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- TRP #010: What to do when prayer is boring
Hey friends, welcome to this week’s issue of The Remnant Post!
Over the last several years the Lord has really reshaped my perspective when it comes to prayer. For years I thought of prayer as something that needed to be perfectly ordered, with the exact right language, and without mess. For lack of a better explanation, I felt like I had to “show up” well and be put together.
There is certainly a heart posture of reverence that God desires for us to bring to our time of prayer, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be honest with God.
First of all, God knows all things. There is nothing we can keep from His view. So, if we avoid praying through an emotion, need, or desire - all we’re doing is limiting the degree to which we invite God to work in our lives.
I found personally and see with others that prayer is “boring” because it’s postured. It’s fake, in a way. Instead of praying honest prayers about issues we face, heart pains we’re experiencing, burdens we’re bearing, desires and dreams we have, etc. we just create a religious posture of showing up polished.
Jesus at the end of two different teachings on prayer, finished with the two stories of the persistent widow and the audacious friend. He was highlighting these real-world needs and struggles these people had and that how they asked (or continued to ask) for help in a real-life moment was the reason the Father answered the prayer.
Friends, if prayer is boring it’s not God’s fault or prayer’s fault. God has invited us to know Him intimately, bring our requests to Him, and be honest as we approach Him. Let’s bring our whole hearts to Him in prayer.
I was inspired this week by a few quotes I saw from Charles Spurgeon:
"If you pray over your work, I am persuaded you will be helped in it.”
"Anything is a blessing which makes us pray."
"Our God not only hears prayer but also loves to hear it."
"Nine times out of ten, falling away from God begins in the neglect of private prayer."
Friends, I believe Spurgeon is correct in this last quote primarily because there is this intimate connection and relationship between us and God that is missed out on when we either don’t pray at all or don’t pray honestly and wholeheartedly.
In Mattew 7:21-23 Jesus tells the ministry workers to “get away from me, I never knew you”. The Greek transliteration of the original language here for the word “knew” is from the word ginóskó, which is an intimate and personal kind of knowing. It’s the same word that the virgin Mary uses when she asks the angel “How will this be since I do not know (ginóskó) a man?” after he tells her she’ll become pregnant and give birth.
According to Matthew 7, Jesus wants to know you. In John 10:14 Jesus states: “I am the good shepherd. I know (ginóskó) my own and my own know (ginóskó) me.”
Let’s commit to coming to God with everything so that we can more deeply know and be known.
Prayer Prompt of the Week:
Father, help us to be people who approach you with our whole heart, with honesty, and with a desire to share with you what you already know about the deepest parts of our being. Help us to know you even more intimately as our shepherd and to share all of our burdens, emotions, and challenges with you.
In Jesus name, Amen.
Friends, remember that One Hope puts out a prayer guide each month with specific topics and prayer requests for our city? They’re broken down into different categories like church, family, first responders, government, etc.
Be sure to take some time with your family this week to align in prayer with hundreds and hundreds of believers across the city, from over 100 churches who are praying into these prompts:
Verse of the Week:
Worship Song of the Week:
I randomly stumbled upon this rendition thanks to the YouTube algorithm and found their artistic vocal gifts to be a wonderful display of the creativity of our heavenly Father. So amazing.