Questions to ask yourself about the discipline of prayer
Part of discipleship is understanding the necessity of the spiritual disciplines, and there’s no greater discipline than Prayer. Dr. Krejcir of Discipleship Tools writes about prayer in this way:
Prayer is not just a selfish wish list to get God to cater to our needs and whims; rather, it’s true purpose and the reason it is also a discipline is to shape us by what He has revealed, and to grow in faith, character, perseverance, and maturity.
No one would argue that a healthy prayer life is integral to a Christian’s life, but health is not just a matter of daily repetition. The same article from Discipleship Tools has a series of questions to ask yourself concerning prayer:
1. How would you define The Discipline of Prayer? Are you a person who naturally prays in all situations you face—from daily life to future activities for your own needs and those of others, too? If not, why not?
2. What part does prayer play in your relationships with church members, friends, coworkers, and family? If you see a need, do you first pray? If not, what do you do? What should you do?
3. How does prayerlessness counteract prayerfulness? What is the cost to the Kingdom of God when the church does not engage in prayer or teach and encourage its people to be people of prayer?
Personally, I know that far too often prayer is a secondary solution rather than my primary action. If any of these questions piqued your interest there are a few more and some other thoughts on prayer to ponder in the rest of the article.
