I understand your struggle with praying. You are not alone. As Whitney asserted,
“a large percentage of professing Christians spend little time in sustained
prayer.”[1] a I think it is reasonable to assume that most Christians understand that
the Bible instructs us to pray. In addition, most understand the importance of
prayer. a However, many Christians do not pray. a Whitney asserts that many
believers do not pray because they have not learned how to pray. a I agree with
him. a Many people do not pray because they are not comfortable praying. a They
do not know what to say or how to say it. There is also an adversary that does
everything he can do to distract us and discourage us from communicating with
God.
There are plenty of books to read about prayer, and I have read my share. a
However, the one thing that helped me to enhance my prayer life is to pray. a As
Whitney contended, “the best way to learn how to pray is to pray.”[2] a There may
be days I do not feel like praying, but as you mentioned, I will persevere. a I pray
when I feel like it and when I do not feel like it. a I find that I’m more consistent if
praying is one of the first things I do in the morning. a I may never be completely
comfortable praying, but I am committed to setting time aside every day to pray. a
Not only because we are commanded to pray but because I have experienced the
power of prayer. “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much”
(James 5:16).[3]
One can appreciate your opening line in the three personal disciplines that
require improvement. Referencing Paul’s writings gives excellent context to the
situation. Indeed, there is a tension between the desires of the flesh, the power of
the Spirit, and the battle for the throne of one’s heart (Gal. 5:17). An interesting
aspect of your post that stood out the most was living alone. This writer is in the
same situation and suffers from the same issue of utilizing silence and solitude
for the purpose of transformation. Generally, most of the time spent is in trying to
avoid being alone. Whitney writes, “solitude is the Spiritual Discipline of voluntarily
and temporarily withdrawing to privacy for spiritual purposes.”[1]
a a a a a a a a a a It may be important to note that Whitney makes the distinction that this
is a voluntary process and is designed to be temporary. Perhaps this is relatable.
This writer’s circumstances and actions stem from a significantly prolonged and
undesirable amount of solitude in what feels far beyond the examples given by
Whitney. There is a tension between a healthy amount of solitude and silence and
attempting to walk the Christian life out alone. The Christian life is not meant to
be lived out in this solitude, and the longing in the heart to remedy this may be
God calling his faithful to continue seeking to join other Christians in the walk. I
appreciate your honesty as you considered your own walk and areas in personal
disciplines that require refinement; it is often hard for us to look at ourselves in a
critical light. I struggled a while in determined what I felt that I needed to improve
or write about. A few years ago, I was struggling with prayer; as you mentioned, I
did not know what my prayers should sound like, what I should pray for, if I was
even worthy of praying out loud for others. I had been called into military ministry,
but I did not have many examples of women serving in this capacity, no one to
model after. So I prayed for the Lord to provide opportunities to pray for others, to
show him how to pray. As I reflected recently, I went from struggling to pray
publicly over a small gathering to praying over thousands of people with a
microphone in hand. He will work through anyone who is willing to do his work,
and prayer is one of the most powerful tools. “Christian prayer is a stunning and
staggering privilege. To us, prayer is free and easily available. But even though it
is free, it is not cheap or unimportant. Jesus paid a bloody, exorbitant,
overwhelming price.”[1] a All that to say, Gregory, I encourage you to continue to
focus on honing this discipline it is worth it.
[1]Rod Dempsey (2018). (p. 122). Spiritual Formation Is...: How to Grow in Jesus
with Passion and Confidence. Retrieved from
https://app.wordsearchbible.lifeway.com
[1] Donald S. Whitney,
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
(Colorado Springs:
NavPress, 2014), 223.
Bibliography
Whitney, Donald S.
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
. Colorado Springs:
NavPress, 2014.
[1] Donald S. Whitney,
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life,
2nd ed. (Colorado
Springs: Navpress, 2014), 80.
[2] Ibid., 85.
[3] Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New King
James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982).
