Dear Lord, Teach Us How to Pray

I struggle with praying. I’m not talking about praying out loud in front of others. When someone asks for a volunteer to open/close in prayer, I’ll jump in rather than listen to 10 seconds of silence while everyone else fidgets and pretends they didn’t hear the request. 

First of all, what is prayer? An article from the Crosswalk website offers an excellent explanation:

“Prayer isn’t a ritual that depends on closing our eyes and putting on holy faces. We don’t have to kneel or sit. We can pray while walking, driving, or working. God responds to a two word cry for help in the middle of a busy afternoon, just like He does to a focused prayer time after reading Scripture in the morning. Praying doesn’t have to be complicated. God delights in any simple words we offer Him.“

My prayers aren’t eloquent–just ask my small women’s group. When I pray aloud, I just talk. It’s not fancy. There are pauses. There are wrong words. I’ve even been heard saying, “Sorry, God, that’s not what I meant to say.” I’m comforted by the fact that God knows what we need even before we ask for it. Even if we don’t ask for it. Even if we don’t know exactly what to pray for.

When I say that I struggle with praying, I’m referring to my personal prayer life. Betsy de Cruz wrote an excellent article–“How to Pray: 5 Practical Tips”— that I encourage you to read. In fact, much of my article today will be borrowing her ideas, so I’ll confess that right up front.

The opening paragraph in de Cruz’s article perfectly sums up my dilemma:

“I’m a wanna-be prayer warrior. I long to grow a deeper prayer life, but I have a secret struggle with boredom. I know prayer carries power and changes lives. But when I sit down to pray, I find it hard to focus. After three minutes, my mind travels back to the last season of Downton Abbey, or wanders to my to-do list. Or I try to pray before bed, but I fall asleep.” 

Does this sound familiar? You are not alone! Even Jesus’ disciples were apparently in the same prayer boat  After Jesus finished praying, “one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John [the Baptist] taught his disciples.’” (Luke 11:1)

Jesus’ answer to the disciple’s question resulted in the most well-known prayer in the world:

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name;
Thy kingdom come;
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever.”

Yes, Jesus gave us the actual words that we can pray, but what He also gave us in The Lord’s Prayer is actually a pattern for prayer:

We bless God and pray for our world, our communities and our lives to be shaped by God’s will, 

We pray for daily needs to be met,

We pray for forgiveness for wrongdoings, strength to resist temptation, and protection from danger.

Here are the five suggestions to strengthen your prayer life from Betsy de Cruz’s article (her words are in italics):

1. Pray simply. Don’t worry about eloquence. Think “short and sweet.” Martin Luther said, “the fewer the words, the better the prayer.” That’s advice that I can relate to!

2. Read the Bible and pray over verses. Pray your favorite verse. Pray one of the Psalms. I’ll confess that I don’t do this very much, because I don’t think to do it when I’m reading the Bible. I’m going to work on it.

3. Make prayer active and multi-sensory. Light a candle. Listen to music. Go for a walk. Because I have prayer ADD, I keep a prayer list on my phone.

4. Make prayer an integral part of your day. Begin and end each day with prayer. Send up a prayer for each person that you talk to (as you’re talking to him or her–it only takes a second). Pray when you crank you car. Pray when you’re at a stop sign or red light. Create automatic moments of prayer that work for you.

5. Pray expectantly. We know that God answers prayer in His own time, but start looking for those answers, and when you recognize them, send up a prayer of thanks!

A few verses for prayer inspiration:

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask for anything according to His will, He hears us.”  (1 John 5:14)

“Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.”
(1 Chronicles 16:12)

“…pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” (Ephesians 6:18)

“I call on You, my God, for You will answer me; turn Your ear to me and hear my prayer.” (Psalm 17:6)

“…We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” (Romans 8:26)

The verse above from Romans is one of my favorites. I often find myself not knowing what or how to pray, and I am comforted and strengthened by knowing that the Holy Spirit intercedes for me.

My prayer for you today is from Numbers 6:24-26:

May the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift His countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.