Practice of Prayer
by Debbie Poer
Just Do It
Everyone is familiar with the well-known Nike sports brand ad campaign of the 1980s. It was created to motivate us to get out there and participate, not only in a sport, but in life. Just do it can be said for our prayer life, as well. Like any sport, the more we practice (spend time in prayer) the better we become - not just in the way we pray, but in the way in which prayer changes us.
I don’t think any Christ-follower would argue how important it is for us to spend time in prayer daily. And that will look different for each of us. For some, like me, our quiet time is early morning, for others the last thing at night before sleep comes, and for some there may be no set time. But without a doubt it’s important to intentionally be still, come to our time of prayer with a right attitude, and understand prayer as conversation with God.
In our busy world the most difficult part of prayer is so often the being still piece. But as with any conversation, we cannot listen until we are still. We are reminded that we cannot know how great God is until we respond to His words, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth” (Psalm 46:10). Until we are still and acknowledge His greatness, we cannot have conversation with him, expecting Him to hear and respond. Be still – we have to just do it. It may begin with five minutes, but if we continue to practice, our being still will lead to longer times. And those longer times lead to a different attitude in and about prayer and to longer conversations with God.
It is often said the form of prayer is not as important as the attitude. Again, there is no “magic” formula for prayer, no right or wrong words. We simply need to just do it – come to prayer with a heart set on communing with our Father.
Serving on the staff team at Haus Edelweiss allowed me to experience prayer in a new way. It was not uncommon to have five or six language groups represented among those attending classes. Prayer was an important part of the community, with prayers offered during worship, by students in their classes, by staff and volunteers throughout their workday, as well as by everyone before and after each meal. When asked to pray, the person praying would do so in their heart language, which meant a majority of the people in the room probably did not understand what was being prayed. It was not only the words which were the prayer, but the attitude in which prayer was offered – and that, everyone understood.
From the time of our first introduction to prayer we learned it is more than our talking to God, it is having conversation with Him and hearing what He has to say to us. And yet, we try to make it so much more than conversation. We think there must be a right time, the right posture, and/or the right words. In Luke 11:2 the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. His response was to instruct them to praise God, pray to be instruments to live God’s Kingdom in the world, ask for provision for the day (and nothing more), ask him to forgive their sins, teach them to forgive others in the same way, show them the right life path and how to avoid temptation, and acknowledge that His is the only Kingdom that is now and forever. He did not give them a formula for time or place but told them what to pray about. What was good for the disciples is good for us!
What a magnificent way to begin to learn to pray and what a great reminder when we feel like our prayer life has become stale or ineffective. Do I get caught up in finding the “right” words or praying in a “proper” position, rather than talking with Him about His Kingdom and my part in it?
As we grow in praying – spending time, listening to and talking with God we soon discover that we are changed. Early in life my prayers were “God is good” and “thank you for this food” at meals and “thank you for this day” at bedtime. Growing in my prayer life I began adding family and friends to my prayers. And still later I truly began to understand 1 Thessalonians 5:17’s instructions to “pray continually.” Life is full of things to continually give thanks for, rejoice in, and bring before our Father. How much deeper my understanding has become, not only about prayer, but of my relationship with God.
It goes without saying that everyone at some point becomes discouraged in their prayer life. For me, it is when I fail to take time to truly be silent – when I don’t take time to listen for God to speak to my heart. But that does not mean I (we) should give up. Instead, as for an athlete, it means we need to just do it. In his book, The Road to Daybreak: A Spiritual Journey, Henri J.M. Nouwen says, “the only way to pray is to pray; and the way to pray well is to pray much.”
What will it look like for you to “just do it?”
