We have as difficult a time praying as we do reading our Bibles.
We believe there is a set of minimums that must be reached before we are successful.
Here are some ideas:
1. Stop worrying about how long you are praying.
I never time any other conversations. Why would I time my conversations with God. There is no minimum for success. The disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. He gave them a model prayer. It was a twenty second prayer (go ahead, time it). Sometimes you will talk to Him for a while. Other times it will be very short. Sometimes it’s a quick, “Lord, help!”
2. Stop using a prayer list like it’s a chore.
A list to help you remember what you want to talk about is great. A list viewed as a group of subjects that must be covered is pointless. You will not pray through it with your heart. You will pray to get it done.
3. God is not our pizza delivery man.
He is not a stranger whose sole purpose is to bring us stuff we call Him up for. Prayer is about strengthening our relationship with God. We talk to Him and He talks to us. The only way to keep a relationship alive is to spend time with someone. The more time you spend with them, the stronger it becomes.
4. Pray where you want.
I love to pray outside while walking. Sometimes I just wander the back yard. I hate praying on my knees in a room, so I hardly ever do that. When I pray lying prostrate, I fall asleep. You don’t have to have a “prayer closet”. The point of Jesus’ teaching there was to not be praying for show. But if you want one, get one. The idea is to do whatever will encourage you to actually pray. You can’t do it wrong. You’re only doing it wrong if you’re not doing it.
I like to ask people which historical figure they would like to have a conversation with, if they could. They always get excited and give me a name or even several. It’s funny how excited we get when we think about talking to someone from history and yet God is available to talk to anytime we want.
Joel Stiff's Adventure 