Prayer Mentoring with D.A. Carson (#2)

Here are a few lessons that Carson says he has learned from more mature believers: (pages 19-38)

1) Much praying is not done because we do not plan to pray…. Wise planning will ensure that we devote ourselves to prayer often, even if for brief periods: it is better to pray often with brevity than rarely but at length. But the worst option is simply not to pray – and that will be the controlling pattern unless we plan to pray. If we intend to change our habits, we must start he

2) Adopt practical ways to impede mental drift

– Vocalize your prayers. Articulate them. The energy devoted to expressing your thoughts in words and sentences will order and discipline your mind, and help deter meandering.

– Pray over the Scriptures.Tie your praying to your Bible reading.

– Journal your prayers.If you are writing your prayers you are not day dreaming.

3) Develop a system for your prayer lists... It is difficult to pray faithfully for a large spread of people and concerns without developing prayer lists that help you remember them.

4) Pray until you pray…That is Puritan advice. If we do this we eventually come to delight in God’s presence, to rest in His love, to cherish His will. In the Western world we urgently need this advice, for many of us in our praying are like nasty little boys who ring front door bells and run away before anyone answers.

My Comments: All of these are things that I need to pay attention to. But probably especially #4. Which one do you most need to incorporate into your prayer life?