Maybe you’re not sure if you want to be a part of this prayer vigil because you don’t know if you can pray for an hour.   In the churches I’ve been in most of my life, a five-minute-long prayer would be almost unheard of, and would seem to last an eternity.  If you’re Catholic or a part of another liturgical denomination, you might be used to praying a little longer than I have been, because you can pray pre-written prayers.  If you’re Charismatic, you may be able to release your tongue into the hands of the Holy Spirit for long periods of time.   Abortion is such a horrible evil, it’s difficult to know what to pray–but the Holy Spirit always knows what to pray.

Remember that prayer isn’t one-way communication.  Rather, it is communion between yourself and a living God.  The best prayer times include long periods of listening (just like the best times of communion between yourself and your spouse don’t usually involve uninterrupted talk).

One of the most exciting experiences I ever had in prayer happened during a time of long silence (my mouth was literally taped shut–though in my excitement I finally had to rip it off).

God speaks to us through His Word, the Bible.  So if you run out of things to pray, open the Bible (especially the book of Psalms) and pray about what you read.  (Some good psalms for this prayer vigil are listed here.)

In addition, worship should be part of your prayer time, as you acknowledge God for who He is.  More information about how to pray outside an abortion chamber is in Chapter 8 of my book, God’s Plan: Transforming the Gates of Hell into the Gates of Heaven.