The Throne of God (Recitation Pt 1)

Believers have been reciting prayers for as long as there have been prayers to pray. It was a building block of Jewish spirituality—starting with the Shema, which was to be plastered on the doorposts and psyche of God’s people (Deut 6:4). In the early days of church, the Lord’s Prayer became the Christian substitute, and believers were encouraged to recite it three times a day (The Didache).

Somehow, the practice has been mostly lost in evangelical circles. With that in mind, this series will survey some recite-able prayers that you might consider trying. This first installment will also act as an introduction to recitation in general.

The Throne of God

When Isaiah had a vision of heaven, he saw the Lord seated in His temple. Surrounding God’s throne were heavenly creatures that called out to one another…

“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;

the whole earth is full of his glory!”

It was a sight that stretched the limit of human vocabulary, and each biblical writer who had such a vision struggled to describe it. John had one that he recorded in Revelation 4, and the reader can watch him try to fit words to things he couldn’t comprehend. John sees God’s throne and describes the creatures around it. He also hears them praying, and it’s their prayer that matters to us. The creatures in John’s vision pray essentially the same prayer that they did in Isaiah 6.

‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,

who was and is and is to come!’”

Assuming that we can tie these visions to normal time and space, then it means the heavenly creatures were up there praying this very same prayer for the hundreds of years between Isaiah and John. John hints at this when he says, “Day and night they never cease to say…” (Rev 4:8). They are probably up there right now, saying the same thing.

This prayer is possibly the original prayer. Before God created this world and started listening to us, these were the prayers he heard. And when this earth gives out, the heavens will last and these prayers will remain. If you need permission to repeat a single phrase as a prayer to God, then the living creatures provide it.

Meanwhile, Protestants sometimes argue that repeating the same prayer over and over is too Catholic, even though heaven would prove otherwise. Still others warn that repeating a single phrase is a way to turn off our minds, but the creatures whose minds are saturated with God repeat prayers quite naturally. Perhaps repeated prayers are even God’s preference, since he created creatures to do it, gave his people the Shema, and had his Son teach believers a repeatable prayer.

For that reason, I believe Christians should practice reciting prayers. It is a way to pray when we don’t have much to say. It is also a way to connect with God in small doses throughout our day.

Learning to Recite

Set aside a few moments before or after you read Scripture, or during your normal prayer time. Recite the prayer a few times—maybe three or even ten. Let your voice match those of the living creatures even though you can’t hear them. Let the words guide you into worship and adoration, not thinking about those people you are supposed to pray for. Feel free to pray the words slowly and meditate on them, or pray them quickly to flood your mind. Different people may be wired to pray in different ways.

Another advantage of recitation is that you can weave it into the fabric of your daily life. I don’t stick with the same thing all the time, but I go through seasons where I recite prayers when I do certain tasks. For years I recited prayers while I sat waiting at stoplights. Sometimes the recitation forced me to quit thinking about other things and consider God for a few seconds. Other times my mind blended whatever I was thinking about with the prayer, so it became a moment of intercession.

Scripture refers to praying continually (Psa 105:4; Rom 12:12; Eph 6:18; 1Thes 5:17). We need not read those verses legalistically, but we should at least take them seriously. God wants us to move about this world while connecting with him. Reciting prayers can provide us with the avenue to make God’s presence part of our everyday lives.

There is nothing mystical about the words we recite. Unlike a mantra, Christians don’t believe the words have any power within themselves. This was likely the error that Jesus warned against when he told his disciples not to pray like the Gentiles (Matt 6:7). No, any prayer you recite will be full of normal human words. What they offer is a connection between our hearts and God, and it is God who has the power.

There are other prayers to recite and we will consider them in the future. For now, simply repeat this prayer as you go about your daily routines. Repeat it as you walk your dog or wait for the bus. Use it to worship while you fold the laundry or even pray it when you go to the bathroom! Be like one of the living creatures who, day and night, they never cease to say…

Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,

who was and is and is to come!