How to Improve Your Prayer Life
Prayer is a huge part of Christian life, but often times we forget to do it. Why does this happen and how can we fix it?
How often have you heard the phase, “You are in my thoughts and prayers”? It’s usually said after some type of major tragedy. I often wondered what percentage of people who say that actually pray or even give that person a second thought. I know I have been guilty of telling someone I will be pray for you, and then I forgot to actually pray for that person. We get busy, right? We have people to see and places to go. Sure, it’s a kind gesture, but perhaps our words are empty words to attempt to encourage someone in need of hope.
The other thing that comes to mind is, who are they praying to? The topic of prayer is, for the most part, unthreatening in nature as opposed to mentioning the name of Jesus, right? (We must be politically correct these days not to offend anyone.) I have learned over the years to have an audience of one. That One is God. I have come to the realization that seeking human approval is similar to a dog chasing its tail, and I see that all the time with my dog Luke. It may seem to him that he’s gaining ground on his allusive tail, but in reality, he’s just running in circles. So, we may be, in fact, trying to gain approval from a moving target. Therein lies the core of many people’s disappointment, frustration, and emptiness. You may never really know where you stand in the pursuit of human approval.
By making God our focus, we know exactly where He stands because He told us in His word, the Bible. It doesn’t change nor does He change. Hebrews 12:8 tells us, “Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. In the same book, Hebrews 1:3 also tells us that the “Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being.”
Choosing to believe these words clears up a lot of confusion. We will fall short many times, but we know where we stand with God. As far as the thoughts and prayers, let’s make it a point to actually pray when we say we will pray for those in need of prayer. While reading this the other day, someone in the group shared something that was, in my opinion, quite profound. She said, “I think most people underestimate prayer.”
