As part of my fiscal year reading (September-August), I chose to read about prayer. Feeling impressed to think through the doctrine of prayer more, I dug in. In general, my prayer life is inconsistent and my prayers seem, at times, inarticulate and vague. All the more reason, then, to study, to think, to experience what God has for me.
In beginning my approach, I looked at a variety of resources. I looked at book lists, websites, even YouTube. I wanted to get an overview of what some of the best resources might be, and I wanted my year in this doctrine to matter. I wanted it to be beneficial, and I wanted to be deeper in my relationship with God. Perhaps I’ll write more about this process in a future post, but today I wanted to share some insights from my current reading.
I started Timothy Keller’s work – “Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God.” To put a fine point on it – it is incredible! I actually had to slow down and revisit sections in order to “marinate” in them longer. I have no doubt that this is a resource God is using to deepen my relationship with him. As an example, here is the latest fare that I have enjoyed.
In a chapter titled “Conversing with God,” Keller introduces this concept of prayer being tied to the Bible. For theological nuance – the strength or depth of my prayer life is correlated to my immersion in the Word of God. Prima facie, this is what you would expect. But, as I let that truth sink in a bit deeper, “marinate,” if you will, I saw with more clarity. I understood that the actual relational development that takes place, the connection that happens, between my reading in the Bible and my expression of this through prayer is unavoidably tied together. Keller puts it this way, “We speak only to the degree we are spoken to.” So, prayer rises out of immersion in the Scripture. As God speaks to us, so we speak back to him. Per Keller,
“We should ‘plunge ourselves into the sea’ of God’s language, the Bible. We should listen, study, think, reflect, and ponder the Scriptures until there is an answering response in our hearts and minds. It may be one of shame or of joy or of confusion or of appeal – but that response to God’s speech is then truly prayer and should be given to God. If the goal of prayer is a real, personal connection with God, then it is only by immersion in the language of the Bible that we will learn to pray, perhaps just as slowly as a child learns to speak.”
I often hear about how prayer is connecting with God, but I began to piece it together with more understanding. One of many elements is that having a relationship with someone is predicated on the depth of communication that takes place between us. I can be surface level in that communication or I can go deeper, accepting and allowing for vulnerability. In immersing myself in the Bible, I enter into this disclosure, this revelation of God himself to me. Then, as I read, and as I converse, this elicits prayer from me. It’s often why, when people are gathered to pray and you hear someone pray in such a personal, deep way, you instinctively know that they have “been with God.” By the very prayer itself, you know they spend time with God, they have a life that is immersed in Him.
The parallel seems obvious, and it works much like our other relationships. Friends have deep friendships because they share their life with one another. They “immerse” themselves in “reading the pages” of their friend’s life, and then they converse, deeply, in turn with one another. The same is true for husbands and wives. When you feel like you’re living with a room mate, you can be sure that, among other considerations, you’ve stopped “immersing” yourself in the “reading of your spouses life.” If communication is shallow, confusing, banal, or untethered, you’ve not been immersing yourself in the relationship.
My students face this constantly. I recently asked them why they felt like dating was exciting? They looked at me horrified. Once we got over that initial shock of a teacher asking about dating, they said: “well, because you talk to one another.” Right, but its more than that. You disclose, you “reveal” yourself more to a person, and as you “reveal” and they “reveal” then excitement builds because you are building a relationship, and you talk endlessly for hours. But, at some point, someone pulls back on the “revealing.” A boundary emerges that one or both parties refuse to cross. The relationship lessens in strength because the communication lessened in depth and frequency. Likewise, this seems to happen in relationship with God. We need a discipline of “immersion” in the Bible, so that our relationship with God is strengthened. As God speaks to us, so then do we speak to him, in prayer, in this wonderful experience where we are known deeply, and fully, and where we find the joy and ability to say and express our hearts. The quality of the relationship being so strong that discipline turns to desire, and prayer becomes the great joy and pleasure of one’s life.
In reading this section from Keller’s book, I was incredibly encouraged. I felt like, for the first time, I gained incredible insight into the point and experience of prayer. To be sure, there are times when my prayer life seems difficult, that there is a struggle, though I am immersing myself in the reading of my Bible. But to get clarity on the relational aspect, and to see and be reminded again of the essential connection between the reading of the Word and prayer has been a wonderful gift of grace. I’m happy to have shared this with you today, and hope that it challenges and encourages you in your own relationship with God.
Evangelosophy 