Do you ever have those days when you find yourself continually whispering a prayer? Days when certain people or challenges keep floating into your mind and your first instinct is to call out to God and ask for His help? Do you pray for the same person or problem repeatedly, day after day? Do you ever wonder if you pray too much? Are your prayers too formal? Too familiar? Too short, or too long? Too deliberate or too random?
I know I have had many days when it seems like all I am doing is praying, when every thought processes as a prayer. All the horrible things in the news lately, the challenges I wrote about last week with my little foray into the land of depression, and really life in general have made me understand so much more the need for a healthy and continual prayer life. I’ve found that when I talk with God my fears, stress and worry seem to just melt away, and I am closer to Him.
I imagine each of you has your own style of praying. Some folks I know are very formal. Some recite from a prayer book. Some regularly pray one of the chapters in Psalms. Others pray like they’re having a conversation with their best friend.
When I first started praying I was more formal, tentative, afraid that I would do it wrong. I only prayed when something was really wrong, or at certain times of the day, or in certain places. Those early prayers were always specific and seemed to follow a certain form and pattern. Today my prayers tend to be more like that rambling conversation with a friend. I pray many times throughout the day, about whatever, or whoever, is on my mind. Sometimes I will pray a Psalm, though mostly that happens when I’m reading through the book of Psalms and a particular chapter just yells for me to pray it to God. (Really, I’m not kidding, it’s like the Bible just comes alive on those days!) Honestly, I believe that any form of prayer is good – we just need to do it.
That said, I feel like we need to remember that our prayers should praise God and His Glory, thank Him for the care He has provided, for His Word and Truth, and honor Him as Lord and King in our lives. And our prayers should ask that God’s will be done in everything we ask. We should be praying faithfully, believing and trusting He will answer them in His time and according to His purpose.
Using the many scriptures in the Bible about prayer as my guide, I don’t think we can ever pray too much, too repetitively, too consistently or too boldly. And no matter what anyone says, we should never be afraid to pray for anything that is troubling us. I believe it is God’s desire that we come to him, and that when we make prayer an active part of our mindset, we come closer to Him.
What are your thoughts on prayer?
“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” Ephesians 6:18
From Suffering to Praise 
To me…I really do treat prayers as if I’m talking to an actual heavenly father. I truly believe that nothing is hidden from him, including my ulterior motives and the most inappropriate of thoughts. So when I pray, it’s pretty much an intimate conversation I’m having. I confess everything. I ask for forgiveness and tell him where I need help. I thank him for everything and give him credit for all that I am. I ask him to continue to refine me to be a good man in his eyes, as painlessly as possible. I’m so honest, that I’m actually afraid of praying for large groups. Years ago when I had a girlfriend, she asked me to pray for her and I was reluctant because it would reveal more than I wished to reveal so soon. But in the end, I think it brought her closer to me. But still. Girls like her are rare, as Proverbs 31 tells us.
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Oh the honesty we can share with the Father! I pour out my soul when praying in private, like yours, these prayers are not for public consumption. I get fairly emotional too, tears are common!
Thank you for sharing, Rock.
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