Thoughts On Prayer

Dear Friends,

I wanted to take this occasion to say I hope you all had a blessed Christmas observance (despite what was for many here in the U.S. a frigid weekend). I also wanted to take this occasion to wish you the best in the upcoming year. In fact, my "thought" for today is sent with the hope that it might guide you in the year to come. It includes four separate helpful insights on prayer that I have found extremely beneficial and have frequently shared with others. People often struggle with prayer if they pray and then forget about it until the next scheduled time of prayer. That's where these thoughts by Brother Lawrence, Jonathan Edwards, William H. Hewitson, and Andrew Bonar are helpful. Enjoy.

"The most holy and necessary practice in our spiritual life is the presence of God. That means finding constant pleasure in His divine company, speaking humbly and lovingly with him in all seasons, at every moment, without limiting the conversation in any way... He does not ask much of us, merely a thought of Him from time to time, a little act of adoration, sometimes to ask for His grace, sometimes to offer Him your sufferings, at other times to thank Him for the graces, past and present, which He has bestowed on you, or in the midst of your troubles to take solace in Him as often as you can. Lift up your heart to Him during your meals and in company; the least little remembrance will always be the most pleasing to Him. One need not cry out loudly; He is nearer to us than we think. The time of business does not differ with me from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were on my knees.... It is possible for us to live in the very sense of the Lord's presence, under even the most difficult circumstances. If you and I are going to enjoy the peace of paradise during this life we must become accustomed to a familiar, humble, and very affectionate conversation with the Lord Jesus." Brother Lawrence (1614-1691), The Practice of the Presence of God

"My mind was greatly fixed on divine things; almost perpetually in the contemplation of them. I spent most of my time thinking of divine things, year after year, often walking alone in the woods, and solitary places, for meditation, for speaking my thoughts aloud when alone, in prayer and converse with God. And it was always my manner to sing forth my contemplations. I was almost always in ejaculatory prayer, wherever I was. Prayer seemed as natural to me as the breath by which the inward burnings of my heart could vent." Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), Memoirs

"In our mutual intercourse and conversation -- amidst all the busiest scenes of our pilgrimage -- we may be moving to and fro on the rapid wing of prayer, of mental prayer. That prayer which lays the whole burden of the heart on a single sigh. A sigh breathed in the Spirit, though inaudible to all around us but God, may sanctify every conversation, every event in the history of the day... Prayer will be fatiguing to flesh and blood if uttered aloud and sustained long. Oral prayer, and prayer mentally ordered in words, though not uttered aloud, no believer can engage in without ceasing. But there is an undercurrent of prayer that may run continually under the stream of our thoughts and never weary us. Such prayer is the silent breathing of the Spirit of God, who dwells in our hearts (Rom. 8:9, and Col. 3:16). It is the temper and habit of the spiritual mind. It is the pulse of our life which is hidden with Christ in God."
William H. Hewitson (1812-1850), Hewitson's Life

"I find that unless I keep up short prayers every day, throughout the whole day, at intervals, I lose the spirit of prayer."
Andrew Bonar (1810-1892), Diary, 7th October, 1860

Reading the words of these men has helped me more than I can say, because they helped me understand what Paul surely meant when he said, "Pray without ceasing..." (I Thess. 5:17) and "Pray in the Spirit at all times with all kinds of prayers..." (Eph. 6:18). The men above teach how it is possible (even amidst the necessary activities of our day) to be praying. They tell us how we can enter into prayer, and never really leave prayer behind, "until we enter into the next scheduled time of prayer." We do it by keeping an inaudible undercurrent of prayer running continually under the stream of our thoughts throughout the day and into the night (Hewitson). Praise, song, thanks, petitions, seeking His assistance, being aware of His presence, and simply remembering Him as we go throughout the busiest of days is prayer. It really could change your 2023.


In Praise of the God who is Always Present, Knows All, Hears All, and Sees All, Pastor Jeff