Several biblical practices are indispensable to a mature, joy-filled Christian life, such as:
Bible intake, prayer, worship, fellowship with believers, evangelism, and doing good works.
You can probably think of others.
I’ve been following Christ for about 20 years, and I can tell you that of those practices, Bible intake is my favorite. It’s what I enjoy most and what I spend most of my time doing, compared to the rest.
And prayer is what I’ve found to be the hardest, and what I’ve spent the least time doing.
I read a short book recently that has had a profound impact on my desire to pray. And by following the simple teachings of this book, I have seen an increase in how much time I pray and how much joy I have while praying.
The book is entitled Praying the Bible, by Donald Whitney.
You can get a copy here:
https://www.amazon.com/Praying-Bible-Donald-S-Whitney-ebook/dp/B00XWDR2JO
I could tell you a lot about how Don Whitney has helped my prayer life. I would call it a spiritual breakthrough. Many others have had the same experience.
“This little book is explosive and powerful. Read it ready to experience a great step forward in your walk with Christ and in your commitment to prayer.”
R. Albert Mohler
“It’s so simple it will shock you and, at the same time, invigorate a renewed prayer life with your God.”
Bryan Chappell
“If you are looking for a book to teach you not only to pray but also to invigorate your intimacy with God through prayer, this is the one.”
Miguel Núñez
“This is a particularly helpful tool for those of us who often struggle to know what and how to pray or whose minds tend to wander during private prayer.”
Nancy Leigh DeMoss
What these four people have written above is precisely what has happened to me. When I read these reviews on Amazon today, I thought, “Ditto. Yep, me too. I could have written that.”
Take that last one, by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. My biggest obstacle to prayer is my own wandering mind. Here I am, talking to the Creator of the universe, who wants me to pour out my heart to Him, anytime, anywhere, day or night. And the next thing I know, I’m thinking about some trivial thing on my to-do list.
What’s up with that?
Why do I have the attention span of a gnat?
Because of what I learned in this book, when I follow the simple teachings presented here, that problem disappears. And God gets the credit for providing yet another gifted Bible teacher to shower me with His grace.
And yes, I have been “shocked” by this change. I just assumed for years that, well, “I guess that’s just the way I am; oh well . . .” Now I realize that it doesn’t have to be that way – and I am overwhelmed by God’s grace.
Obviously, I’m giving this book two thumbs up. All 85 pages.
Here’s a series of short YouTube videos in which Don Whitney explains the main points of Praying the Bible (see THIS WEEK’S FREEBIES below for details):
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx9rWL0agBR0fIt8PfcPCcH6RaBUowZKg
After you’ve read the book (and/or watched the videos) and put this method into practice (or if you already have), let me know how it helped you by leaving a comment below.
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