The Jesus Prayer

It was something I was reading about today. I won't go into the long story of where it came from (at least to the Western Culture), but basically there was a man wondering if it were truly possible to pray without ceasing (I Thess. 5:17).

He came upon a holy man who said it was and would explain how. He was given a prayer, "Lord Jesus, have mercy on me, a sinner," and was told to recite it 3000 times a day for a week. The man did so. The next week the holy man told him to pray the prayer 6000 times a day for another week. The man did so. The next week the holy man said he was not done and had to spend the next week praying the prayer 12000 times a day (about 11 hours worth!). The man did so.

And that was it. The questioning man wrote later on that after he had done this prayer so many times it was embedded in his spirit. When he ate, it would be going through his head. When he read, he would be reciting it. He said he even recited the prayer in his sleep.

So here's my challenge (and I'm doing it to). I can't give up 11 hours a day, I wish I could, but as often as possible I am reciting the prayer in my head. Give it a try and see what happens :)

T