Improve Your Prayer Life by Learning From Jesus
Spiritual Questions with Scriptural Answers.
One of the most important areas in a Christian’s life is his or her prayer life. Truthfully, Christians have an incredible opportunity to “approach the throne of grace in time of need,” and yet we fail to pray as often as we should (Heb. 4:15-16).
The Bible teaches that God’s eyes are over the righteous and His ears are open to their prayers, but sometimes we don’t utilize this incredible blessing (1 Pet. 3:12).
Paul says that we are to “pray without ceasing” and “continue earnestly in prayer,” but too many times we become distracted with the things of this world and do not make time for prayer (1 Thess. 5:17; Col. 4:2).
With this article, we begin a series of lessons on how we can improve our prayer lives. This writer wants to improve his prayer life and hopes these articles can be beneficial to all who read.
Where to Start.
If you want to improve in any area of your life, there are two things you can do to accomplish your goal: First, recognize your need to improve and then learn from someone who does it at a high level.
As a high school baseball coach, this writer is always trying to learn and improve. There are a number of coaches this writer respects and strives to learn from their approach/style.
As a preacher, this writer loves to listen to great preachers to learn from their style, mannerisms, gestures, etc.
As we strive to improve our prayer lives, why not look to the One Who displayed the greatest prayer life: Jesus Christ.
Jesus Was a Man of Prayer.
Prayer was extremely important to Him and He certainly loved communicating with His Father. Mark records the following about Jesus’ prayer life: “Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed” (Mark 1:35). There is a lot to unpack from this passage.
First, notice that Jesus went out “in the morning.” Prayer was so important to Him that He started His day with it showing that prayer was a priority (cf. Psalm 5:1-3). Also, notice that the Holy Spirit emphasized that Jesus had “risen a long while before daylight.” This phrase shows that Jesus sacrificed more sleep to have alone time with the Father. No doubt, Jesus needed rest because He was extremely active but desired the time in prayer more.
Second, notice that He departed to a solitary place. In our lives, there are so many distractions and so much “noise” that it is difficult to truly get away and find quiet time. Jesus needed to be alone and made preparations for it to happen.
Third, notice the simple phrase, “there He prayed.” How amazing would it have been to have heard that prayer? Thankfully, we have prayers recorded in the New Testament and we can read the words while picturing the scene with the mind’s eye (Ex. John 17).
Are We a People of Prayer?
As we consider this passage and what Jesus did, we now want to ask ourselves how we measure up. Is prayer a priority to us or is it just something we do before eating a meal or just before bed? Would we be willing to sacrifice a few extra minutes of sleep for more time in prayer?
What about the place? Do we seek a quiet place and make time for God? Maybe your quiet place is in your car going back and forth to work. Maybe late at night works better than early in the morning.
Whatever the case may be, if prayer is important to us and we want to improve we will make it a priority and be willing to sacrifice.
Jesus’ prayer life was amazing and sets the perfect example for us to follow.
His own disciples sought help in prayer (Luke 11:1) so we should as well.
As we begin this journey of hopefully improving our prayer lives, may we remember Jesus’ example as He made prayer a priority in His life making time and making sacrifices to communicate to His Father.
Drew Suttles is a minister for the Quitman church of Christ in Quitman, Georgia, and one of my best friends in this world. They live-stream all their Bible classes and sermons on their YouTube channel.
Drew also hosts the “Weathering the Storm” podcast on the Scattered Abroad Network. Drew talks about facing life’s challenges as a child of God. His podcast will be a blessing to your life.
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Prayer is our lifeline.