A person doesn't have to read the Bible for very long before discovering that one of the main businesses of life is prayer. The gospel writer, Mark, tells us that in the morning a great while before day, Jesus rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed. The apostles didn't allow themselves to get distracted with the busyness of life. Instead, they determined to give their attention to the Word of God and prayer.
Prayer is the main way God changes us. "Prayer - secret, fervent, believing prayer - lies at the root of all personal godliness," wrote the missionary William Carey. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist church, once said, "God does nothing but in answer to prayer!"
Yet, if we're honest with ourselves, we often find that we are not in the mood to pray for even 10 minutes. How should we act when we're not in the mood to pray? Here are some common ways that we think about prayer that hinder us:
- Prayer is not a spiritual test.For many people, a discussion about prayer reminds us of tests that we have failed and spiritual standards that we haven't met. When we are asked, "How's your prayer life? What has God been speaking to you about in prayer?" Or "How are you doing in your devotions?" the typical reaction of most people is to feel shame. For most people, if we're honest, we say, "Not very good. I've been failing on the test of prayer. I get so distracted with busyness, with getting the kids ready for school, and a million other things. I'm not doing well at all regarding my prayer."
But prayer is not a test, which we pass or fail, or a standard that we fail to meet. Prayer is a privilege. We don't have to get direction from God. We get to receive direction. We don't have to satisfy our spiritual thirst. We get to drink in God's presence. We Christians should not pray as an obligation or as a spiritual merit badge. Rather, prayer is something we get to do.
- Not being in the mood to pray is a normal experience. It is important to recognize that not being in the mood to pray is an incredibly common experience for Christians, even great Christians. The fact is, no one "feels spiritual" all of the time. Moods shift, moods change like the weather. It is not always sunny (especially in Central Ohio). A cloud often dims our capacity to see the face of God. The spiritual life is simply not a continual mountaintop experience for anyone. Even Jesus cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
Of course, it is entirely possible that we are not in the mood to pray because we know that God is putting his finger on something that we do not wish to change. So we avoid God and we avoid prayer. But if unwillingness to change is not the issue, take comfort! Not being in the mood to pray is a normal experience.
We do not need to be in a "prayer mood" to pray anymore than we need to be in a "homework mood" to do our homework, or in an "exercise mood" to exercise, or a "piano-playing mood" to practice piano. Anyone who has become a success at anything has done so by refusing to be determined by his or her moods. Successful living comes from making a decision (to pray, to do homework, to exercise or to practice the piano) regardless of how we feel. The great 19th- century preacher Charles Spurgeon wrote: "We should pray when we are in a praying mood, for it would be sinful to neglect so fair an opportunity. We should pray when we are not in a praying mood because it would be dangerous to remain in so unhealthy a condition."
- Great feelings are not always associated with great answers to prayer.Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China, received many extraordinary answers to prayer. Someone asked him late in life whether he always felt joyful when he prayed. He replied that "his heart usually felt like wood when he prayed" and that most of his major victories came through "emotionless prayer." John Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard Movement, rarely "felt" anything. Yet he saw amazing answers to his prayers for healing. My personal experience is that there has been no relationship between my feelings and God's responses.
- No wonder it is hard to pray.We are trained in America to be self-reliant from childhood on, and to depend upon nobody. Our sinful pride gives good old American self-reliance a boost by demanding independence, especially from God. In addition, there is nothing Satan wants to prevent more than us praying. An old nursery rhyme states: "Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees." With all the opposition we face from our own flesh, from the world and from the enemy, is it any wonder that we are often not "in the mood" to pray?
When you are in the mood, pray!
When you are not in the mood, pray!
As one English pastor put it, "When you cannot pray as you would, pray as you can!"
