Wednesday, September 16, 2015

8 Practical Prayer helps

We just concluded our sermon series in James.  James concludes his letter with a reminder and call to pray.  While I am certainly no expert and have a lot of room to grow in this area, I have come across several tips to help you pray more consistently and more purposefully. 

1. Pick a time
The reality is you won't find time to pray.  Every minute of our days will get filled with something if we are not intentional with our time.  So we need to be intentional about when we pray. Pick a time.  What time is best for you?  Are you a morning person?  Does your brain shut down after 8:00 PM? No one specific time is best, it depends on what time is best for you to be distraction free and able to devote your mind and heart to God.

2. Pick a place
While you can pray anywhere. It is important to have a specific place where you go to talk with God.  This could be beside your bed, in your office, on the porch, or at your table. Again, pick a place free from distractions where you can devote your full attention to the Lord.

3. Pick a posture
There is benefit in choosing a time and place, and also a posture.  The more purpose we put into our prayer, the more of a priority it will become to us over the course of time. While we can pray while we are walking, driving, or doing dishes (and we should) picking a specific posture will help you to focus your mind and heart toward God. Some prefer to kneel, others to stand. Some will choose to sit at a table with a bowed head.  Whatever you choose, make it your prayer posture. (I would advise against lying down, as prayer time can too easily become nap time.)

4. Use a list
A list is very helpful to keep track of ongoing prayer requests, but most importantly to keep you from getting overwhelmed. I have sat down before to create a pray list and it just kept going and going, getting longer and longer. Quickly I felt overwhelmed thinking there is not enough time in the day to get through this, or if I did, it would seem rote and rushed. I suggest using a calendar styled list. Determine the number of days you are going to pray in a week (more on that below), then divide your prayer list between the days. For example you might pray for your kids everyday, but select a different aspect to pray specifically each day.  Or you might choose a different aspect of the church to pray for on each day (missions, leadership, outreach, children, teens, etc). A list like this helps you from getting overwhelmed. A list can also help you to organize your thoughts and remind you of important things to pray everyday. For example, each day your list should remind you to confess sin, give thanks, praise God for who he is, and remind you of your dependence upon the grace of Jesus. A list can also keep track of scripture that you will read each day as a part of your prayer time.

5. Read Scripture
Read selected scripture passages as a part of your prayer time. Read the Psalms to reflect on God's character. Read Proverbs to rehearse his wisdom. Read the epistles to remember the Gospel.  You can plan your reading out and add it to your prayer calendar.

6. Pray out loud
This one might seem a little out there...a little formal. Stick with me.  I realize that many people are not comfortable with praying out loud in front of a group of people, but what about praying out loud alone? Praying out loud causes you to be more deliberate in your words. Praying out loud also keeps your mind from wandering. Often is the case when I am praying silently, my mind wanders toward other thoughts; praying out loud helps keep you focused.

7. Set attainable goals
We can all pray more than we do.  It is important to set for yourself a goal of how many times for how long you are going to pray in a week.  A beginner should not set too lofty a goal. Better to set the bar a little lower and achieve it, than to set it too high and suffer from discouragement. Perhaps for you, 2 times a week for 10 minutes each is a good start. Perhaps 7 days a week for an hour is attainable for you. Whatever it is set it and go for it.

8. Get a partner
I'm not talking about someone to pray with, but rather someone to talk with about it. Share you goal with someone you trust and someone who loves you.  A partner is someone to keep you accountable as you develop a regular practice of prayer.