Teaching Summer 1987

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A few weeks ago I was asked to address The Evangelical Alliance Mission (TEAM) headquarters staff as a part of their observance of the National Day of Prayer. The annual call to prayer is one of the positive things occurring in our country and, in my opinion, deserves everyone's support. I eagerly accepted.

Usually I don't have much trouble finding something to say. But as this day approached, I found myself struggling with the subject of prayer; more specifically, I found myself wrestling with a lifelong struggle to master the disciplines of prayer. I had to admit that the dissonance between my understanding of prayer and my personal experience with prayer was too great to sustain anything more than trite, tiresome words.

In the end, I decided to be candid, confess my struggles, and share what I'm currently learning about prayer. It's pretty basic-concepts I should have incorporated into my life long ago. Had I done so, my life would have been less stressful and more productive.

First of all, I'm learning that prayer is so much more than talking to God. For me, the most important dimension of prayer has become being with God. Since childhood I've sensed his presence with me, but only recently, in prayer, have I learned how to be with him and enjoy his presence.

For years my prayer times were filled with what now seems to be compulsive, incessant babbling-hasty confessions of transgressions, obligatory phrases of praise and appreciation, and a laundry list of requests interspersed with appeals for deliverance and relief. To be with God-share silence with him, delight in his company-felt awkward and contrived. Short prayers (thirty minutes was a long time) were the order of the day. Often they were the order of the week.

The pivotal ...

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