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BREAKING THROUGH GOD'S SILENCE

A Guide to Effective Prayer

Breaking Through God's Silence (Simon & Schuster, $20; Touchstone $12) is a featured alternate selection of the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Spirit Book Club. Here is a selection from its pages:

Prayer is not like ordinary conversation over the phone or across the dinner table. Talk is cheap and automatic, whereas prayer requires preparation. In this respect it is more like writing a letter -- a love letter, to be sure. Unlike mere talk, to attempt a letter I need materials, a place to sit, and the quiet and solitude to concentrate my attention. When I write, I choose my words and expressions more judiciously rather than babble about whatever happens to be on my mind or on my nerves.

To achieve a prayerful state you must begin not by talking to God but to yourself. You will talk yourself into prayer and visualize your progress. By narrowing your attention, you will pay greater attention.

The alchemy of prayer is such that every human emotion can deepen your spirit and increase your discernment. You will begin to see God's face in the least likely corners of his creation.

Prayer becomes more successful and satisfying as it becomes habitual. Since you are already disciplined about other aspects of your life, the attention you apply to your mind and body can be redirected to spiritual devotion. You are already more prepared than you imagine to begin knocking on the doors of perception and having them opened to you.

(Copyright 1996 by David Yount)