Why Don’t You Pray?

Thistlebend Quiet eMoment

by Laurie Aker

Focus Scripture: Luke 6:12-16 ESV

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray,
and all night he continued in prayer to God.  
13 And when day came, he called his disciples  
and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles: 
14 Simon, whom he named Peter, and Andrew his brother,  
and James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew,  
15 and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus,  
and Simon who was called the Zealot,
16 and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot,  
who became a traitor.
______________________________

Why don’t you pray?

How did you answer yesterday?
What keeps you from praying as much,
or as diligently as the Lord
would desire, or as much as you
really want to be praying?

Did you answer unbelief?

Might it be unbelief or doubt?

Our faith and our true belief is evidenced,
not in what we think in our minds,
feel in our hearts,
or say with our lips,
but in how we live our lives.

What do your actions say about your belief?

Do you need to confess any sin of unbelief, doubt, or fear?

Charles Spurgeon said:
“Do not dishonor your Lord and Master
by unworthy doubts and fears;
but be strong in faith, giving glory to God.
Show the world that your God is
worth ten thousand worlds to you.”

When you have resolved in your heart that you
want to pray, you may still find yourself not
praying as you would desire.

TAKING GOD’S WORD TO HEART

You must pray.
You must seek the Lord to make a plan.
You must set forth a course and with God’s grace follow it.

You may need to stop doing something, or do something less,
in order to make time to pray.
Less television, less Internet, less talking, less sleeping,
less staying up too late, less shopping,
less worrying, less complaining, less… ?

You may need to start doing something in order to pray.
If you want to pray in a way that is effective and sustainable,
you might need to get a steno notebook or prayer journal and
write out a prayer list for each day of the week.
If appropriate, write next to each name or item
what you need to be praying for.

You might write your prayers on 3×5 cards
if you would want to walk and pray.
One card for each day.

You might need to use a three-ring binder with tabs.

You might even want to
look up Scripture that you would pray for each person.
Then, compile these Scriptures in an orderly fashion.
You might want to write them out in your journal.

Whatever would be best for you,
whatever would keep you faithful and diligent in prayer,
set forth and resolve to do it

James 5:16, KJV
The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man  
availeth much.

Make the most of your 5-10 minutes
or your 20-30 minutes of prayer
by being ready and prepared and planned.
Regardless of how you do it, make a plan and do it.
Not in your own strength.
Not lackadaisically.
But diligently and faithfully.

And, once you have sought the Lord
to set forth a course and a plan,
ask the Lord to grant you His grace to follow through.
Ask the Lord for His strength
to resist the devil and draw near to Him.

Look to the Lord and fix your eyes on Him.

Seek to follow Him.

MEDITATE or MEMORIZE

Write out the following verse from Luke 6 and recite it 3 times.
Take it with you throughout the day.

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray,
and all night he continued in prayer to God.   

PRAYER

Father, please cut through the excuses that we make
to not pray. Draw us into your presence.
And hear our cry.

In His hands for His glory,

Laurie
_____________________________

/by

Why Don’t People Pray?

Thistlebend Quiet eMoment

by Laurie Aker

Focus Scripture: Luke 6:12-16 ESV

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray,
and all night he continued in prayer to God.  
13 And when day came, he called his disciples  
and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles: 
14 Simon, whom he named Peter, and Andrew his brother,  
and James and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew,  
15 and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus,  
and Simon who was called the Zealot,
16 and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot,  
who became a traitor.
______________________________

Jesus, the Son of God,
fully God and fully man,
continued all night in prayer before
He called his disciples and chose the twelve.
He is our shepherd…we are to follow Him.

Why don’t people pray?

Orson Wells said:
“I don’t pray because I don’t want to bore God.”

Someone else said:
“I don’t pray because it doesn’t work.”

Another said:
“I don’t pray because I don’t have enough faith.”

Others:

“I don’t want to take the time.”
“I don’t want to make the effort.”
“It feels like my prayers are just going to the ceiling.”
“I would rather watch something on TV.”
“I’m tired and need more sleep.”
“I don’t feel like it.”
“I’m busy…too little time, too much to do.”
“I am hurting and it hurts to pray.”
“It hurts to think about God.”
“I’m angry at God.”
“I’ve given up.”

Let me ask you,
why don’t you pray?
What keeps you from praying as much,
or as diligently as the Lord might desire
or as much as you would really want to be praying?

Make an honest list.

Now think.
How would you pray and how often would you pray
if you really believed that every time you spoke a prayer,
talked to God, whispered a request,
or cried out in the dark of the night,
that the Lord heard you?

Bring the list before the Lord and how
you would pray if you really believed.
Confess to the Lord
and confess to someone else.

TAKING GOD’S WORD TO HEART

The Lord God does hear our prayers.
Prayerfully read the following psalm.
Then think about how much you would want to be praying.
Ask the Lord for help.

Psalm 40:1-4
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the LORD.
4 Blessed is the man who makes
the LORD his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after a lie!

MEDITATE or MEMORIZE

Write out the following verse from Luke 6 and recite it 3 times.
Take it with you throughout the day.

12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray,
and all night he continued in prayer to God.

PRAYER

Father, please cut through the excuses that we make
to not pray. Draw us into your presence.
And hear our cry.

In His hands for His glory,

Laurie
_____________________________

/by

Lock Arms

by Dottie Ryan

 “O God, you are my God; earnestly I see you” (Psalm 63:1).

Again I was confronted with my own obstacles (sometimes self-inflicted) and weaknesses: the lies I have believed, the sin I continue to walk in, ignore, or discount, my idols I have not either identified or decided to lay down, my excuses, my demands, my — my — my.  And my spirit cries out for someone — anyone — to speak truth into my soul at this very moment. Because truth is the only thing that promises to penetrate the deception of the lies.  My soul screams from a very dry and weary place for the Spirit of God through a sister in Christ to please remind me what the Lord showed me last week, ask me if I’ve followed through, and hold me accountable.  I need that!

So after first going to the Lord to confess that I don’t really earnestly seek Him (not like I did my lost flash drive this past week) — that maybe I don’t know how or am just too caught up in laziness, unbelief, succumbing to confusion, or [you fill in your own blank] — I know I can pick up the phone and call my Abigail, my prayer-sister, someone in my small group, and they would know what I’m talking about because the dynamics of a small group allow us to get to know each other very personally.  There is a sweetness in that.  There can be pain in being face-to-face transparent.  Yes there is indeed a sweetness to having that kind of access to someone who is walking the journey with you and knows where you are.  And to speak truth in love into each others’ lives (leading me back to the truth of the Word) because we have committed to be accountable to each other.

We need to journey together.  We want to want these things concerning falling in love with our Lord.  And if we don’t desire these things or they seem so far out of our reach, we can’t withdrawal.  We lock arms and join forces to fight the good fight of faith — together.

The following is an excerpt by A. W. Pink the battle that a walk of faith can be:

There is that in each of us which wants to play the coward, run away from the battlefield, our “circumstances.” This is what Abraham did (Genesis 12:10), but he gained nothing by it. This is what Elijah did (1 Kings 19:3), and the Lord rebuked him for it.* And these instances are recorded “for our learning” (Romans 15:4), as warnings for us to take to heart. They tell us that we must steadfastly resist this evil inclination, and call to mind that exhortation, “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you (act) like men, be strong” (1 Cor. 16:13). . . . There is a very real twofoldness to the Christian life and every aspect of Divine truth is balanced by its counterpart. Practical godliness is a mysterious paradox, which is incomprehensible to the natural man. The Christian is strongest when he is weakest, wealthiest when he is poorest, happiest when most wretched. Though unknown (1 John 3:1); yet he is well known (Gal. 4:9). Though dying daily (1 Cor. 15:31), yea, dead; yet, behold, he lives (Col. 3:3-4). Though having nothing, yet he possesses all things (2 Cor. 6:10). Though persecuted, he is not forsaken; cast down, he is not destroyed. He is called upon to “rejoice with trembling” (Psalm 2:11) and is assured: “Happy are ye that weep now” (Luke 6:21). Though the Lord makes him to lie down in green pastures and leads him beside still waters, he is yet in the wilderness, and “in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is ” (Psalm 63:1). Though followers of the Prince of Peace, Christians are to endure “hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3); and though “more than conquerors,” they are often defeated. (A. W. Pink, The Fight of Faith, available at http://teachingresources1.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/the-fight-of-faith-by-a-w-pink.pdf)

The Lord Jesus sent out his disciples two-by-two (Mark 6:7, Luke 10:1).  You and I were not meant to go this journey alone.

 

 

*It is probably better to see gentle encouragement of Elijah from the Lord in this passage than rebuke.

 

/by