praying with beads

in my quest to get a better hold of my stress, i'm trying to put more focus on my prayers.

a magazine article talked about relieving stress by meditation/prayer (duh) but suggested using a rosary or prayer beads.

i pray, but i have such monkey brain that i can hardly hold a thought more than a few seconds.  i've already fallen asleep saying my bedtime prayers (that's probably a good thing, since those are the nights when i can't fall asleep to save my soul).  meditating during yoga used to be horrible, since my thoughts would run amok - from contemplating my yoga practice to my growling stomach to the errands i had to run to stupid worries in my head.

i'm lutheran, so we don't use prayer beads.  or so i thought:


ganked from white street bead company


a google search came up with this website that sells prayer beads and rosaries, including lutheran prayer beads.  a little more digging found this:


How to pray the Lutheran Rosary

1. Begin by touching the crucifix and pray The Sign of the Cross
2. English: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
3. Latin: In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiriti Sancti. Amen.
4. As you say this, with your right hand touch your forehead when you say Father, touch your breastbone when you say Son, touch your left shoulder when you say Holy, and touch your right shoulder when you say Spirit.
5. Pray The Apostles' Creed.
6. English:I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, who was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. From thence He will 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 the life everlasting. Amen.
7. Latin: Credo in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem caeli et terrae. Et in Iesum Christum, Filium eius unicum, Dominum nostrum, qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine, passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus, et sepultus, descendit ad inferos, tertia die resurrexit a mortuis, ascendit ad caelos, sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis, inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos. Credo in Spiritum Sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, vitam aeternam. Amen.
8. On the first large rosary bead, pray the Our Father.
9. English: Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
10. Latin: Pater noster, qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra. Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Amen.
11. On each of the next three beads, pray the Jesus Prayer.
12. English:Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner.
13. Latin:Domine Iesu Christe, Fili Dei, miserere mei, peccatoris.
14. On the next large bead, pray Glory Be To the Father.
15. English:Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
16. Latin: Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc et semper et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
17. Announce the Mystery
18. On the first rosary bead, pray the Our Father.
19. On each of the next ten beads, pray the Jesus Prayer.
20. On the next large bead, pray a Glory Be To The Father.
21. Repeat the previous six steps for each of the remaining Mysteries as you work your way around the rosary beads.
22. Either pray a Pre-Trent Hail Mary, a part of the Magnificat, or Martin Luther's Evangelical praise of the Mother of God.
23. English: Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus Christ. Amen.
24. Latin:Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus Christos. Amen.
25. English:My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; For he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; For he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.
26. Latin:Magnificat anima mea Dominum, et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo, quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae. Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes, quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est, et sanctum nomen eius, et misericordia eius in progenies et progenies timentibus eum.
27. English:O Blessed Virgin, Mother of God, what great comfort God has shown us in you, by so graciously regarding your unworthiness and low estate. This encourages us to believe that henceforth He will not despise us poor and lowly ones, but graciously regard us also, according to your example.
28. End with the Sign of the Cross.

ooookay.  i had no idear my church was becoming so orthodox.  

all i wanted was something beaded to tick off my prayers.  a focus.  like this:

may hubby have a good day at work tick

may the boy have a good day at school tick

please keep the kiddos safe in your hands tick

watch over my mom and dad tick

please watch over gram, she's having trouble with her eyes tick

please keep my cousin's unborn child safe and healthy tick

thank you for my knitting friends tick

bring wisdom to those in power in the middle east, and bring peace to that land tick

and on and on.  

in my jewelry box, i found an old tibetan prayer (hematite) bead bracelet circa 1999:

google images

i'm not sure how it works tho.  i suppose i could tick off a prayer per bead (there are 21 plus a larger bead).  this wiki explains a bit how they work, but somehow using mine in that fashion seems sacrilegious.  

i also found instructions on making my own prayer beads.  i like the idea of customizing a rosary to my liking, with beads that have meaning only to me.  

i guess what i'm asking is, do you use prayer beads or a rosary when you pray?  how do you do it?