Persistence in prayer
Here's how to make a subtle shift to change everything
The secret to making your prayer life a priority is to practice being persistently consistent.
And the way you go about doing this is by:
Praying often
Praying graciously (towards yourself and towards God)
And this is where I have to admit something to you, my readers…
…I suck at being persistent.
I am a starter, but I’m not much of a finisher.
I love to get new things going, dig in, and keep up with it for a good while…
…until my passions shift or things become too boring for me.
This is a hard lesson for me.
So, let me just say this right out of the gate: I fully understand if you find creating a new habit or trying to be persistent with a task difficult.
I’m right there with you.
But, this is important because persistence is “doing something despite opposition or difficulty.”
And, for our prayer lives, I want to point out the elephant in the room.
Prayer is hard because it sometimes feels like nothing is happening or changing or, worse yet, things are only getting worse.
And this is exactly why we need to pray graciously towards ourself and God.
Things are going to be difficult.
There will 1,000% be opposition.
But the key is to give yourself grace and mercy.
Even doing the bare minimum is better than doing nothing at all.
…
There are days with all of my work and jobs that I can only see my kids for a few spare minutes here and there…
…and those minutes mean the world.
And God feels the same way, even a minute or two in prayer and communication with God is better than none at all.
So, don’t beat yourself up for not dedicating more time in prayer, just pray.
And don’t get frustrated with God if things aren’t going your way (yet), just keep praying.
My prayer for today
Our Father, give us the grace to forgive ourselves and to forgive you as we try to build a relationship with you through persistent prayer. Jesus, open my eyes to the ways in which I can pray whenever it pops into my head. Spirit, give me more opportunities to pray, and to pray intentionally for myself and others. Amen.
Remember
The point of praying graciously is to give yourself the space needed to keep praying, even when you aren’t feeling it or when you are frustrated with God or your prayer life. Give yourself heaps of grace, friend.