Changing Prayer Habits

Andrew Murray noticed the universal lack of an adequate prayer life. Although everywhere he went people confessed, “We pray too little!” they seemed to fear that because of work pressure and the force of habit it was almost impossible to change.

But Murray insisted that God’s call to much prayer need not be a burden nor a cause of continual self-condemnation. In his book The Ministry of Intercessory Prayer, he said that we often attach a limited meaning to the word “grace.” Grace actually gives us strength every moment for whatever God would have us be and do. The continued failure in our prayer life is often due to trusting in ourselves rather than in God’s grace. If we confess our failure and go down before in utter helplessness, God’s grace will give deliverance.

The Holy Spirit dwells within us as the Spirit of grace and supplication (Zechariah 12:10). As the Spirit of supplication He teaches us how to pray and for what to pray. He is the inspirer of all true prayer.

Since He indwells us to help us pray acceptably, when we cannot find words or when our words appear cold and feeble, we can trust the Holy Spirit to pray through us.

Our failure in prayer may be because we are forgetting the Spirit of intercession indwells within.

Dear Father, help me to be sensitive to Your Spirit and trust Him to pray through me.

“Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1).