Highlights - Episode 21 - Teach Us…A Relationship to Be Pursued

Nine prayer practices that have helped me continue to make progress in my own relationship with God.

First: Think more relationally…less transactionally. It’s not what we say, it’s who we’re with. “Prayer is not a button to be pushed; it’s a relationship to be pursued.” (Carey Nieuwhof)

Second: Recognize the value of a prayer model and use it. The prayers of others help us exercise new spiritual muscles…”the law of requisite variety” (Batterson)…a good strategy for dealing with mental distractions.

Third: Combine Scripture meditation with prayer. The transition between meditating on a portion of the Lord’s Prayer/other Scripture and prayer is seamless and natural. “Praying Scripture”

Fourth: Include personal worship time when you pray. Every prayer needs a doxology. Helps us rise above the clouds of our own personal concerns.

Fifth: Practice wordless prayer. “Bonding silence.” This type of prayer helps us move from prayer as “catalogue shopping” to prayer as communion with God.

Sixth: Listen intently and expect God to speak to you. Unless both parties in a relationship communicate, that relationship will eventually die. Prayer is not just us talking with God. It’s God talking with us.

Seventh: Be honest with God. What good does it do to try and hide something from God that he already knows? Rather than happy faces that mask our pain, he prefers authenticity.

Eighth: Make prayer a priority with your time. There’s a reason people talk about walking with God, not “running.” Slow down!

Ninth: Expect awesome encounters with God. Prayer is a conversation that leads to an encounter with God. Theology can become experience. (Keller)

The Deeply Formed Life, Rich Villodas
Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, Tim Keller
You Can Talk to God Like That: The Surprising Power of Lament to Save Your Faith, Abby Norman
Space for God, Don Postema
Prayer, Philip Yancey