You need to understand something powerful: daily prayer is not just important, it is essential to your life as a believer.
Without prayer, you are like a branch trying to survive without the vine.
Jesus said in John 15:5 , “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”
Daily prayer is how you abide in Him. It is how you stay connected to the very life source of your soul.
Prayer is your lifeline. It is your daily conversation with the God who created you, saved you, and loves you more than you can ever imagine. When you skip prayer, you cut yourself off from strength, wisdom, and peace. You open the door wide for fear, confusion, and temptation to walk right in.
You are called to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
That does not mean you must spend every second on your knees, but it does mean you live every moment with your heart turned toward Him. Daily prayer is how you start your day in His strength, how you walk through challenges with His wisdom, and how you lay your burdens down at His feet every night.
When you pray daily, you are not performing a ritual. What you are forming is a habit.
I went many years with many excuses for not setting aside a prescribe time for praying. I can tell you for sure that once I did-something definitely changed about me, my life and my circumstances.
It’s 7 days a week, in the morning for me. I don’t have a time on the clock. It’s before my day starts, sometimes after I read my bible, sometimes before.
I’m not good with appointments, so it’s always in the mornings. In fact, I’ve found I can’t, in good conscious, start my day with out my time with God anymore.
I try to sorta use the Lords Prayer, Matthew 6:9-13 as a guide line. I like to praise God first, then either confess my shortcomings or ask Him to reveal them to me. Then I start talking to God about my life, and what I thank Him for, and what I have to ask Him for.
I might pray 10 minutes, or I might pray 30 minutes or more.
I am trying to learn to shut up and listen.
You are stepping into the throne room of God Almighty. Think about that for a while, a lot of times. The absolute creator of everything cares about you deeply.
He loves you as an individual. He actually waits on you to come before Him, the creator of Heaven and Earth.
You are entering into a conversation with the One who holds the universe together and still cares intimately about every detail of your life.
Hebrews 4:16 invites you boldly,
“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
Daily prayer changes you. It softens your heart, sharpens your mind, strengthens your spirit, and aligns your will with God’s perfect will.
It builds intimacy with the Lord. It builds faith. It builds spiritual power that carries you through battles you did not even know were coming.
I talk out loud to God. He is my Father in Heaven. I am not afraid of God. I am His child. I speak to Him as I speak to anyone. Sometimes I apologize to Him for possibly being too forward. I think He likes that. Both, being forward from the confidence I have in Christ, and me apologizing. I think He smiles.
Neglecting daily prayer leaves you vulnerable, weak, and easily led astray. The devil would love nothing more than for you to stay too busy, too tired, or too distracted to pray. He knows that a praying Christian is a powerful Christian.
If you want victory in your life, if you want peace in your heart, if you want strength in your spirit, you cannot afford to neglect daily prayer. You must guard it like your life depends on it—because it does.
I must tell you, I hear other people pray. I do not think I am a good prayer. I’m not at all sure it’s important though, how I sound, or how my words compare to another. It’s me and my Father. However, I must tell you that I am sure a few minutes with your creator each and every day absoulutely changes your relationship. My prayer life, which isn’t that old, and probably isn’t that good, has, is, and does change my walk each and every day little by little.
Make prayer your daily habit. Make it your first thought in the morning and your last breath at night. Talk to Him while you drive, while you work, while you cook, while you walk. He is listening. He is waiting. He is your Father, and He loves when you come to Him.
Will you make daily prayer your non-negotiable starting today?