How’s your prayer life going? Maybe it’s something you’ve wanted to start, restart, or just refresh.
Whether it’s been a while, or maybe prayer feels a bit stale — don’t worry, you’re not alone. We’ve all been there. I know I have…
The truth is that we tend to overcomplicate prayer. We worry about doing it “right,” waiting for the perfect moment, or feeling “in the mood” to pray. But the reality is that prayer is much simpler than we make it. It’s not about perfection; it’s about connection.
So, let’s simplify things. Here are five practical ways to breathe new life into your prayer routine. No stress, just a fresh start!
1. Make a start
Long before it became a staple of wall hangings, bookmarks and Internet memes, the Chinese Philosopher Lao Tzu wrote: “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Don’t wait until you are “in the mood”. Don’t look for the “right time” or “right place”. That special time will never arrive. Ignore them and focus on just getting a start, even if it’s a very small one.
Carpe Diem, as the Romans used to say. “Seize the Day…”
Decide how much time you will schedule in your day to begin your new prayer life.
Be reasonable. Ten minutes might be a good start. Promising you’ll get up at the crack of dawn and pray for two hours solid is a recipe for failure!
No. Aim for ten minutes to start. If you can’t squeeze out ten minutes somewhere, then you’re not being serious.
2. Make it a Priority
For most of us, finding time will mean we have to sacrifice something else we are doing instead. You probably enjoy that other thing (TV, sleep, friends, kids, etc.) — or you wouldn’t be doing it in the first place.
Prayer has to be moved up the list of priorities.
So, is prayer a high enough priority to bump off something else that you previously thought was more important?
When your best friend calls, you make time, even if something else is important has to be sacrificed.
You may not know it yet, but God is your best friend, and making some time for Him every day is going to be the best long-term investment that you have ever made.
3. Make use of existing prayers
Why reinvent the wheel? Many very fine prayers can be found for free on the Internet.
For some reason, many people think they must come up with their own grandiose or wordy prayers written in the finest English language (often 300 years out of date… like the King James Bible!)
And then find that they cannot… so give up! What a pity that is…
There’s absolutely no shame in using prayers that other people have written and shared with us. There are loads of books or websites filled with really great prayers. Use them!
If you are learning to pray, you will, of course, realise that you are on unfamiliar ground.
But remember that everyone started in that same place.
Even the greatest men of prayer throughout history started exactly where you are.
And don’t get discouraged if you go for a day or two without finding time or space to pray. Everyone has their “ups and downs” in prayer. Just take baby steps for now…
4. Make it interactive
Prayer can grow dull when we turn it into a purely mental exercise.
We find it hard to concentrate, focus, and keep finding more words — so don’t get hung up on making prayer all about words.
God made us creative beings, so why don’t we bring creativity to our prayer lives?
Lighting a fragrant candle can send a signal to our brains: “It’s time to pray.” It can bring a sacred sense of awe to a few minutes of prayer.
Listening to music can help us focus on God. Just whack on a CD or Spotify
Many people enjoy doodling, drawing, or painting while they pray.
I help my ADHD-plagued brain focus on prayer by keeping a prayer journal. Making a list of requests keeps my mind alert. After jotting down each petition, I stop to pray for it.
Sometimes, I write out longer prayers like a letter.
A prayer journal builds faith when you reflect on your petitions and recall God’s answers.
5. Make it practical
When I look at the life of Jesus, I see something really interesting
And since, like all Christians, I want to model myself on how Jesus lives, I think this is relevant…
Jesus frequently went away alone to find the space and solitude to pray.
In Luke 5.16, we read that “Great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”
There are several places in the Gospels where this is mentioned — it’s actually easy to miss them. It’s often a bit of a passing comment between two other stories or episodes from Jesus’ life.
But Jesus DID think it important to get away and carve out a chunk of time to pray.
BUT He then came back and acted…
He dived into all the messiness, brokenness, sin and chaos of the lives of ordinary people.
He called out the Pharisees for their hypocrisy and empty traditions.
He told a rich young ruler to give up all he had if he wanted to follow Jesus.
He got frustrated and exasperated with the disciples for their lack of faith.
In other words — he prayed… then he acted.
Jesus’ prayers were ‘fuel’ that powered a life of ministry. A ministry that was often hard, challenging and filled with conflict. He never saw prayer as an escape and never formed a ‘holy huddle.’ He came before His Father to receive resources and strength to live out the Gospel in the world.
We must never allow our prayer to be a thing in itself but something which empowers us for Christian life
To summarise
Make a start: The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step
Make it a priority: Prayer won’t happen just by accident; we have to be intentional
Make use of existing resources: Why re-invent the wheel?
Make it creative: Don’t make it just about loads of words
Make it practical: Prayer isn’t an escape; it’s fuel for life
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