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On Sunday night we began an occasional series (ie on and off all year) on the spiritual disciplines or spiritual exercises. These disciplines are not secret, magical acts that a Christian can use to get closer to God, but instead a series of things we can do that put us in the best possible place for us to be open to God’s Spirit. 

Using a gardening analogy, when we plant a seed we prepare the soil and water the ground but in the end, it is God that makes the seed grow. The disciplines are like preparing and maintaining the ground so God can grow the seeds of faith inside us. 

The first discipline we are looking at is prayer. Over the next few weeks our young adults will tackle some of the difficult questions about prayer. Rachel was first up with, “How Do I Pray?” 
This is a summary of Rach’s main points: 

1. Pray with Confidence

Heb 4:16 “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy and we will find grace to help us when we need it.”

Esther 4:16b “I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”

Sometimes we seem to afraid to pray. It might be because we view God as some punishing being who will do nothing but tell us off. Other times it is because we are ashamed at some of the things we have done. But like Esther and her bold approach of the King, we are called to boldly approach God. After all, God is gracious. 

2. Pray with Honesty

(Psalm 13:1-4) How long, O LORD ? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”

David was a great prayer writer and his Psalms express nearly the whole range of human emotions. He was honest with God. Sometimes brutally honest. Sometimes he was so honest you wonder why god didn’t strike him with a lightning bolt! 

But these are the prayers God loves. If we are to live in relationship with God, then that relationship has to be honest – otherwise it is worth nothing. Rachel shared a beautiful piece that she has written that expressed some of her honest thoughts and feelings to God 

Read Rachel’s Psalm here. 

Pray with Expectation 

Psalm 5:3 “In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.” 

The Western Bulldogs will win the AFL premiership this year. It’s easy to say that, but unlike our administrator, I have no belief or expectation that it will actually happen. And so it has no impact on me or my life.  

Prayer is the same. If I speak the words with no expectation that God will do anything, god won’t. There needs to be an expectations that comes with faith. 

Pray with Promise  

 John 15:7  “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.” 

The expectation becomes a little easier when we realize some of the promises God has made. Rachel’s Psalm again beautifully expresses some of those promises. We need to remind ourselves of these over and over again – God is faithful and keeps promises. 

The whole gathering had an atmosphere of prayer. Joel led us in some quiet worship that linked in with Rachel’s words wonderfully. The Spirit was working. These are the words Rachel concluded with: 

Prayer is rarely about the words we speak, but about the attitude in which we come to God, because true prayer depends on what is in the heart more than what is on the tongue. 

I think that sums it up nicely. 

How do you pray? What are your experiences? Fears? Hopes for your prayer life. Share some of them in the comments section below and learn from each other.