Prayer

Prayer is a pretty important part of the Christian walk.  Scripture is filled with passages imploring brothers and sisters to pray-for one another, for our needs, for healing, etc.  We are even given a model for how to pray from Jesus Christ (Matthew 6:9-13).  I am not going to break down the Lord's prayer today, or discuss all the different things we should or should not be praying for.  No, I simply want to discuss the habit of prayer in our daily lives.  (Keeping in mind, of course, that I am by no means an expert on prayer, nor is this the complete authority on prayer.  Scripture has much more to say than this, and I would encourage you to check it out!). 

I have simply realized lately just how lacking my own prayer life is.  Yes, I pray for my son, and my family and our needs.  And I try to pray for others in our church family who are hurting.  But how much time, of the 24 hours in a day, do I actually spend in prayer?  How many times do I smile at a friend and say,"Well, I'll definitely be praying about that for you," and then actually pray for that individual?  How often do I settle down to pray, only to get distracted, and instead start checking things off my mental to do list, or thinking about the errands I need to run, or what I'm going to cook for dinner (ok, so I don't really cook much, and it's not very likely that I would be thinking that far ahead, but you get the idea)?

So I have been thinking about this a lot lately, and who knows, maybe it's just me, but this is something I seriously need to work on.  The question that comes to my mind, then, is just how much of my time should be spent in prayer?  I mean, I am one busy woman.  I have a one year old at home, a (almost) three month old in the hospital, commitments at church, a house to keep clean...I could go on and on.  As I carve out those oh so precious time slots in my day for the many things I need to accomplish, how much time should be devoted to prayer? Just one long prayer session first thing in the morning?     

"Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.  Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly."  Psalm 5:3

Of course, when I wake up is a great time to spend with God in prayer, but surely we should spend more of our time than that.  Maybe when we sit down to eat a meal.  That's always a good time to pray, right?  Then you can fit in three prayers a day.

Ok, so I have to be honest.  I'm not really trying to quantify my prayer life, or pencil it in to my date book whenever best suits my schedule, i.e. when my daughter is napping and all chores are done.  But scripture does answer the question, "How much of my time should be devoted to prayer?"

1 Thessalonians 5:17: "Pray without ceasing."

Pray without ceasing.  Or, in other translations, "Never stop praying," and "pray continually."  That's quite a tall order!  We should be praying all the time!  Obviously, this does not mean we should spend literally 24 hours a day knelt down before an alter, eyes closed, head to the ground (although quiet moments away from the hustle and bustle of life certainly have their place).  We have to live our lives.  But as we live our lives, we should be conversing with God.  Praising God.  Thanking God.  Asking questions.  Asking for guidance as we go about our day.  Prayer is not a chore to check off our list, but rather, a continual conversation with the Lord, that should be as natural to us as breathing.  What kind of impact would that commitment have on our personal walk with God?  On the body of believers?  On the church in America? 

This kind of prayer life certainly takes some getting used to.  And believe me, I am speaking to myself first and foremost!  But if you are committed, and pray that the Holy Spirit would guide you and give you a desire to draw closer to the Lord in prayer, it will become more natural.  I have also found a prayer journal to be an invaluable tool.  Sometimes I write out an entire prayer, sometimes I simply make note of prayer requests that I don't want to forget.  But either way, it helps me stay focused, and held accountable for the things I need to be praying about.  It is also a GREAT way to see God answer prayers.  There have been times in my life when God answered a prayer, and I didn't even realize it until I went back and read a previous prayer request in my journal.

Today, my prayer is that we would get back to prayer.  That it would become a habit so ingrained in our lives, we would pray without ceasing.  That we would take seriously our prayer life, and recommit to keep our thoughts focused on God and his marvelous plan.  That we would spend more time talking to God, and less time on the things that only distract us further.  Please feel free to add any specific prayer requests to this post, as I would like to commit to pray for you and your needs, as you all have so faithfully been praying for me and my son.  Thank you!