Is prayer part of your daily routine, or is it reserved just for seasons of trial? One of the most important factors in handling difficult times is to be a person of prayer before crisis hits. Here are a few reasons to keep up what I call “peacetime praying.”
1. Peacetime praying builds spiritual momentum.
Prayer brings God’s blessing and God’s provision. A praying person lives with the kind of spiritual momentum and favor that only consistent prayer can bring.
2. Peacetime praying produces spiritual intimacy.
Prayer brings you closer to God, and you’ll need all the intimacy with God you can get when life's storms break out. I’m sure this is partly why Paul encouraged us to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17 NASB). He knew firsthand the importance of storing up spiritual intimacy for difficult times of suffering.
3. Peacetime praying provides spiritual perspective.
Consider these lies: If you had been a better Christian, this never would have happened. You deserve the pain you’re feeling. God’s obviously forgotten about you. Have you ever heard any of these lies? I certainly have. And if I don’t have a healthy dose of spiritual perspective, I just might start believing them.
Peacetime praying girds my heart and mind with the spiritual truths I will need to make it through tough times. Here are a few suggestions to keep consistent prayer time with God:
1. Have a regular prayer time.
Don’t wonder when or if you’ll get to pray again. Have a set time for prayer and protect it. Be as committed to prayer as you are to meals.
2. Have a regular prayer place.
Don’t wonder where you’ll be able to find a quiet place for prayer. Build a location into your discipline of peacetime praying. When your set time for prayer rolls around, be unyielding about staying in your set place.
3. Have a regular prayer plan.
Be systematic about your conversations with God. I use my Bible as my daily prayer guide. I can open it on any day and have plenty to talk to God about. Should the Spirit choose to lead me to different subjects, I try to be sensitive and obedient to that. But when I sit down to talk with God, I know where I intend to go. It takes much of the guesswork and wasted time out of my precious moments with God.
