Friday, September 19, 2008

Prayer Stations

What is a contemplative prayer station you ask?

The entire purpose of a contemplative prayer station is to create a time and space for people to experience God in their lives. Prayer stations can be highly creative or an incredibly simple approach to prayer and spiritual reflection. Typically, a space is set up where people can enter and participate at their own pace and level.

Here is a list of some interesting prayer stations

For this Sunday I really like this idea.
With a twist. We should have a poverty entry way and then a god's economy exit....same symbolism but with hope on the way out....for instance: Green jobs

Renewable energy creates 40% more jobs per dollar invested than coal fired plants.

Stats on poverty are rarely dealt with in a visual way. This is more of an entry way rather than a contemplative prayer station…. but it can be made into a station easily.
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Directions for Leadership:
This is a great entry to set up, or a station for people to just walk through. Set up a long row of tables. Every few feet put one of these facts. (These are as of 2006) Find a creative way to “show” these facts. Like a bin full of empty bottled waters dumped around the the area about the bottled water and safe drinking water or a McDonald’s meal set up next to the food fact.
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1.2 Billion people live on 23 cents a day.
1 Billion people are without safe drinking water.
Americans consumed 26 Billion liters of BOTTLED water last year.
Every 16 seconds someone in the world dies of hunger.
2 out of 3 Americans are considered over weight.
Wood consumption a day:
World – 4 pounds Americans – 14 pounds
80% of the world lives in substandard housing.
Average size of a new home built in 2005:
Ireland – 930 sq. ft. U.K. – 814 sq. ft. Japan – 1000 sq. ft. U.S. – 2349 sq. ft.
8% of people in the world own a car.
1/3 of American households own 3.
Estimates say that it would cost 9 Billion dollars to get clean water and sanitation to all.
Americans spent 27 Billion shopping for Christmas presents the day after Thanks Giving this last year.
According to the 2000 census, 8.1% of Nevada County’s Population live below the poverty line.
That is 7,332 people. (Not including children)

1 comment:

Papa Joe said...

"Our life of poverty is as necessary as the work itself. Only in heaven will we see how much we owe to the poor for helping us to love God better because of them."
--- Mother Teresa