Talking with God in Prayer

God at the Centre

“Talking with God in Prayer”

Luke 11:1-13

                How might one grow spiritually? This is a question asked

by many who are unsure of how to grow in their relationship with God, His Son- Jesus and the Spirit. To be trained in godliness means to take on practises on a regular basis with God at the centre. In the next few weeks we will focus on these practises.

Prayer is one of those things one learns by doing. You only really learn by doing. When the disciples had seen Jesus go off by himself to pray they knew that this was an important part of his daily living and wanted to learn more. They asked him, “Teach us to pray.” He then shared the words that we have come to know as the Lord’s Prayer beginning with “Our Father…” But to truly understand prayer you must begin to pray yourselves. As a Christian you are to pray.

Martin Luther committed much time alone with God in prayer and so should you. Set aside a time which is best for you—early morning, late night. When you pray don’t feel guilty if you miss a day but do get back to praying again soon. Aim for consistency and not just as something else to fill your day.

As you grow in confidence in praying God will hear you and you will know His response according to his will by what you experience. If the answer to your request is ‘no’, God will communicate with you by the internal witness of the Spirit. The answer may not be immediate. God might be asking you to be patient in trusting Him. And God will discern whether the request you make is good for you. We just need to keep praying.

There are many ways to see one’s prayer life grow. One is to keep a prayer notebook of who and what you pray for on a regular basis and then reflect back on the changes God has revealed to you in these situations. Another way to pray regularly is to read the Bible daily and pray on  and with the words of the Psalms or the passage you read. This then asks you for God to open the words for a clearer understanding.

The main thing about prayer as a habit for spiritual growth—is to do it regularly. Remember to pray and you will grow!

PRAYER: Holy God, I pray that you will enable me to grow. Encourage me and call me to pray more consistently and regularly. Call me to know myself and to grow closer to you as I learn more about being Christ’s disciple. I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Luis Palau, “God at the Center: Habits for Spiritual Growth” ODB Ministries, p.5-8..