SUPPLEMENTAL RESOURCES

Jesus said, "Whoever drinks the water that I shall give will never thirst. The water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water."

John 4:14-15a

The Annunciation, a painting by Henry Ossawa Tanner in 1898

This page of supplemental resources offers churches and religious communities additional Companioned Prayer supplemental handouts, prayer forms, and material for teaching, ministries and outreach.

Some of the material on this page is available in large print on our Large Print Supplemental Resources page.

If you would like to submit material to share with others, please see the "Submitting Material" section near the bottom of this page.

Supplemental Handouts

Supplemental handouts are freely available to your church or religious community in response to an individual's need for guidance or understanding. These handouts are not recommended for wholesale inclusion within a basic learning program, but an individual handout can be provided to someone in response to their particular need or inquiry. These supplemental handouts are also available to support self-instruction as needed. All of these handouts are from the book, Companioned Prayer, by William Stobbe, available below.

Additional Companioned Prayer Forms

The standard prayer forms are on the Resources page. Additional forms are offered below.

Abbreviated Companioned Prayer forms

Download this handout to learn how to use the abbreviated forms. A sample of a personalized abbreviated form is also provided.

Other Companioned Prayer forms

See chapter 12 of the book, Companioned Prayer, for information about the two lectio prayer forms, and for the Special Individuals form for use with individuals with special needs. See chapter 7 about praying without a partner; and chapter 8 for using the confession form when preparing for the Rite of Reconciliation (confession).

Instructional Materials

Some instructional materials for sharing and ministries are offered below. This material is in addition to the necessary "Basic Handouts" found on the general "Resources" page of this website for learning the prayer, and the information in chapter 9, "Mentoring Others in Companioned Prayer," and in chapter 13, "Sharing from the Heart," in the Companioned Prayer book below. Because these instructional materials are periodically updated, you may wish to download the current versions when you are preparing to offer Companioned Prayer to others.

If you have not yet learned Companioned Prayer and there is no Companioned Prayer ministry near you, rather than use these instructional materials to learn the prayer, simply get together with a few friends in your church or religious community, and with the support of your pastor, experience and practice the prayer using the Basic Handouts on the Resources page.

Planning and Preparation

The following material can help you plan and prepare for the complete Companioned Prayer experience.

Guidelines for Sharing Companioned Prayer - for those who are preparing to share the prayer.

An Overview of the Learning Experience - provides an overview of the recommended learning experience.
Guidelines for Safe and Accessible Environments - Everyone involved in any leadership or mentoring should be aware of and follow the requirements and guidelines of their sponsoring and hosting organizations for a safe and accessible environment, especially for young people and vulnerable adults. These guidelines offered here add important recommendations specific for Companioned Prayer. These guidelines may also be shared with all Companioned Prayer participants.
Sample Mentor Training Outline - a sample outline for a two-hour mentor training sessions, in MS Word.

Sample Flyers, Cards, Signs, etc.

The following samples are offered to help with your outreach activities. Please note that all of the graphics on these documents are copyrighted, so please be sure to include the (c) symbol in your final versions.

Sample Presentation Flyer - an 8.5x11" flyer in MS Word that can be edited and used for outreach.
Sample Presentation Reminder Cards - a MS Publisher file that can be printed on both sides of 8.5x11" card stock and cut into four cards per sheet. Can be used for outreach.
Sample Flyer for a Four Session Introductory Experience - an 8.5x11" flyer in MS Word that can be edited and handed out at the end of the Introductory Presentation, and also used for other outreach.
Sample Reminder Cards for a Four Session Experience - a MS Publisher file that can be printed on both sides of 8.5x11" card stock and cut into four cards per sheet. Can be handed out at the end of the Introductory Presentation, and also used in other outreach.
Sample Signup Sheet for a Four Session Introductory Experience - in MS Word that can be edited and used at the end of the Introductory Presentation, and also in other outreach.

Introductory Presentations of the Companioned Prayer Ministry

Presentations of your Companioned Prayer ministry prior to the four introductory prayer sessions can be very useful in providing a good sense of what Companioned Prayer offers. This allows people in a group environment to have some experience prior to signing up for the four sessions. The following material can be used for introductory presentations to various ministries or groups.

Outreach and Presentations - offers general guidelines for effective outreach and presentations.
Sample Presentation Outline - a sample outline of an hour long Introductory Presentation in MS Word.
The Mystery of God #1 - this is the first group prayer experience in the Sample Presentation Outline. (This file is also listed under "Additional Group Exercises" below.)
Reflective Prayer - this is the second group prayer experience in the Sample Presentation Outline. (This file is also listed under "Additional Interior Prayers" below.)

Four Introductory Prayer Sessions - with Mentors

The preferred method of being introduced to the prayer during the four sessions is with the guidance of experienced companions or "mentors." Also see the sample flyer, reminder cards, and signup sheet for the four learning sessions, provided above under "Sample Flyers, Cards, Signs, etc."

Guidelines for the First Two Sessions with Mentors - for the mentors offering these sessions.
Guidelines for Reflecting the Prayer Experience - to be used only during the first two sessions.
Guidelines for the Third and Fourth Sessions with Mentors - for the mentors offering the third and fourth sessions.
Sample Outlines for the Four Sessions with Mentors - provided in MS Word.
Sample Outline for a five-session "Listening for God in our Lives" series with lectio divina and Companioned Prayer - provided in MS Word. This LFG series also uses a modified Disclaimer.

Four Introductory Prayer Sessions - without Mentors

If you do not have experienced companions who can serve as mentors during the four introductory prayer sessions, you can still offer the four sessions using the following approach and material. Also see the sample flyer, reminder cards, and signup sheet for the four sessions, provided above under "Sample Flyers, Cards, Signs, etc."

Sharing the Prayer without Mentors - Describes this learning approach for when mentors are not available.
Sample Outlines for the Four Sessions without Mentors - provided in MS Word.
Introduction to the Loving Heart of Jesus prayer form, used only in the first session without mentors. (This form may also be initially used in personal ministry, and for people with special needs.)

Ongoing Prayer Groups

Regular participation in an ongoing Companioned Prayer ministry is vital to continuing to grow in the prayer experience. In addition to the following handout, see chapter 5 in the book, Companioned Prayer, available below under "Books."

Companioned Prayer Partners and Groups - this is the same document as under "Supplemental Handouts" above.

Follow-on Retreats

Follow-on Companioned Prayer retreats are for those who have been practicing the prayer in a prayer group, usually for at least a month. Periodic follow-on retreats offer wonderful opportunities for community, to explore the prayer in more depth, and to plan for outreach and service.

Guidelines for Retreats - some general guidelines to help with retreat planning.
Potential retreat topics and activities in MS Word, offers a list of ideas to consider for your retreats.

Additional Interior Prayers

The interior prayers referenced in "Supportive Interior Prayers" in chapter 9, and also in chapters 6 and 12, of the book, Companioned Prayer, are offered below. These can all be used either with a group of people or with individuals, in outreach, in ministries, and with people attending a prayer group who have not been through the four introductory prayer sessions. They can also be used in a Companioned Prayer ministry presentation and in a Companioned Prayer retreat.

Articles, Videos, and Links

There are no articles, videos, or links posted at this time.

Books

The primary source of information about Companioned Prayer is found in the book, Companioned Prayer; an Interactive Prayer for Companions, Families and Small Groups, by William Stobbe. Do not use this book to initially learn Companioned Prayer. Instead see the Learning the Prayer webpage. However, this book can be read before teaching Companioned Prayer or using the prayer in a ministry. It is full of detailed information - far more than on the pages of this website. You may freely download the most recent Adobe pdf version dated 3/23/2025 by clicking this link: download book (2 MB). The book is also available to purchase from Amazon as a paperback or as a Kindle compatible e-book, also dated 3/23/2025. The link to Amazon is here.

Use and Responsibility

While the CPCF offers all of the above guidelines and resources to churches and religious communities, ultimately it is the responsibility of those sponsoring organizations to determine how to offer Companioned Prayer and how to use it in their ministries.

Accessible and Safe Environments

Books

Submitting Material

Individuals and groups participating in Companioned Prayer ministry or outreach will from time to time develop material that may be useful to others who have similar goals. This material can be on any topic related to Companioned Prayer. For example, it could include articles, flyers, bulletins or announcements about your Companioned Prayer activities. It could be general brochures about Companioned Prayer, or special brochures, announcements or write-ups about a specific Companioned Prayer outreach ministry (using Companioned Prayer with the homeless, etc.) Material or articles might be developed incorporating Companioned Prayer into other traditional forms of Christian worship, prayer or spiritual exercises, (such as the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.) Or material may be developed on how to incorporate Companioned Prayer into Christian youth groups or other specific communities of interest. These are just examples of possible subject materials. In addition, we hope that material will be developed (or translated) in languages other than English.

If you have developed material that you would like to share, send it in an email to info@CompanionedPrayer.org. Guidelines for submitting material for posting on the CPCF website include:

The material must be related to the Christian practice of Companioned Prayer. All material submitted must have a primary Christian focus. Material that is designed to promote or use Companioned Prayer as a non-Christian practice will not be posted, and should not be submitted.
Submitted material may be edited by the CPCF prior to posting.
All material submitted for posting is submitted for downloading and use by the public without cost to the user. Submitted material should not be copyrighted. All material submitted for posting, with the exception of the book Companioned Prayer by Bill Stobbe and its illustrations and posted excerpts (including all prayer forms), will become public domain upon posting unless it is copyrighted per item 4 below.
Copyrighted material within other media can be submitted for posting as links to those media. When providing a link, please also provide a brief description of the material. Excerpts of copyrighted material which are considered beyond "fair use" can be submitted for posting if a permission is provided by the copyright holder.
If the material is not in English, please identify its language and provide an English translation so we can review the material.

Opinions and practices expressed in all submissions and postings are those of the contributor, and are not necessarily those of the CPCF even though selected and posted by the CPCF. The CPCF may add or remove individual postings at any time.

In the spirit of sharing the blessings given to us, the CPCF offers all of the material on this page for downloading.