“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV)

How do we take our desires, worries, requests, and words to God and make prayer a part of our daily lives? Any routine we create will take intentionality, strategy, and practice. Prayer may be a spiritual action, but it also requires our intellect and our time. 

When I walk with women through hopelessness and ask them about their prayers, they typically say one of two things: “I don’t know how to pray” or “I don’t know what to pray about.” Through the painful parts of our story, we often become hopeless and lose touch of what our hearts need. Our longings turn into loneliness. Our desires turn into despair. And we sink so deep in a valley, we can’t even find the words to pray to help get us through. So, we must identify what prayers our hearts need.

When I encourage people to pray, I mention a passage from Matthew 6.

“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” - Matthew 6:5–7 (NKJV)

God wants to meet with us in secret. He wants it to be just Him and us. He isn’t worried about you delivering that Oscar-award-winning prayer in front of everyone. In fact, He urges us to let go of the desire for people to look at us when we pray so we can look cool or super holy. 

Think about this: Find your secret place, and when you do, figure out when you’ll go there to meet Jesus. Then focus on what Paul tells us in Romans 12:12 to be steadfast in our prayers, patient in our tribulations, and rejoice in hope!

Scriptures for Prayer:

• 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
• Matthew 6:5-7
• Romans 12:12

For more information, go to tonijcollier.com/brave.