The Book of Common Prayer offers two options for praying the Psalms: the 30-Day Psalter and the 60-Day Psalter.
Both follow the same rhythm — a set of psalms in the morning, a set in the evening — either cycling through all 150 psalms every 30 days or every 60.
I’ll admit it — I used to pray the 30-Day Psalter with a certain pride.
But here’s what I noticed: I was rushing.
So I made the decision to switch to the 60-Day cycle.
And guess what?
I rushed through those too.
Turns out the problem isn’t the number of psalms…
The problem is me.
My pace. My mindset. My addiction to doing.
Even now — on vacation — I catch myself speeding through morning prayer.
Why? Because I feel like I need to “get on with the day.”
But whatever I rush off to do will always be replaced by something else.
The “thing I need to do” never ends.
I think it was John Wesley who said, when done have time to pray, I pray more.
Prayer isn’t what we fit in after life quiets down.
It’s the anchor that holds us in the chaos.
So don’t worry about how many psalms you’re praying.
Worry about whether you’re actually praying them.
Whatever else you’re rushing toward can wait.
God is already here.
