In the past two months, I've had the opportunity to work with a local priest on an interesting project. As the official religious leader within the group, he is often asked to pray before our meetings. Remarkably, we all listen in and learn from him as he prays out loud. You literally feel as if he's speaking with God and you get to watch.

How about you? When was the last time you prayed out loud?

A year ago during Lent, this was my very goal: to pray more often out loud. Now I don't mean to interrupt people or just start praying out loud in public. What I found was that there are many (yes a ton!) of moments when I'm by myself and have the chance to pray. These include:

Waiting in line

Commuting

Getting ready in the morning

Walking to a meeting

Working alone in my office

Not to generalize, but the Protestant tradition is often really good at praying out loud. For Catholics, not so much. But everyone can and you may be surprised at the benefits which to me include: greater intimacy with God, a better prayer life, and the social benefits.

By social benefits, I refer back to my priestly friend. We as a working group are learning from him as he is praying out loud. You might create the same effect with a group that you are asked to lead in prayer.

So on this Wednesday, try praying out loud.

*photo by nimble photography