I do have a very structured prayer life.
I generally pray when waking, and when going to bed, using the format provided by Martin Luther in his small catechism. It goes like this:
First, you pray the Apostle's Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.
Then, you pray the Lord's Prayer:
Our Father, who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
in earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory,
For ever and ever. Amen.
Then, the morning prayer or nightly prayer.
The Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day from sin and all evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let your holy angel be with me, that the Evil One may have no power over me. Amen.
The Evening Prayer:
I thank You, my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day, and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins, where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the Evil One may have no power over me. Amen.
Then, instead of praying before or after reading Scripture, I pray my way through a psalm (I just work my way through the book of psalms, one each morning and night, and then start over again), trying to pray it very slowly and meditate on each line.
(I recommend for learning to pray through Scripture you look into the ancient art of
Lectio Divina. It's the art of praying and meditating through Scripture. It works particurally well in the 'Wisdom Literature'- Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Job- but also in the songs of Isaiah and Revelation)
Then, once all this has really brought me into tune with the Spirit, I pray for any personal concerns or petitions, and give specific thanks for the Lord's blessings.
I'd also like to mention an ancient Eastern Orthodox prayer, the
Jesus Prayer or Prayer of the Heart, that I've been using. It goes like this:
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
It's a wonderful little prayer- the whole of the gospel is wrapped up in it- and you can say it as few or as many times as you like. You can even atune your body rhythm to it: breathing in, whisper 'Lord Jesus Christ,' then breathing out, whisper, 'Son of God,' then breathing in 'have mercy on me,' then out 'a sinner.' You can even then match that to the beating of your heart.
(There's a tiny classic of Russian spirituality written all about a man's journey to faith through this prayer, called
The Way of the Pilgrim)
I use it both to warm myself up before the morning and evening prayers. It's also helpful to meditate on while you are trying to get to sleep at might, or even while you're just going through the day and need to find the whisper of God somewhere deep inside you. I'll tell ya, it's gotten me through a lot of hard days.
I'd also highly recommend a little spiritual classed called
Beginning to Pray, by Anthony Bloom. It was very useful in understanding not just how to pray when you feel inspired too, but how to let prayer work you through those times when God seems bitterly absent.
Anyway, I hope this helps. I used to have a really difficult time praying, but getting some structure did help. I'm no expert on prayer, but I have grown to love the time on my knees.
