Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live. — Psalm 116:2 (ESV)

I struggle with prayer. Of all the spiritual disciplines, I find this the most difficult. I’ve often felt guilty about my prayer life. For all the times I promised to pray for someone, and then got busy and forgot. Or when I spent my quiet time studying the Bible (which I find the easiest of the spiritual disciplines), and crowded out any time to pray. Or for the fact that my first response to any crisis has always been what can I do ~ not how can I pray. 

When I think about why I find it hard to pray, I can find a number of reasons. I’ve always been a driven person, so I’m quick to jump into action ~ and prayer doesn’t feel very active. I also like quick results ~ and answers to prayers rarely happen immediately. I’m afraid I won’t pray correctly ~ that somehow I’ll get it wrong and frustrate God. And it’s easy for me to believe God is so busy taking care of the world, He doesn’t have time for me. 

But, as is often the case, I overthink my prayer struggle. The main reason I struggle with prayer is because I have an enemy who wants to keep me from it. Consider the following Scripture:

Because he inclined his ear to me,
     therefore I will call on him as long as I live. (Psalm 116:2)

In Psalm 116 the psalmist gives thanks to God for having rescued him from a difficult situation (Psalm 116:3-6). In the verse cited above, he gives us a beautiful picture of what happens when we pray. God inclines His ear to us. In order to hear us better, God actually bends down and turns His head toward us. Prayer places us in the presence of God.

Satan has always been on a mission to separate people from God. So he will use whatever works to keep us from praying. Insecurity over my ability to pray, distractions, and busyness can easily hinder my prayer life. But I’m learning prayer isn’t about doing it correctly or saying the right words. It’s about staying in the presence of God. And as I shared in a previous post (you can read it here), God works on a different timetable than we do. He always has time to hear our prayers. 

Thankfully, I’ve grown to understand prayer as our way to stay connected with God. Sometimes my prayer can resemble a text message ~ a quick word to share good news, request help, or voice a concern. Other times prayer can take the form of a longer conversation ~ similar to a coffee date with a friend. Prayer can be a time of celebration, or it can be a time to pour out my hurting heart and to seek guidance. But no matter the circumstances, it encourages me to know God listens intently to my words. He is never too busy, and my concerns are never too small to interest Him.

I love how God’s attentiveness caused the psalmist to want to pray to Him for the rest of his life. Like the psalmist, I know my prayers matter to God, and this makes me want to pray all the more.

Lord, thank you for being so attentive to our prayers. Help us resist the ways Satan tries to hinder us from praying. As we draw close to You through prayer, may we stay in Your presence throughout our lives. In Jesus’ name, Amen.