Personal prayer is not just for Brelovers or Chassidim — it’s for anyone and everyone.
The Chofetz Chaim was meticulous concerning his utilization of time but would spend 1 to 2 hours a day in personal prayer. Clearly, personal prayer is not a waste of time.
Personal prayer was the way of our Fathers and Mothers, the prophets, Elders, sages, and anyone who sought to connect with their Creator on a deeper, more personal level.
The book In Forest Fields by Rav Shalom Arush outlines the preferred order of personal prayer based on Rebbe Nachman:
- Gratitude: Gratitude boosts the mood and establishes a positive attitude making personal prayer more effective. (It’s okay to tell G-d what hurts, but whining and complaining should be avoided.)
- Pray for Personal Prayer: Pray to get the most out of personal prayer time and to remember everything we want to talk about.
- Pray for the People of Israel & Teshuvah: Pray for our people as well as the other nations of the world. Review the past 24 hours and do teshuvah as applicable — even if it feels lacking.
- Self-Improvement: Focus on one bad middah or problem at a time until it’s overcome or resolved. This spiritual work may take weeks, months, or even years.
Doing a daily review and teshuvah is a practical way to keep the spiritual balance sheet in order. Additionally, it reorients and refortifies the mind in a positive way and keeps us from slipping further away from our spiritual goals.
Yitzhak Sasson 