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I’ve been thinking a lot about how important it is to nurture our “domestic churches” right now.
I would love to say our home has a “prayer corner”, but presently it does not.
We have this desk in our dining room that Saint Therese’ and some other holy objects were sitting.
On Good Friday, I gave myself a small, achievable task:
Clean off that space and make it intentionally inspiring and holy.
So I dug out our framed Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary Images from the Sacred Heart Enthronement Network.
I got rid of the random things that were collected on the surface.
I placed the holy water bottles and a rosary on the desk and searched for our Bible.
And friends, let me tell you how cool our God is . . .
When it was done; my son sat down at the dining room table with his prayer journal and started writing/doodling in it.
I don’t think I have ever seen him take it out on his own.
I feel like it was a signal grace.
Every small step we take, God sees it.
We don’t have a kneeler. It’s not the biggest space. There’s no real privacy there.
BUT, God saw the love and He poured His grace out on our family.
Every little thing you do for God in love is absolutely magnificent in His eyes and heart.
HOW TO CREATE A PRAYER SPACE IN YOUR HOME
1. Start small!
Do not choose a task that feels overwhelming!
The fact that I felt like I needed a “prayer corner” delayed me for so long!!!
I finally realized that it didn’t need to be that big – yet.
Pick something small today that will grow your family closer to Our Lord.
It could simply be:
- hanging a crucifix on a wall
- Framing a Prayer Print
- Putting up a Rosary hanger or investing in a kitchen Rosary
- placing a holy water font by the door
- Decorating more with holy decor (like this Wall Rosary)
- Hanging up a prayer intentions chalk board or white board and add magnets
2. Think “outside the box” or outside the house even!
I started a Pinterest board so that my prayer space could maybe grow into a prayer corner and maybe one day a prayer room. As I started Pinning, I saw a few “Mary Garden” posts.
Then I realized, the space doesn’t have to be inside! It’s a great time of year to start planting a flower garden – why not a “Mary garden”?
So many flowers actually get their names from those who wanted to honor Our Blessed Mother.
Then I discovered a shop on Etsy that makes outdoor shrine pillars for garden prayer spaces (Wayside Shrines on Etsy).
Put a bench, a statue of Mary (or Jesus, or a favorite saint) in a flower garden. This could be such a gift of peace and prayerful reflection!
Ask your children for help!
You never know, they might have some great ideas!
Below is an excerpt from the Be Yourself Journal. This activity encourages the reader to consider room design in a whole different way.
3. Follow the hashtag #prayerspace and #domesticchurch on Instagram and start a prayer corner board on Pinterest
It can be fun to create a virtual vision board and add elements of faith to our homes.
You can follow my “prayer space board” on Pinterest!
Pinterest is a great place to search for inspirational ideas. Search “home altar”, “war room”, “prayer corner” and “prayer space” for ideas!
There are a ton of great, inspiring photos on Instagram as well! I strongly recommend following @zelieandco for lots of home prayer space ideas!
Many of these Catholic Artisans are listed on Catholics Online! Check them out and subscribe too!
More resources:
Wall Rosaries by No Heart Untouched
Check out my post So Your Domestic Church is a Fixer Upper: Here are 3 Tips on Holy Home Improvements
Like embroidery patterns? Check out Happy Nest Home Goods
Gina says
Great tips, Amy! It really is this easy and I hope many families are inspired by how simple you make to start a prayer space at home.
Amy says
Thank you so much Gina! I appreciate you so much!
Lindsay says
Love the idea of following the hashtags! This is a work in progress for us, and this is a big help! Thanks!!