All of God’s People, whether in the Old Testament or New, have always been practicing and participating in the common practice of praying. We see the early church, after the ascension of Jesus, precipitating the great event of Pentecost with fervent prayer:
Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. — Acts 1:12-14
And soon afterwards, the Holy Spirit descends on the early church and they receive the tongues of fire.
In fact, we often find that the early church,
whenever there was a need,
whenever there was provision necessary,
whenever they needed wisdom,
whenever they commissioned someone to preach,
whenever there was signs and wonders,
they were found in deep and passionate prayer.
“Prayer is the way that the life of God in us is nourished.” — Oswald Chambers
To pray is to commune in intimacy with God and to converse with him regularly. But often, we may find ourselves struggling to find the words to pray or creating space to pray. As the People of God, we have been gifted with three methods to connect constantly with Him:
- Praying in the Language of Scripture
- Praying in the Language of the Soul (Our Own Words)
- Praying in the Language of the Spirit
So how are some ways we can practice this?
Jesus gives two commandments to his disciples: Watch & Pray (Matthew 26:41) and to Practice Secret Disciplines (Matthew 6:1-18). Both commandments instruct his disciples to pray in trying circumstances (in the Garden of Gethsemane) and in secret. So how do we practice praying?
- Set aside each day to pray intentionally to God, as freely as you can, using one of the three methods—with Scripture, in your own words, or in the Spirit. If you find yourself struggling, try to figure out which time of the day works best for a rhythm.
- Pray through the Psalms, one for each day.
- Try writing your own prayers using the Kindling Prayer or Closure Prayer.
- If you have the gift of tongues, trying praying in the Spirit wherever you are—whether you’re driving, walking, washing the dishes. Ask God to increase your awareness of him and to speak to you clearly as you pray.
For more discussion and behind the scenes of this sermon in the Common Series, listen to our new podcast: The Common Podcast. We upload new episodes every Wednesday! Stay tuned as we continue to learn the Common practices that keep us united as Christ-followers.