How Prayer Beads Helped Me . . . is a monthly series of reader submissions. Over the years we have received countless testimonies about the difference prayer beads have made in the lives of the people who use them. These stories are so profound and encouraging that we wanted to share them with you. If you would like to submit a story for this series, click here.
Today’s post is the first in this series and is submitted by Stacey.
In the past few years I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. I take medication, and see a therapist. He recommended I look for prayer beads online to help with meditation. I didn’t want a Rosary because I’m not Catholic. I’ve been United Methodist all my life.
I began my Google search but wasn’t finding much .I’m totally blind, have been since birth, so I searched all those resources such as Bookshare and the Library for the Blind but wasn’t able to find anything helpful. I finally found a post from The Upper Room about prayer beads by Kristen Vincent. I read this information and wanted to know more. After a while, I Googled Kristen’s name and came up with the Upper Room post. It said she had a book out called A Bead and a Prayer. I finally found this book in the iBook store on my iPhone. I purchased it, and the more I read the more I thought this needs to be on Bookshare. I found Kristen’s Etsy site and ordered a chaplet sight unseen. It arrived in my mailbox one day, and my journey with prayer beads began.
I read everything I could get my hands on about prayer beads for those persons who were not Catholic. I e-mailed Kristen and asked many, many questions. Finally, I began to pray with my beads. It has taken time, but the more I use them, the closer to God I have become.
For any blind person wanting to make a closer connection to God and you like some little something to hold in your hands, these beads are perfect. Kristen’s book, A Bead and a Prayer, is now on Bookshare. She also has a shop on Etsy called Prayerworks Studios. Her book and my beads have drawn me closer to God, and I hope my story may help you too.
Note from Kristen: both A Bead and a Prayer: A Beginner’s Guide to Protestant Prayer Beads, and Another Bead, Another Prayer: Devotions for Use with Protestant Prayer Beads, are available on Bookshare, a resource for people with visual impairments.
