A praying life

Last year in our small group we read a book called, A Praying Life, by Paul Miller. Outside of God's word I think God has used this book to stretch me, grow me, and remind me of my need for him more than any other book thus far in my life. I mean every time I pick this book up and reread sections or chapters, the spirit smacks me again with huge truths about God and my need for him. I think everyone should read this book so go to amazon and buy it! :) With that being said I want to share an excerpt that is stirring my soul this morning.

"We don't need a praying life because that is our duty. That would wear thin quickly. We need time to be with our Father everyday because every day our hearts and the hearts of those around us are overgrown with weeds. We need to reflect on our lives and engage God with the condition of our souls and the souls he has entrusted to our care or put in our paths. In a fallen world, these things do not come automatically. "

Those words blow me away. It blows me away to think about how important it is to be in prayer, not out of duty, but out of necessity in this fallen world. It reminds me that first, I need to recognize my NEED for prayer so that I'm not spending time in prayer out of "duty". Then it reminds me that I need a plan or a structure for how I'm going to get time to pray. I love the last line, that's why I made it bold! I really need to remember that prayer doesn't come automatically. I need to plan for it. Just like I schedule other things that are important to me into my day. The reality is we as humans make time for what we value (you might disagree as you read that, but think about it...friends, family, shopping, internet, working out, church, TV etc.) We don't make time for prayer because we don't value it. God help me, help us!