How often do you pray? And how? Is prayer a struggle for you?
There are many ways we can approach prayer, according to Donald Whitney in Disciplines for the Christian Life. He says:
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We can simply pray with intention – and stick with it.
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We can meditate on scripture, drawing closer to God in the process.
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We can pray with other people, and be encouraged in the process of approaching God together.
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We can pray for others, allowing God to show us his heart for them.
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We can pray with honesty, seeking authenticity at all times in our relationship with God.
I think it’s important not to be afraid of ‘unsanitised prayers’ – the Psalms offer so many examples of gritty, raw, desperate, angry conversations with God.
Allow your lament to lead you back to him…
With this in mind, give thought to your prayer locations. Do you prefer to pray in bed? Out in nature? In a prayer room? What will help you focus on God? Make a time to ‘meet’ with him in prayer and make it meaningful and real.
Take ownership of your relationship with God and book in times of reflection with the one you love most of all.
Add your prayer session to your diary if you need to; set an alarm on your phone.
Do whatever it takes to stay focused, and allow your spirit to be built up as you face each new day with God’s courage.
God bless you as you pray…
Ali
It's a God thing... 
Such good points on prayer. I love praying in my car on the way to work. This week it’s been hard for I have not been to work so it hasn’t been the same. I also love being out there in nature as well. Prayer is so important.
It’s hard when we lose that regular routine that reminds us to pray. May you keep getting those opportunities to connect with God, whether in nature or in the car. God bless, Lesa…
Hello
God bless you all
Let us make love and stay in peace
Thank you
minoru
Prayer helps us keep the Main Thing the main thing. It focuses our thoughts on the One who gives us live.
Amen to that. We need prayer in order to refocus and recharge don’t we?
Yes.
Love this post, Ali!
“With this in mind, give thought to your prayer locations. Do you prefer to pray in bed? Out in nature? In a prayer room? What will help you focus on God? Make a time to ‘meet’ with him in prayer and make it meaningful and real.”
That is the beautiful thing about praying (talking) to God — you can talk to Him anywhere, anytime, and in whichever way helps you to feel closer and more connected to Him. 🙂 Praise be to our God!
Thanks Lizzy – so true! God can be accessed anywhere and any time. It’s so great to know he’s always near, wherever we are 🙂
Canton Junction did an awesome rendition of “Just a Little Talk With Jesus / Jesus on the Main Line”. In the song Matthew Hagee sings about how “His line ain’t ever busy, tell Him what you need.” It is also a fun song to hear because of how they performed it! I put a link to the album below. Blessings!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/show-me-your-way/id653261876
I really love this post. This is something I can struggle with from time (which actually embarrasses me to say). Praying in a group with my two Bible studies is easy, Sunday is no problem, but sometimes in the course of the week it becomes challenging to set aside the time. Great points and I really appreciate this.
I think some of us, especially those who identify as extroverts, get a lot more out of praying with others (my husband included), and find this really helps them draw closer to God. God gives us many ways and contexts in which to pray. The main thing is connecting with him 🙂 Have a great week as you draw close to God in prayer…
Great post here. Thank you for sharing. Check out “A Call To Prayer” short book by J.C Ryle if you like, you won’t regret, I promise.
As iron sharpens iron, I am looking forward to learning from you. God bless you richly!
🙂