Real quick…I have a drill for you.
No, it’s not DeWalt nor is it hard. I need you to count to yourself some
people. It will probably be helpful to use your fingers to visualize…maybe your
toes, if you are barefoot or flip flopping on this 1st day of
February. Are you ready for the drill?
Okay: Count the number of people
with whom you have built a meaningful relationship WITHOUT talking to them
(writing letters, sending emails/text messages count…that is talking without
the voice). Ready? Go!
Still counting?
If I were to guess, your answer is
exactly the same as mine. You scored a big fat ZERO! The reality of how God
created us is that we are relational creatures. Other animals have the
relational ability to communicate, but we have the unique ability to build a
relationship through our meaningful and intentional communication with one
another.
I hate talking on the phone, but
when I knew that I wanted to pursue Christi, I called her. I was driving back
to Raleigh from Tifton after Christmas break in seminary. It was a 9 hour drive
and I spent the first half of that drive trying to get the courage up to call
her. We had spoken on the phone before, but it was usually class related and
not intentional to build a relationship. I liked her and I wanted her to like
me, so I knew I needed to call her and have a real conversation. So, as I
passed through Columbia, SC I decided to give her a call. What unfolded was
nearly two hours of us just talking. That night shifted for me in my understanding
of her and how to talk.
It is no different with God. The
fact is that you cannot grow in your relationship with God if you are not in
communication with Him. We call that prayer! You have heard sermons on prayer
and maybe you have even done devotionals, Bible studies, and weekend retreats
focused on prayer. But, look at this from Don Whitney:
“During the 1980s, more than
seventeen thousand members of a major evangelical denomination were surveyed
about their prayer habits while attending seminars on prayer for spiritual
awakening. Because they attended this kind of seminar, we can assume that these
people are above average in their interest in prayer. And yet, the surveys
revealed that they pray an average of less than five minutes each day. There
were two thousand pastors and wives at these same seminars. By their own
admission, they pray less than seven minutes a day. It’s very easy to make
people feel guilty about failure in prayer, and that is not the intent of this chapter. But we
must come to grips with the fact that to be like Jesus we must pray…One of the
main reasons for a lack of Godliness is prayerlessness.”[i]
My hope is to help you drive
towards a deeper relationship with God through prayerful communication with
Him! Many times we forget about the importance of prayer. Four times in Matthew
6, once in Luke 11, and again in Luke 18 Jesus makes statements that indicate
He expects His people to pray. Further, the Gospels are full of instances where
Jesus withdrew from the crowds and even His own disciples to pray. He says in
John 5 “The Son is not able to do anything on His own, but only what He sees
the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son likewise does these
things. For the Father loves he Son and shows Him everything He is doing…I do
not seek my own will, but the will of Him Who sent me” (v. 19-20, 30, CSB).[ii]
Later, Jesus says in John 15:5 that we are to remain in Him “because you can do
nothing without” Him (CSB).
So, let’s start today. Let’s begin
this journey that runs towards Godliness in ending the drought of
prayerlessness. Here’s some encouragement for you on this journey:
- Don’t make unrealistic goals. Kent Hughes puts it this way: “We must understand that we must not overcommit ourselves, especially if we are just beginning. The tendency, when truly challenged, is to say, ‘I am committing myself to two hours of daily prayer, I am going to read the Bible through twice this year, and I am going to practice the disciples of devotion…and also of petition. I am going to have a prayer list that is second to none.’ That will last about three days – maybe! Better to commit yourself to a total of fifteen minutes and maintain it…A regular time of devotion and prayer will become a habit, and the habit of prayer will give wings to your spiritual life.”[iii]
- Remember this is a Spiritual discipline. We are not
throwing empty and useless phrases into the air. We are engaging with God.
Therefore, we must look to the Holy Spirit of God when we pray. Romans 8 promises
that when we don’t have the words to say in prayer (which is normal!) that the
Holy Spirit carries our prayers to His throne with groanings too deep for
words. I love how Tim Keller describes this when he writes, “Most of the time,
we don’t know exactly the outcome we should pray for. The Spirit, however,
makes our groaning his groaning, putting
his prayer to the Father inside our prayers.”[iv]
Our communion with God, our building relationship with Him, is accomplished
through the work of the Holy Spirit in prayer!
- Begin. That one may seem
too simplistic. However, you will not develop a deep and satisfyingly intimate
relationship with Almighty God unless you begin praying. Keep in mind the
Spirit’s activity from the second point. Your prayer will never be perfect, so
don’t worry about not knowing the right formula. It’s not about your work, it’s
about His grace! Pray for others, pray for the Gospel to go out, pray that God’s
wisdom will become your wisdom, pray for our schools, our government, our
church. Just begin!
- Learn from others. I want to be careful in how I describe this, but there is a lot about prayer that we can learn from hearing others pray. I am not suggesting that you begin mimicking their prayers and only using the phrases they use. I am, however, suggesting that the people that God has placed around us can teach us all about encountering God. This is why discipleship groups and active participation in the local church are vital for your growth as a Christian. Just like hearing the Scripture read is huge for intake, hearing others pray draws us closer to God together as we learn the discipline of prayer.
- Read good books on prayer. There are a lot of books that cover the topic of prayer. Keep in mind that the reason you will read a book on prayer is akin to learning from others about prayer. We are not merely adopting what someone else does, but deepening our relationship with God by enhancing our prayer. Also, just because it is a book on prayer does not mean it will be helpful. Some will be technical and offer little spiritual value. Many will take prayer out of the realm of adoring God and His holiness by placing the emphasis of prayer on you. It is very important to know the difference, as prayer is to engage God and not to build our kingdoms here. If you are looking for a great place to start, I suggest Too Busy Not to Pray by Bill Hybels, Prayer: The Ultimate Conversation by Charles Stanley, A Simple Way to Pray by Martin Luther, Kingdom Prayer by Tony Evans, and Prayer: Experiencing Awe andIntimacy with God by Tim Keller (which may be the best book on prayer I have read).
See you Sunday!
[i] Don
Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the
Christian Life (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1991), 66.
[ii] Scripture
quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®,
Copyright ©2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian
Standard Bible ® and CSB ® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible
publishers.
[iii] R.
Kent Hughes, Disciplines of a Godly Man,
rev. ed. (Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Books, 2001), 105.
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Hey! I want to hear from you. Let's bridge dialogue as followers of Christ and not followers of the world. I am eager to see how we can grow together!