the better. This book is over-created, with lots of pictures and not enough resource.

The book gives suggestions for practice of prayers in four ways:
- Guided prayers
- Contemplative imagery
- Meditations
- Suggested practice

I find it demeaning.

It would have been an interesting read if it concentrated only on two aspects: resource and practice. For example, my favorite resource and practice was about The Traveler’s Needs. Resource: one of them packed everything of two (two pairs of shoes and coats, everything of two in food), because he was thinking of his follow traveler. His fellow traveler couldn’t understand it. The lesson: “there is no difference between your needs and mine.” Practice: Intercession – think about those who benefited from your gifts.

[Moriah Conant · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you don't know where to start when you pray, this book is for you.
If you want to grow in prayer, this book is for you.
If you want to learn new prayer practices, this book is for you.

Even though this book does not contain a lot of words or analytical discussions, it is a great place to pare down and get back to the basis of prayer, The meditative prayers allow a starting place to build off of. The new practices scattered throughout the book give you a way to grow and learn.

Highly recommend "Prayer: Forty Days of Practice"!

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

[Suzy Stolwyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend to anyone looking for a prayer guide that is simple yet profound. (This book is the opposite of a wordy daily devotional.)

It primarily contains 40 short, beautiful prayers and art. However, there are also occasional short stories and a few corresponding spiritual practices including: journaling, exercise, fasting, meditation, lament, and intercession. I appreciated the reminder of how varying prayer can be.

[Rachael Marsceau · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know me. I like to read my 40-day books in 20 minutes.

But seriously, this book is beautiful. I feel like the New Age elements are tactful and add to the message. I'm picky about that and this did not turn me off. The author is very humble and acknowledges that not everything included here will help everyone, so I thought that was attractive in and of itself. Can't believe I got this gem for less than $8!

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely gorgeous book that is perfect for those struggling with prayer or desiring new ways of engaging with the Divine. Justin McRoberts and Scott Erickson make a dynamic duo as writer and illustrator.

Takeaways:
(1) This book, these ideas, even the words you pray are not “content.” Your relationship with God is content. Your experience of the world is content. Your lifelong learning process is content.
(2) Image can be as powerful or even more powerful than word - perhaps *especially* in regards to prayer. I appreciated practicing this perspective by engaging with Erickson’s art in this book. It is not a form of prayer I learned when I was younger, and it feels rich and meaningful now.

Highly recommended. A beautiful volume all around.

[Lory Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a beautifully produced, thoughtful and heartfelt testimony to the personal practice of prayer. The "prayer prompts" were often surprising and original in their wording, but grounded in the timeless wisdom that always means to lead us toward the divine gifts of love and connectedness. The short essays, stories, and meditations were moving and inspiring, making me think about what small epiphanies are to be found in my own everyday life. I found the description of "lectio divina" to be especially helpful. The illustrations brought visual expression to ideas that are difficult to encompass only in words. Though small, this book would lend itself to practice over a long period of time and would unfold differently through each participant. It would be a good starting point for a prayer group or for discussion.

[Kate Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who is currently exploring Centering Prayer there are elements of this book which I am sure I will benefit from when I spend more time with it.
The book helps in providing brief succinct guidancec notes on Guided Prayers, Contemplative Imagery, Meditations, and suggested practices.
"May I..." framing of prayers is extremely helpful, as is the book being one which there need not be any specific order to the use of each of the 40 prayers.
The illustrations are simplified with the use of only black, white, and throughout one other colour. I think many of these will help focus attention and help reduce the distracting thoughts that enter quiet contemplation.
The anecedotes are interesting and give just enough to invite the reader to explore the methods and prayers provided.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED this. Books about faith often don't do much for me, and prayer-themed books even less so. This book didn't preach, just invited me to contemplate. A lot of this could probably be enjoyed even by someone who was less religious--I suppose some might find that a demerit for the book, but I kind of liked it. Every ten days or so, there is a different "practice" to try, but otherwise, the book mostly lets you alone to think about the words and paintings (which are AWESOME) as you are so led. I started going through it again once I finished it.

I don't think this would work well for everyone, but if what I wrote sounds appealling, you should definitely give it a try.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique Lenten journey through art and sparse words. Very thought provoking.

[Chris Barrans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not the sort of person who journals much but I have seen some real power in my prayers to God when I write them down like a logbook. Scott has done an incredible job, yet again, with these illustrations that lead to meditation in prayer. This is the kind of work I would love to participate in. Wonderful prayer book.

[Will Norrid · Rating 5 out of 5]

A unique gateway into prayer.

I tend to overthink, and this book tied visual/image responses to my more sterile, formulaic mental processes.

Hard to put into words (which was the stated intention of the book- to move past vocabulary to feeling)

Thoughtful and thought-stirring.

A book of both simple words and images that create internal/upward dialogue. Turned thoughts inside out.

Will returned to these images and promptings again and again.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most beautiful books I've ever spent time with. A great companion to early morning meditations and prayer.

[Mikaela Stadler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A prayer experience unlike anything I've ever experienced. This was an incredibly powerful healing experience for me and my relationship with God.

[Abbey Fagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I love the contemplation and the creative partnership. It’s such a good way to slow down and think “May I…”

[Allison Pickett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prayers are short and beautiful. The artwork is so lovely I wish I could cut out the pages and hang it in my home (but I dare not because I loved the book too much). I even shared the prayers and artwork with my young kiddos who didn’t always understand but loved to spend time looking at a book and praying with their mom.

[Meg Lyall · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book of beautiful, thoughtful prose and artwork. Highly recommend!

[Ariella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was able to meditate in prayer for the first time in a long time because of one of the prompts in this book. Simple, but thought-provoking and something I will revisit.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a treatise about prayer, but an invitation and practice of prayer. It can be read in a short time, but taking the time to go through the book and think deeply about prayer and other disciplines that support and train our prayer is most helpful. With illustrations to add visually to the message that is being shared through short prayers and practical exercises, this book is attractive as well as helpful.

[Zachary Houle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prayer is something I’m still practicing, and I probably don’t do it enough. However, I know enough about the subject to know that you can do it any time, anywhere. So I read Justin McRoberts’ and Scott Erikson’s Prayer with some interest, hoping that I might learn a thing or two about the any time and anywhere bit. Well, as McRoberts (the author) and Erikson (the illustrator of this book) point out early on, Prayer is a book devoid of content. It’s meant to be consumed in 40 days, but you can practically flip through this book if your heart so desired. There’s a point to the lack of traditional linear content. This, it turns out, is a book of prayer prompts in a way. You look at a picture of paper airplanes or houses within a house or whatever Erikson has craftily put to ink, and you read the sentences that take up a page that McRoberts has spun, and the content comes from the dialogue that you have with God while processing these words and images.

To that end, I probably used this book wrong. For one thing, I got it on my Kindle, which may not be the best way to read it because it forces you to read things from start to finish. Prayer is meant to be really picked up and read at random. This is less a book in the conventional sense and more of a tool, so that might mean for some people starting at the end and working backward or going to the middle and hopscotching around. So there’s that. Two, well, I read this book kind of fast. I really should have spent 40 days and not 40 minutes with this title. I may have to come back to this and tell you later if this form of prayer as offered by this book really works. However, I do have a sneaking suspicion that this is a book that might work best when “read” by a larger group of people together. What I found myself wanting to do with this book is have a dialogue with it, but with others present with their opinions and interpretations. I’m curious to know what someone else thinks of the fact that all of the written prompts start with the word “may.” I’m also curious to know from someone else what they thought of the pictures and what they actually mean — as things get quite abstract at points.

Read more here: https://medium.com/@zachary_houle/a-r...

[Renee Davis Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful, slow, simple book on prayer. At the heart of this 40 day journey is the authors’ belief that the essence of prayer (connecting with the God of the universe in every aspect of life) is more important than the mechanics. So while there are suggestions, and guided practices, it feels like the point is less telling what to do than encouraging readers to turn their faces upward.

I really love the art and guided prayers (which are mostly one-sentence, simple but very profound. “May love be stronger in me than the fear of the pain that comes with caring.”)

I read this on my Kindle Paperwhite, but I think I would have preferred a physical copy. This feels like a book meant to be held in my hands, and I am curious how the art looks on paper v. a screen. My one critique might be eliminated in a paper book (or in the final copy, I have an ARC): There is no table of contents in the kindle version I have , and it isn’t clear how this fits into the 40
Days framework the title implies. Am I supposed to read a page a day? I read all of the pages up until a practice was introduced (they mostly for together thematically), then experimented with that practice over the next week...

Many thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Which is that I will buy this book, either for myself or to give to friends who love beauty and prayer.

[Sarah Poling · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful and short book can be read cover to cover in a few brief moments. That's not the intent of it, but as someone leary of prescribed prayer, I wanted the perspective of the whole book.

This book is a gift. If you feel unaccomplished at prayer, if you don't know how to focus, if you don't know what to say, if you want to learn new habits for prayer, if you want to grow in perspective, .... THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!

This book is written with both a God mindset and a growth mindset- my two real goals for my life- to focus on Jesus grow in the Word and know God more intimately. And to use the grace God extends to myself- not just those around me- to gain resilience, persistence, empathy and allow myself time to grow, change, and learn from my mistakes. And this book helps in both of those areas.

Things that could be improved maybe- add scripture. add some adoration- this is prayer all about me- but it does make share big expectations for who God is in the implications.

I will now enjoy going back and learning, focusing, and trying to pray in the way the authors intended.

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up when the illustrator (Scott Erickson) visited my church for a performance art piece, and I've been using it as a source for nightly devotions over the last few weeks.

The format is that of a prayer book. There are a number of prayers by McRoberts (mostly one sentence with a heavy emphasis on humility and self-knowledge) with illustrations on the facing page (in what appears to be Erickson's signature style of duotone wood carvings). I found many of the prayers moving and helpful and the illustrations engaging if a bit oblique. There are also a few essays scattered throughout the book as well as prayer how-to's (e.g., the Lectio Divina). I didn't really perceive any connective thread throughout the book but appreciated its emphasis on surrender and focus on those around you.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely prayer book. My church followed this throughout Lent and I loved adding it to my morning ritual. The art is beautiful and the prayers are simple yet meaningful. There are no heavy scriptural references, they are just little prayers to begin a dialogue with God. Example "Even in conflict, may I see people as beloved instead of problematic" and "May I have the courage to give my darker moments a place to process. Knowing they are only a part and not definitive". Throughout the book, there are a few passages that introduce various prayer practices. Most I was familiar with but are great companions to the prayers. This book won't be for everyone but I found a lot of beauty in it. If you are looking for words or simply a place to start when returning to prayer, check it out.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was drawn to this book because I have been a fan of Scott Erickson's artwork for many years. His artwork pairs wonderfully with Justin McRoberts's writing to create a beautiful book. It is comprised of short prayers with thought-provoking accompanying images, interspersed with meditations and practices. I enjoyed reading this ebook, but cannot wait for the physical book to be released. It is definitely a book to read in its physical form so that you can see the two-page spread of prayer and image concurrently. It is a book you can return to in your daily personal prayers, and I am also looking forward to reading it with my Bible study group.

I received a digital ARC from NetGalley. Unfortunately, we have to wait a while for it to be released - February 5, 2019.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good prayer book overall. I flouted the expectations of the authors and went through the illustrations and short prayers as part of a larger prayer culminating in the devotion. I think this impoverished my ability to meditate on the images and prayers, but allowed me have a larger theme in mind throughout the prayer. Also, it piled up the recommended spiritual practices, which my life really needed. So even without moving along with the set program of the book I found this book to be a helpful spiritual resource and would recommend it.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book today-thank you Netgalley. It was so good I finished it today and can't wait to purchase a hardcopy in February. I will admit that I started the book with a bit of skepticism. I don't know the authors and am wary of false prophets who pontificate all sorts of silliness. But the author intro grabbed my attention, the format was appealing and before I knew it I was done with the book. I plan to reread it, more slowly, allowing the meditations to settle into my soul. This is a book to keep, to share, and to talk about.

[Audrey Stars in Her Eye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book of Prayer is very different from your usual devotional book. Prayer: 40 Days of Practice takes you out of the typical prayer and works on getting your spiritual siding moving.
Think of this book like a writing prompt book: it gives you a jumping point and then you dive in. The book includes drawings, quotes, short essays and practice suggestions.
I found this book very refreshing and it absolutely took me to other places to talk with God and to think through my life.

I received an ARC through NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

[Chelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley, for the Advanced Reader copy.

This is a perfect little book for anyone looking to reconnect with a stale prayer life. The meditations, prayers, and exercises are simplistic, yet utterly universal and profound. I believe the author is Christian, but the language used is generic enough that this could be enjoyed by someone of any religion or belief system, or even as a secular self-help guide. I highly recommend this to anyone who needs something to help them refocus their thoughts in a busy and chaotic world.

[Lizbeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an advanced digital copy of this book from Netgalley.com and the publisher.

This book is problematic in its theology and doctrine. It is not a book to read if you are looking for a deeper relationship to God, but a more wiggle room on how to talk to God. Much like the author and illustrators book on the Lord's Prayer, it takes huge artistic liberties.

The blurb is even doctrinally incorrect that we pray because we are human and not religious. Why you would pray if you weren't religious?

Deeply disappointing. 2 out of 5 stars. Do not recommend.