Learning to Pray with Ceasing

What’s our problem with prayer?

We sometimes think our problem is self-discipline.  I would pray more if I were more disciplined. 

Maybe for some, but I think for most of us the problem is not self-discipline, but self-reliance.  We don’t pray to God more because we either don’t see Him as the source of help or we don’t feel helpless enough without His support.

I think the one proof of that is how often we pray to ourselves.  We don’t have a problem with praying all the time, because we are doing it all the time.   

That is what worry is.

Worry is basically praying to yourself and it’s frustrating because you know yourself and that you can’t actually fix the problem the way you wish.

No one would say it takes self-discipline to worry more.  Worry comes naturally because self-reliance comes naturally.

When a temptation to worry comes up, you can view that temptation as an opportunity, instead of  praying to yourself over and over, you need to   start grabbing hold of those repetitive worried thoughts and transforming them into prayers.  And if you have a hard even doing that, then pray about that, but the point is, learn to use all those small and big opportunities to become anxious as opportunities for prayer and you are going to suddenly find yourself a whole lot more prayerful.

You are going to be praying when Paul says to be praying, all the time.