Spiritual Disciplines | Prayer
Of all the Spiritual Disciplines, prayer is one more frequently understood by people yet one of the ones we fail to do regularly. Either we overcomplicate prayer to be formulaic, ritualistic, and stiff as we miss the organic connectivity with God. Or we underestimate the power of a prayer filled life and the ability of God to hear and respond to our prayers. In short, prayer is talking to God as Lord and Savior. We boldly bring our concerns, praises, and vulnerable before the High King of Heaven. Prayer is coming before the Lord bringing who we are and seeking His will and presence in our lives while shaping who we are to be more like Him.
We fail to pray because we doubt the person of God. Throughout the body of scripture, the people of God are called to pray and align their hearts with the hearts of God. Yet, from that, God does not remain far off, distant, or elusive. God hears us. This is a wonder and a blessing! We must never underestimate the nature of God wanting earnestly to know us, be known by us, and be with us. The power of prayer stems from God who listens to His people, and send His Holy Spirit to stir up within us. Our spirit, shaped by The Holy Spirit, calls us to the Father whom we have access to by the blood of Jesus Christ.
And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6:5-15, ESV
How To Pray
There are many kinds of prayers that many great pastors, theologians, and spiritual persons have written and described. While these are not bad, they run the risk of taking our approach to God and removing the authenticity from it. Please do not misunderstand me, there is a place and time for written prayers, standing in unity on the faith foundation of those who have come before. Yet, every Christian must also be responsible for their own personal prayer life and willingness to lay oneself bare before the Lord. With this in mind, remember these things as you pray:
- Pray Bold Prayers At no point in scripture will you find a prayer prayed meekly. We see the saints of the faith pray boldly, interceding on behalf of mankind to the High King of Heaven. From our very first prayer of “Lord snatch us from the grasp of death and hell” we continue to pray bold prayers and God continues to hear our cries. We pray not as meek servants scared to face the King but as Children of God rushing to meet their Father.
- Don’t Hold Back Why would we? God is omniscient (all-knowing) which extends to our deeply held thoughts. The items we fear God might find out, He already knows. Furthermore, God can do and handle all things and loves us by His grace. He can handle our sin, our angers, our stress, our confusion. Whatever you are feeling, bring it to the Lord in prayer and lay it before Him. Prayer is about shaping our mind to reflect and hear from the mind of Christ.
- Approach As An Act of Worship At its core, prayer must be done with an attitude of closeness that God hears our prayers as a Father and worship that He is our High King. We stand before Father and King in submissions to the God who bids us to come close. Prayer, while bold without holding back, still worships the Lord. We entrust Him with our sins and requests, the hearts and souls of those we are called to pray for, and submit to the voice of God once we hear. We can spend time in prayer simply worshipping the Lord, understanding that it is grace we can even do so.
Pray may be one of the most important disciplines that a person develops over their time but easily one of the hardest to do. For some, we will need to set aside time, whether it be waking up early or set aside time in the evening (or even both), disciplines take effort to develop and prayer is no exception. Yet, as we grow closer to God, we will arrive at that point where we cannot function without prayer. When God becomes our everything, the time in prayer becomes vital to our nature and being. Take the time, start somewhere, and pray to God in earnest, honesty, and worship.
