Editor’s Note: You can read the first article in this series here.
The Starting Point
Being disciplined in prayer has many benefits for the Christian. Before we discuss one of the primary benefits, we need to explain what we mean by being disciplined in prayer.
In our last article, we discussed the importance of having a right heart before God when praying. Being disciplined in prayer is having self-control to prioritize something that you know is important, not begrudgingly going through the motions to check a box. To have a vibrant prayer life, we must start with a heart that seeks to honor God, not one that feels bound by duty to speak with him.
When approached with a right heart attitude, one of the primary benefits of a regular and consistent prayer life is a deeper relationship with God.
Prayer is Vital to Your Relationship with God
Communication is a critical part of any relationship. If you asked me how my wife is doing and I said: “I’m not sure. I haven’t really talked to her much lately.” You would probably ask what I meant.
“Well, I talked to her for a few minutes on Wednesday, but it was in a rush, because I was busy. And then when I was talking to her, I was just telling her the things I needed from her. I spoke with her the week before for a little bit, but, again, it was just going over things I wanted from her.”
If that was my response, you would rightly conclude that my relationship with her was not going very well. As Christians, our relationship with God should be our most important relationship. We need to be in constant communion with him to grow our relationship with him. I love this quote by John Newton:
Indeed, a person who lives in the exercise of faith and love, and who finds by experience that it is good for him to draw near to God, will not need to be told how often he must pray, any more than how often he must converse with an earthly friend. Those whom we love, we love to be much with.
Spending Time with God
Throughout the gospels we see the example of Jesus making time to pray to spend time with God:
And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.
Mark 1:35
Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray.
Mark 6:45-46
If Jesus made time to be in communion with the father, how much more should we? The more we know about the word of God, the more we should be driven in prayer to God. As Martyn Lloyd-Jones has said:
The ultimate test of my understanding of the scriptural teaching is the amount of time I spend in prayer. As theology is ultimately the knowledge of God, the more theology I know, the more it should drive me to seek to know God. Not to know “about” Him but to know Him! If all my knowledge does not lead me to prayer there is something wrong somewhere.
Worshiping God and Giving Thanks
We see many examples in scripture of prayer being a form of worship to God. For example, the prayers of the saints are like incense rising before God:
And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Rev 5:8
Prayer is a way for us to show our gratitude to God:
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thess 5:18
Our love for God overflows in our prayers through worship and thanksgiving.
Sharing Our Hearts
In the Psalms, we see that prayer is a way for us to be dependent on God by pouring out our hearts to him. For example:
Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!
Ps 4:1
Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint.
Ps 61:1-2
God is an ever present help in time of need. He loves when we cry out to him for help when we’re overwhelmed.
The Privilege of Special Access
It’s an incredible privilege to be able to speak to the King of the Universe. It’s mind-boggling to think that we have access to him whenever we want.
On an earthly level, not just anyone can get an audience with the President. If you showed up at the White House and tried walking into the Oval Office, you wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms. Yet, the children of the President always have special access to him.
There’s a famous picture of JFK with his young son, John, in the Oval Office that I really like. JFK is sitting at his desk engaged in a meeting and his son is playing at his feet under his desk. If you or I tried to climb under the President’s desk, the Secret Service would probably ensure that we were leaving the Oval Office in a body bag. Yet, for a child of the President, that behavior is welcomed.
Through our union with Christ, we’re now children of God and we’re invited to come before him any time we want. It’s an incredible privilege to nurture that relationship with God through prayer.
Prayer is a means to commune with God, but it is also a means of strengthening your spiritual health. In our next article, we’ll look at the effect that being disciplined in prayer has on your spiritual health.
