Weekly Prayerful Reflection 
 
Here you can find a prayerful reflection on the Scripture Readings and the Opening Prayer for the 2nd Sunday of Advent. Go to the reflection which is provided by the Outreach Team at St Beuno's Retreat and Spirituality Centre in North Wales. 
 
If you would like to read some background notes to the Readings for the 2nd Sunday of Advent follow this link. 
 
Also visit Spirituality - Nourishing Life : Prayer and Reflection from Fr Ted Gannon 
 
Start of climb up Ben Nevis 
Praying with Scripture 
Take a passage of Scripture and read over it slowly a number of times, pondering it as you might a letter or long awaited email from a close and intimate friend. Another way is to use your imagination on a Gospel story and contemplate it just as if you yourself were there. Have a look at The Stations of the Resurrection - a Scripture based prayeful reflection on the Resurrection appearances of Jesus 
 
Prayer as Resting in God 
Seek to be present to God by becoming quiet, breathing gently, perhaps using a mantra or simply a "sacred" word like Mercy, Love, Peace and so on to come to stillness and presence without the use of words or images. 
 
The Examen 
A way of reflecting on our lives, gathering the good so as to recognise God’s gift and blessing in daily life. Just let your mind drift over the day as you ask the Lord to show you the gift and the blessing you have received; then where you were not present to the grace of the moment; and finally ask fo rhelp in the coming day or period of time. 
 
Contemplative Walking 
Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese Buddhist monk and mystic, says “Life is available only in the present moment. If you are distracted, if your mind is not there with your body, then you miss your appointment with life.” For ‘Life’ we can substitute ‘God’. Go for a walk – mindfully, slowly. Pay attention to the smallest details in your surroundings – the tiny ant that crosses the path, the dewdrop on the leaf - respond from the heart. 
 
Gardening as Prayer 
Manual work, often gardening , frequently has a place in retreats and is present in the monastic life. There is something profound at work in gardening. Even the potted plants in the back yard bring us close to nature and therein is God. 
 
Journaling 
Keeping a journal can be a meaningful prayer practice. Putting thoughts on paper as we pray can help us to be more reflective about what we feel and think. Moreover, it helps us to hold on to our prayer experience as we look back over the pages of the journal day by day. 
 
Prayer with an Icon 
An icon or image of some kind can be used to focus our attention and give us a still point on which to anchor our presence for prayer. An icon helps to draw us to the holy and inclines us towards God. 
 
The Rosary 
Like the recitation of a mantra, passing the beads through our fingers can help to calm our spirit and help us focus, even to lose ourselves in the presence of God. It can also be a form of Meditation in which we ponder or hold in view various Mysteries of Faith. 
 
The Liturgy of the Hours 
This prayer is also known by other names – the Prayer of the Church, the Divine Office, Morning and Evening Prayer, for example. The prayer is composed of psalms and canticles, Scripture readings, collects and intercessions. It is prayer that is intended for fixed times of the day and night. As Liturgy, it is regulated or public prayer like the Mass. 
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