Pray As You Go

I have used Pray as You Go as part of my morning prayers for a couple of years, and I love it. The musical introduction and the contemplative reading and meditation on scripture encourage focus and listening as part of prayer, and that has been very helpful, especially as I was raised in a religious tradition that saw prayer mainly as a way of talking to God and telling him what you think should be done. From reading scripture, I knew that wasn’t all there was to prayer, so I turned to apps such as this one, Divine Office, and the Centering Prayer app in order to learn and grow. As the range of comments indicate, this app is scripture-focused and can be used by people from many faith backgrounds. The app is also beautiful. I enjoy the various scenic backgrounds that have shown up in this year’s update, especially those that depict light, a long view, or nature. It would be nice to be able to mark favorites so that they would show up more often. I don’t usually follow along with the text, but like to refer to it occasionally, though it has recently gotten a bit too light for me to easily see. I am grateful to the Jesuits for their work.

PAYG is such an incredible app. I got into it by accident-Sacred Space had a link on their website, and being curious I gave it a shot. PAYG is run by the Jesuits in Britain, and the app is designed to give you audio prayer in accordance with the Ignatian structure. Every opening has Catholic/Gregorian chant, a different reader, and deep Ignatian reflection on the readings or subject matter. Scripture readings are even recited twice throughout a daily readings segment, fulfilling the Jesuit practice of going deeper into the faith. Inside the app are a variety of audio segments: daily readings, the Stations of the Cross, the Rosary, the Examen, and even several 20 minute Ignatian Contemplation segments that use the Spiritual Exercises as a guide. I listen whenever I can, whether I'm on my way to work in the car, out and about if I have some time to spare, and of course, before bed with the Examen. If you're Catholic, partial to Ignatian spirituality, and always on the move, then this is the app for you. Sending out a huge thanks across the pond to the Jesuits in Britain for putting together such an incredible app. Download it now! #AMDG

I was recently reminded that I had this app on my phone. My sister (nondenominational Christian) and I (Catholic) listened daily during her recent recovery from serious illness. It united us in spirit and focused our prayers together on Jesus. Now I am finding the app to also be a major help in my daily struggle to focus my attention on what is truly important and fundamental, amid a world full of distractions and a phone full of bright shiny objects. It is one of the few times in my day when I am able to practice simply being in our Lord’s presence, looking toward his face, listening for his voice, resting immersed in the mysterious truth about God, myself, and the world. I can understand the challenge of choosing meditation music that will invite and bless people who have all kinds of preferences. Personally I am most drawn to the chant and choral treasures of the faith that have been lived enough to survive the centuries, but I can also appreciate and enter into other types of high-quality music for meditation (“Christian art must be both Christian and art,” as Monsignor used to say :-) Thank you to all those who created and continue to develop this wonderful guide to daily contemplative prayer. I am sure I speak for many.

As an evangelical Christian I enjoy this app. It was recently redesigned and the update is amazing. I particularly like the inclusion of music at the beginning followed by scripture reading (often read twice which is excellent). I do wish it included more prayers to recite along with the reader, after all the app is called “Pray as you go”. I also find the reflection questions given after the scripture reading often odd or eco-centric. Why not include more questions calling to mind the bigger picture of what God is doing in the world? I’d prefer questions that have less to do with my subjective take or feelings on the Scripture.

As an ordained Mennonite minister, I rely on pray as you go for consistent morning scripture and prayer. I love it and recommend it often. But there is one glitch that happens pretty consistently. Often, the recording of the person reading the scripture has tiny silent breaks in the recording which makes it hard to understand. I have to kind of “fill in the blanks” as I listen. This doesn’t happen with the rest of the podcast, just the scripture readings. I don’t say this to complain, but to let the producers know that something needs attention.