I’m just going to put this right out there. Prayer is hard work! Am I the only one who feels that way? Probably not… I’m not sure if it comes from our religious backgrounds where some of us may have had rote prayers that ended up being an exercise more than anything else. Or could it be the fact that we don’t hear audible answers or see the Person we are talking to, which makes it so easy for our minds to wander? To that end, maybe it’s the fact that in a world of distractions, it takes so much energy to stay focused and on point in prayer. I fall into the latter category. I confess that if I have carved out time in my day for Bible reading, but there isn’t time for prayer, I almost feel relieved. I cannot believe I am admitting this here, but it’s true. It’s not that I don’t want to pray; it’s, well, I’m too lazy to pray. What a very, very sad commentary…
Last winter I decided to try my hand at knitting again. I decided to make a scarf. After spending time in the Word, I would pick up my knitting and begin to pray. I don’t know what it was about the act of knitting, but I was sooo focused and intentional with my prayers that I would end up praying for longer and longer periods of time. I look at the completed scarf now knowing that with every knit and every purl, a heartfelt prayer went up to the Lord. I guess you could call it my “prayer scarf.”
This was a practical way for me to revive my prayer life by addressing my weakness, which oftentimes discouraged me from praying. I realize this method might not work for everyone, but I share it as an example of ways you too can be honest with yourself about why prayer might be difficult and consider ways to overcome that difficulty.
In light of this self-reflection, however, I believe there are three approaches to prayer that will revive anyone's prayer life no matter what might hinder them from praying as they should:
I once heard it said that God wouldn’t ask us to pray if He didn’t plan on answering our prayers. In fact, the Bible mentions prayer over 650 times, 279 of which are in the New Testament. Prayer is the modality for having a conversation with God. What an amazing opportunity we have not just at set times but throughout our day!
One way to take the guesswork out of prayer is by praying Scripture back to the Lord.
"You who [are His servants and by your prayers] put the Lord in remembrance [of His promises], keep not silence" Isaiah 62:6 "So shall My Word be which goes out of My mouth; it will not return to me void (useless, without result) without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11
Almost 20 years ago, my daughter’s boyfriend, at the time, was in the Marines and deploying to Afghanistan. Prior to him leaving, I typed up a Scripture prayer of protection, laminated it, gave it to him, and instructed him to keep it in his pocket as a remembrance that I was always praying for Him. Every day throughout the day, I would pray through that Scripture prayer. And when I tell you God’s Word did not come back void, it did not! My daughter’s boyfriend didn’t escape death once, but three times! And in miraculous ways! There was no reason why he shouldn’t have been killed, but God…
Whatever you might be going through, whoever in your life is struggling, go to the Scriptures and look for the promises of God applicable to those situations and compose a scripture prayer to the Lord. One that you can pray with confidence and focus, knowing that the Lord loves to hear His Words back and will answer. I promise, you will see amazing answers to prayer when you take this approach which, indeed, will revive your prayer life.
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Sometimes we all can be guilty of coming to the Lord like He is Santa Claus. Rattling off our wish list through prayer. Please don’t hear what I’m not saying. Of course, you can make the desires of your heart known to God. Nothing pleases Him more than to give us the desires of our hearts, but sometimes what we want is not what's best for us.
Before taking time to pray, invite the Holy Spirit into that space. Ask Him to quiet your mind and direct you in prayer. “The spirit helps us in our weakness and intercedes for us with groanings that cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).
Have you ever, out of the blue, had someone pop into your mind? When this happens, I believe it is the Holy Spirit prompting us to pray for that person. Later, you might even find out you were interceding for that person at the exact time they needed prayer. If the Holy Spirit does this for us when we haven’t actively invited Him to, imagine how He will lead us in prayer when we do invite him into our prayer time!
"Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints." Ephesians 6:18
"But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life." Jude 1:20
Approaching prayer through the power of the Holy Spirit will most certainly revive your prayer life. He will open your eyes to areas of prayer that will not only bless the person or situation you are praying for, but will bless you as you see the Spirit working through you.
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The best posture for prayer is one of peace. Now, that’s not to say if you are in the middle of a crisis or in danger or are frightened that you can’t immediately cry out to the Lord for help in that moment. There are plenty of scripture references of people doing just that. It’s more that sometimes we can come to prayer with the worries of the world and our lives weighing us down, which will certainly distract us from praying effectively.
Instead, we must approach prayer as the Psalmist did, "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes" (Psalm 37:7). When we sit quietly before the Lord and rest in Him, our minds will be able to hear from God and “the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will then guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:7).
The act of prayer can be one of just listening for God. As stated earlier, prayer is a conversation with the Lord. When we talk with our spouse or a friend, do we just talk and talk and talk without hearing anything from the other party? No, of course not. It’s a back and forth interaction. The same is true in our relationship with the Lord. It is just as important to be still before Him in prayer and listen to what He has to say as it is to be actively praying to Him with words.
When we approach prayer in the stillness of God, our prayer life will be revived because our hearts and minds will become enlightened to the presence of the Lord and to His will.
May we all revive our prayer lives through these three approaches to prayer.
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