Spicing Up Your Prayer Life
Spicing Up Your Prayer Life
There is never a need to be stuck or stalled when you know more than one way home to the Father’s throne.
My struggle with the art and discipline of prayer over the years has been a mixed experience. I can say with equal honesty that prayer has strengthened, inspired, humbled, and frustrated me; all of the above. I have been a pastor long enough to know that my experience is not unique. I wanted to share some thoughts about this and hopefully offer some help to my fellow strugglers in the life of faith.
I was 24 years old when I responded to Christ’s claim on my life. My first experience with church was a fervent, fiery fellowship on the west side of Boston. It was a great place to be in my twenties. I learned much that helped me in my walk with Christ and a few things which had to be unlearned later in life. One of the things which I would eventually come to reconsider was the tendency to equate spontaneity with spiritually. A great deal of emphasis was placed on prayer, but the only kind of praying we understood as legitimate was totally spontaneous. To say that we were non-liturgical would be an understatement; off-the-cuff utterance was the way – and the only way - we were taught to pray. I have to say I love this kind of praying; I did a lot of it and I still do. But eventually my soul would come to want and need an experience of prayer which offered more possibilities.
I often explain this by making analogy to the experience of navigating. Most of us are creatures of habit. We usually drive to and from our most frequent places by the same route. But what happens if the road is out, or traffic is jammed? If we know more than one way to get there we are in good shape. But imagine the predicament of the person who knows only one route and cannot conceive of an alternative? That person is going to be hopelessly stuck! This was my experience of prayer when I knew only one way to do it. My extemporaneous praying worked great – as long as I had something to say. But when verbal inspiration sputtered or dried up – my prayer life faltered. It came as a great relief to discover that prayer in scripture and in the life and history of the church is a rich, colorful, and multi-faceted thing. What a gift to discover that whether I am happy, anxious, inspired or depressed, there is always a way to pray. And further, to find that there is always a way to pray which fits whatever place I am in emotionally and spiritually. There is never a need to be stuck or stalled when you know more than one way home to the Father’s throne.
To use another analogy, think of your favorite food. At my house there are certain meals that always generate a level of excitement in the family. These are favorite dishes, and I imagine we all feel the same way about certain foods. But how would you feel if your favorite meal were served every day, week after week, and month after month for a whole year? You might find your enthusiasm diminished somewhat! So it often is with prayer. We all have our favorite ways, our default styles, and there is nothing wrong with this. But it is possible to find our enthusiasm for quiet time dulled by monotony. When this happens it can be grace to change it up. Even in prayer variety can be a spice of life.
Over the next few weeks I will be sharing some of the ways I have found the grace to pray in various ways and circumstances. I hope it will be a blessing to you as it has been for me. Stay tuned!
