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Martin Luther (1483-1546) wrote of using the Lord’s Prayer in his personal prayer times (Luther’s Works, Vol. 43: Devotional Writings II, Trans. Carl J. Schindler and Ed. Gustav K. Wiencke). His spontaneous methodology, in which he was guided by the written Prayer but not bound to it, provides a model for us in using written prayers.
Luther would use the Lord’s Prayer as a guide to prayer. He did not recite the prayer word for word. Luther wrote, “I want your heart to be stirred and guided concerning the thoughts which ought to be comprehended in the Lord’s Prayer.” He would pray the Lord’s Prayer allowing thoughts and words to spontaneously arise from the Prayer. He wrote, “These thoughts may be expressed, if your heart is rightly warmed and inclined toward prayer, in many different ways and with more words or fewer.”
At times Luther would not finish the Lord’s Prayer. He wrote that we should bypass reading the rest of the prayer if “an abundance of good thoughts” has arisen such to warrant ceasing the Prayer:
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[M]ake room for such thoughts, listen in silence, and under no circumstances obstruct them. The Holy Spirit himself preaches here, and one word of his sermon is far better than a thousand of our prayers. Many times I have learned more from one prayer than I might have learned from much reading and speculation.
Luther, above, gives the key to such spontaneous prayer, arising from written prayer. Spontaneous prayer arising from reading written prayer is easy to experience when the heart is, Luther says, “rightly warmed and inclined toward prayer.”
Spiritual Exercise
For a week take the Lord’s Prayer. Pray it in the manner described above. Let it be a guide to Prayer, but do not pray it all the way through word for word
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