Prayer Mentoring With Bill Hybels (#1)

One of the best books I have read on prayer is called  Too Busy Not To Pray by Bill Hybels. Here are a few tidbits from the book.

Prayer is a bridge from despair to hope.

Prayerless people cut themselves off from God’s peace and from his prevailing power, and a common result is that they feel overwhelmed, overrun, beaten down, pushed around, and defeated by a world operating with a take-no-prisoners approach.

People who are serious about something always make room for it in their schedules. If prayer is important to you, then you’ll find time to do it.

God doesn’t want us to pile up impressive phrases. He doesn’t want us to use words without thinking about their meaning. He wants us to talk to him as to a friend or father – authentically, reverently, personally, earnestly.

I can write about prayer, you can read about prayer…but sooner or later you have to fall to your knees and just plain pray. Then, and only then, will you begin to operate in the vein of God’s miracle-working ways.

Confession is probably the most neglected area of personal prayer.

When I lump all my sins together and confess them en masse, I neglect to feel the pain or embarrassment or shame that should be elicited in me.

We don’t take confession seriously enough. If we did, our lives would be radically different.

When I pray, I’m not just telling God my problems, but rather I’m turning over my biggest concerns to him. It’s only when I’ve put them in his capable hands that I can go about my day in his strength and freedom.

There are two main principles I’ve picked up over the years as they pertain to cultivating the type of faith that moves mountains. The first is this: Faith comes by looking at God, not at the mountain. The second is this: God gives us faith as we walk by his side.

How do you pray a prayer so filled with faith that it can move a mountain? By shifting your focus from the size of your mountain to the sufficiency of the Mountain Mover and then stepping forward in obedience.

The most common cause of unanswered prayer is prayerlessness.

If you’re tolerating sin in your life, my friend, don’t waste your breath praying unless it’s a prayer of confession.

Most of us are far too busy for our own spiritual good.

Authentic Christianity is a supernatural walk with a living, dynamic, communicating God.

The heart and soul of the Christian life is learning to hear God’s voice and then developing the courage to do what he asks us to do.

If your life is rushing in many directions at once, you are incapable of the kind of deep, unhurried prayer that is vital to the Christian walk.

Some good stuff. My guess is that for you, just as for me, there were a few of these that immediately hit home. You might take some time and do a little prayer life inventory and then create an action plan to move forward.

I’m just sayin’!