Christians struggle with the apostle Paul's words in 1 Thessalonians 5:17: "Pray continually!"
What does that mean? Does it mean praying every minute every day? Is that possible?
I think it means keeping Jesus constantly in my mind, bringing my everyday actions, needs, and worship before him. It means, as the 17th century French monk Brother Lawrence said, "practicing the presence of God".
For several months now, I have been yearning to cultivate the presence of God in my life. I have followed this practice intermittently over the years, but I have become consumed with getting things done in the prayer ministry that I currently lead in our church.
But the apostle Paul lived what he preached. For him, prayer, praise and worship were the fuel for his amazing ministry. He talks about praying constantly in several of his letters to young churches.
Stefan Smart, author of Deeper: Contemplative Prayer for Charismatic Christians, has some useful suggestions for praying continually. Some of them I already use and others I intend to apply in my own prayer life.
Smart makes the sensible point that we should follow the prayer practices that are right for us - not someone else's techniques. And we may find that on different days we may want to try different things rather than the same approach every day.
As Paul said in Ephesians 6, we are to pray "on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests".
Like other writers, Smart says there are all kinds of opportunities to breathe a prayer to God during our day.
"The visit to the coffee machine, standing in line at the bus stop, walking from one office or classroom to another, the journey to the lavatory - all afford chances to tune in to God."
He recommends a few simple relaxation exercises to put us in the mood for listening to God. Take a few moments to stretch or to breathe deeply. Or, even concentrate on your legs and arms, imagining they are heavy or warm.
Then, repeat a phrase such as "the Lord is my shepherd" or tell yourself "I am at peace with God".
This makes you more receptive to the presence of God.
Here are a few examples of how he prays during his busy day as a teacher:
What does that mean? Does it mean praying every minute every day? Is that possible?
I think it means keeping Jesus constantly in my mind, bringing my everyday actions, needs, and worship before him. It means, as the 17th century French monk Brother Lawrence said, "practicing the presence of God".
For several months now, I have been yearning to cultivate the presence of God in my life. I have followed this practice intermittently over the years, but I have become consumed with getting things done in the prayer ministry that I currently lead in our church.
But the apostle Paul lived what he preached. For him, prayer, praise and worship were the fuel for his amazing ministry. He talks about praying constantly in several of his letters to young churches.
Stefan Smart, author of Deeper: Contemplative Prayer for Charismatic Christians, has some useful suggestions for praying continually. Some of them I already use and others I intend to apply in my own prayer life.
Smart makes the sensible point that we should follow the prayer practices that are right for us - not someone else's techniques. And we may find that on different days we may want to try different things rather than the same approach every day.
As Paul said in Ephesians 6, we are to pray "on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests".
Like other writers, Smart says there are all kinds of opportunities to breathe a prayer to God during our day.
"The visit to the coffee machine, standing in line at the bus stop, walking from one office or classroom to another, the journey to the lavatory - all afford chances to tune in to God."
He recommends a few simple relaxation exercises to put us in the mood for listening to God. Take a few moments to stretch or to breathe deeply. Or, even concentrate on your legs and arms, imagining they are heavy or warm.
Then, repeat a phrase such as "the Lord is my shepherd" or tell yourself "I am at peace with God".
This makes you more receptive to the presence of God.
Here are a few examples of how he prays during his busy day as a teacher:
- Send up a brief prayer of thanks or praise or say you are sorry when you know you have said or done something wrong;
- Pray a "breath prayer" a few syllables long such as "Lord, let me know your love" several times during the day. You can even vary a prayer such as this to say "Lord, let Fred know your love" if someone you know is going through trials;
- Visualize Christ standing before you asking you what you want him to do for you;
- Choose a short phrase about God that you can repeat easily and repeatedly for several minutes, perhaps during a brief walk. The phrase could be something like "Holy Spirit, fill me" or "Give me strength, O God" or "Come, Lord Jesus."
- Imagine Jesus being with you as you go about your work; and
- Become aware of the signs of God's presence and love in everyday life - through acts of kindness by others, through nature, through our circumstances.
He acknowledges that it takes time to make this a habit. But, as Brother Lawrence said centuries ago, it does become habitual and the result is a growing sense of joy in God.
May each one of us become increasingly aware of God's presence in our lives.
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