It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray. . . “  
Luke 11:1 NASB

As a follower of Christ, I have enjoyed fellowship with Him for over 50 years now. However, being a creature of habit, time with God can become just that – HABIT – if I’m not careful. To develop a growing, vibrant relationship requires time, effort, desire, and a whole lot of love. The same applies to our prayer life.

Let’s look at the discipline of praying. Simply stated, it’s being with God, talking to and communing with Him, which includes, but isn’t limited to, praise and adoration, confession, thanksgiving, requests, appeals, and complaints.

How do you spend time in prayer with God? Do you do the same thing every day? Do you feel that your prayers are just falling to the floor and going nowhere? Has it become just a ritual?

If so, check out these recommendations to help bring new life to your prayer time.

• Stand with hands lifted and pray aloud to the Father.
• Go for a walk in the woods or the neighborhood, praying as you go – aka prayer walking.
• Literally make space in your closet to get alone with God. The times I’ve done this have proven to be very intimate times with Him. In fact, I think I need to try that again soon.
• Conversation is a two-way street. Intentionally implement times of silence to listen to God.
• If physically possible, lay prostrate on the floor before the Lord. Consider kneeling or simply covering your head with a cloth to shut out distractions.
• Meet with a friend at the playground and spend time together conversing with God while the kids play. After all, whoever said you had to bow your head and close your eyes to pray?

What a blessing to know the Father longs to be with us. Seek Him for His input as you converse with Him. Think outside the box; don’t be afraid to try something new when it comes to being in His presence and sharing life with Him.                                                                                                     [Digging deeper – 1 Kings 8:54; Matthew 6:6, 26:39; Mark 1:35, 6:46; Luke 18:13]

Starting anew,

Beverly <><