By Danae Templeton
E.M. Bounds said in the Power Through Prayer, “The men (and women) who have done the most for God in this world have been early on their knees. He who fritters away the early morning, its opportunity and freshness, in other pursuits than seeking God will make poor headway seeking him the rest of the day.”
There’s probably no more challenging discipline in the Christian life than developing a powerful and consistent prayer life. We know that to really make a difference in our lives and the world around us, we need to be on our knees. As moms, as wives, as Christ-followers, and as ministry leaders, we need to guard that sacred time every day where we can come away into our prayer closets to commune with the living God. But how?
Jesus modeled this throughout His earthly life. He was continually drawing away to be alone with God. And it didn’t always look the same every day, which encourages us as busy women. Mark 1:35 says, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” In Matthew 14:23, Jesus “went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.” And in Luke 6:12, it says “one of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray and spent the night praying to God.” Jesus found different times in His busy schedule that worked. And so can we. It’s not so much the time and place, but that there is a time and place you can find for prayer. And it will probably change throughout the different seasons of your life.
Maybe the morning isn’t your freshest time of the day—maybe it’s during your kid’s naptime, or on your way to work in the solitude of the car, or before you lay your head on your pillow at night. You need to figure out what time of the day is best for you and make it happen. It may mean doing something as simple as writing it on your calendar every day, so you can keep your appointment with God just like you would meeting a friend for coffee. God desires to meet with you in prayer, to hear your voice, and for you to listen to His voice.
Because we at Just Between Us (JBU) understand how hard it can be, we’ve put together all kinds of articles to help you in your pursuit of going deeper with God through prayer. Spend some time checking them out. Maybe pick one or two, begin applying the ideas, and watch your prayer life grow. You won’t be sorry to have been on your knees!