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Writing and Praying Collects as an Intervention in Narrative Therapy

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Abstract

The integration of spiritual practices in therapy is a valuable tool for supporting and reinforcing change. This paper explores the use of a written form of prayer called a collect as an intervention in narrative therapy. A collect is a form of prayer with a structure that can be easily co-constructed by clients and therapists. This spiritual intervention serves as a therapeutic document to help reinforce the externalization of a client’s problem or help thicken alternative narratives. Relevant aspects of narrative therapy and written prayer are summarized. A guide for implementation, examples of collects, and a worksheet for helping clients write collects is provided.

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Funding

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fuller Theological Seminary, Marriage and Family Therapy, Phoenix, AZ, USA

    Matthew A. Rundio

  2. Fuller Theological Seminary, Marriage and Family Therapy, Pasadena, CA, USA

    Alison G. Wong

Authors
  1. Matthew A. Rundio
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  2. Alison G. Wong
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Contributions

Conceptualization MR; Writing—original draft preparation MR; Writing—Review and editing MR and AW.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matthew A. Rundio.

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Conflicts of interest

The authors declare they have no conflict of interest.

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Appendices

Appendix

Worksheet

Write your own prayer in the form of a collect (KOL-ekt).

Outlined below are the five parts of a collect. Follow the instructions and use the examples as a guide to write your own.

  1. 1.

    Name God

    1. a.

      This can be a simple name of God, one that you are familiar with or one that you come up with that will help you conceptualize God in a helpful way.

    2. b.

      Example: God of power

    3. c.

      _______________________________________________________________

  2. 2.

    Elaborate on the name—often with “who/whom/you”

    1. a.

      Say more about who God is—describe how God will act or who God is.

    2. b.

      Example: who gives strength to those who suffer under the oppression of Worthlessness

    3. c.

      ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  3. 3.

    State the petition, naming the need or desire

    1. a.

      This is where you ask God for something you need—this phrase will often begin with some form of a request or command.

    2. b.

      Example: help me remember that Strength and Survival are my true identity

    3. c.

      ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  4. 4.

    Name the purpose, hope, or desired outcome of that petition, often beginning with “that” or “so that” or some similar phrase indicating result.

    1. a.

      State what you want to happen when the petition (#3 above) happens.

    2. b.

      Example: so that Worthlessness will stay far from me

    3. c.

      ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  5. 5.

    Form an ending, praising, thanking, or acknowledging God

    1. a.

      This could be a simple “amen” or a more elaborate ending.

    2. b.

      Example: through the might of God who gives me hope. Amen.

    3. c.

      ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Combine each part to construct the completed collect:

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Rundio, M.A., Wong, A.G. Writing and Praying Collects as an Intervention in Narrative Therapy. Contemp Fam Ther 44, 312–317 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-021-09586-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-021-09586-6

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