5 Things Prayer Shifts in Your Heart

5 Things Prayer Shifts in Your Heart

Have you ever been going about your life and suddenly God seems to speak to you through a variety of different ways? A song. A devotional book. A friend. A sermon. It seems like He is saying the same thing through all of this. 

I’ve had this happen to me several times in my life but really for the past year I’ve read and seen and heard about one thing. 

Prayer. 

The Importance of Prayer

I am quick to tell people I am praying for them, but lately I’ve realized that praying for people is something that is powerful, personal, and builds patience. 

There is power in our prayer. I can’t take that lightly or think that it is the least I can do. It is the best thing I can do. 

Prayer is personal. We have to know the person. Think about that person. Be involved in their life. I need to know what is going on in their lives. 

Prayer builds patience. We might think patience has to do with difficult people and surely we need patience for those types of people. But really patience is a muscle we stretch and grow when we have to wait. Prayer helps us build that in our hearts. 

How this looks in my life is still forming and shaping. But I know that holding onto these truths helps me keep practicing prayer. I’ve seen that prayer is shifting my heart in ways I never thought or imagined. These five things prayer has shifted in my heart. 

5 Things Prayer Has Shifted

1. Quiet is my companion. Since my kids have been going to school my house is much quieter. I have one daughter at home, but she is a super quiet person. As I sit in my favorite chair and pray each morning in the quiet. I’ve come to love those quiet times. 

2. Focus is hard to find. I’ve had to put my phone in a different room. I can’t even have it beside me when I pray. Focus is super hard these days and I need to not be distracted. Even with my phone out of the room I struggle with focusing. It takes deep discipline to focus in prayer. 

3. There is an unending list of people to pray. I think that sometimes I will miss someone, but I’ve found God brings to mind those who need prayer. I simply think of those around me and in my family. In reality, I could pray for hours with all of the requests that are on my heart. 

4. God feels closer when I pray. When I’m quiet, disciplined, and focused on God and His praiseworthiness I sense He is near. He is always near and He is always close but it seems I can sense Him better when I’m involved in talking with Him. 

5. Everything in my life will try and pull me away from praying. The discipline of prayer will be hard fought. We must not give up. I find that everything from distractions to emergencies to wayward thoughts keep me from prayer, but it is worth fighting those things. 

As I pray I build up my patience and I live in the power of that connection to God. May we always strive to improve our prayer life.