praying through the day, by ken wilson

Most pastors I know struggle with their daily prayer.  I mean they   wish they prayed more and feel vaguely uneasy when the topic comes up. This feature is for them (you.)

 

Here's a bit of my story on this matter. In 1995 a team from the Evanston Vineyard came to our church and had a prophetic word for me about "leading young people in prayer."  I laughed, Sarah-like.  Yes, I prayed more or less every day.  I mustered every ounce of my self discipline and prayed and read the Bible.  On rare occasions the heaven opened.  Mostly it felt like a bit of a grind.  I seriously wondered how much I would pray and study on a daily basis if I didn't have to preach regularly.  If daily prayer was this difficult for me, and I was paid to do this stuff, how could I hope to pass something on to others, let alone brand new Christians?  Of course, I may be the only pastor in the Vineyard with this story.  But I think not.

 

I don't for a moment begrudge my persistent attempts to pray on a daily basis over thirty years.  I'm sure it was good for my soul. 

 

But I think prayer is meant to be much better than that.  And I began to stumble toward this shortly after my father died in 1999.  I was mildly depressed, I think mourning the loss.  We were about to purchase a new building and plant a new church.  My energies were not at an all time high for prayer or anything else.  Daily prayer got harder not easier.  And so I did something that felt like giving up or cheating.  I started using a prayer book for my prayers.  Using set prayers like the ones found in the morning prayers of the Book of Common Prayer.  Someone this practice relaxed me and I began to enjoy prayer as never before.  Slowly, but surely.  I also began to practice the discipline of silence and solitude.  There were moments of sweetness unlike what I'd known before.  Some hook was getting set. Now my prayer life is radically different.  It exists as never before. I enjoy praying like never before.  I make more conscious contact than I honestly thought was possible.  I pray more formal, set prayers than I ever pictured myself doing and more spontaneous in my own words or non-words prayer.  It's all way different than I imagined.

 

This web-feature, which I plan to update monthly, is an attempt be of help to pastors in this most mysterious and wonderful and sometimes frustrating realms: the realm in which we pray.

 

If your prayer life is happening and satisfying, this may be of little use to you.  It's really designed for the struggling among us.  At least a splash of desperation is assumed, that you are willing to stretch beyond the tried and true of what you've always learned about prayer to see if you can't improve your contact with God through prayer. Your feedback is much appreciated.

 

This month, we'll start at the beginning.  I think trying to develop a consistent time of once a day deep prayer and study before learning how to pray at shorter more manageable intervals through the day may not make sense for a lot of people, including pastors.  So if you are one of the strugglers try this: try to think about prayer on a daily basis like you think about food.  Pray like you eat--at least a few times a day, and for the same reason: to keep you going through the day.

However that works for you work at it.

 

The theory (for those to whom it applies--not everyone I'm sure) is this: establish the breadth (through the day) dimension of prayer first and then respond to the invitation of the Spirit to go deeper once a day.  But for now, focus on the breadth dimension.

 

Leverage your current habits first and do whatever you can to make prayer easier and more pleasurable.  For example most everyone has morning routine that includes a cup of coffee or tea or (gag!)  Postum.  Whatever floats your boat.  If you love your morning coffee and have it without fail, add a doable, repeatable time of prayer to that lovely experience.  It's perfectly fine to start with something that lasts on the order of 3-5 minutes, for example.  You could pray one or two of the psalms, the Lord's Prayer (he did recommend it and it's framed as a daily prayer), and a favorite set prayer of yours.  Add or subtract to taste.  But do aim to do the doable minimum every day to work it into your circadian rhythm. I use The Divine Hours (see feature on this page.)  Good.  Once that's running, add a similar time of prayer before retiring.  Keep a bible or prayer book or both by your bedstand use your little prayer routine instead of your usual, "Lord! That was a long day! Good night!"     That's twice a day.  Eventually, look for a place to add a midday time.  This is often the most challenging, so something really easy and brief is good to start.  A little something at the lunch hour, or in the car parked in your driveway just before you come home from the office.  

 

Is this the prayer life you always longed for?  No, but it's a start. Don't despise the day of small beginnings.  Experiment, tinker, but keep at it one way or another.  It's a baseline for prayer, nothing more, nothing less.

 

I started doing this in 2000, using a form of fixed hour prayer called The Divine Hours.  It took me about three years before I was consistently doing about three times of prayer per day.  This past year I do between 5 and 6 of these times fairly consistently.  Because I want to and because I get to and because it helps me get through the day. 

 

To view past sustainable faith (formerly pastor soul care) articles, click here.