1 Chronicles 16:8-13 — Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works. Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually. Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth; O ye seed of Israel his servant, ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

How’s it going? Your prayer life, I mean. Mine comes and goes. I wish I could say it was a consistent, reliable, satisfying, effective activity. It would make me, somehow, feel a “better” Christian. I know. It’s stupid, it’s not a direct connection. But it’s frustrating.
You know what’s comforting though? I know that only me and about two billion other Christians have this issue — which is why there seems to be almost a whole publishing genre dedicated to “how to pray” books. I’ve read quite a few, especially by Elmer Towns and a particular favorite by Charles Spurgeon (see the references page). Yesterday a friend recommended yet another. If you a reader, read! It will probably have a marginal effect on your prayer life.
There are three or four things I think I’ve learned about prayer. I’m hoping if I share mine, you’ll share yours!
First, I don’t think prayer is about the results! Prayer is about opening my heart to God, and surrendering my will to Him. I don’t think there’s anything He doesn’t know about who I am or what I need!
Second, I am the biggest barrier to my prayers. If I have unconfessed sin in my life (and yes, sometimes I do!) that’s likely to hinder my prayers.
The third thing is that prayer really works — and it really doesn’t. If you haven’t seen it, you’ll have to take my word for it. Often the results of prayer are exactly what you ask for and, much more importantly, people who work at prayer definitely get closer to God. But sometimes, the results of prayer are not at all what you expect — because what I think is best and what God thinks is best are not necessarily the same thing!
The last thing (actually, I think I could add quite a few more, but you have to stop somewhere!) is that just praying doesn’t get it done. In fact David’s psalm of praise when the ark came up to Jerusalem provides a really good guide:
– Give thanks to God!
– Talk to God
– Tell people about Him (witness!)
– Worship
– Enjoy God!
– Remember what God has already done
– Remember His rules
– And be assured, you are in God’s family
Prayer isn’t an isolated practice — it’s part of an integrated spiritual existence.
“So,” you say, “if you know so much, how come your prayer life isn’t perfect?” Well, one last thing I think I know. It’s not automatic, and I have to keep practicing!