I’m writing this to support a Facebook Live video on what to do during your quiet time. I have another post, 10 tools to help you read the Bible, that I’m also referencing in the video. My hope is to get resources and ideas into your hands so that when you feel stuck in your devotional life, you have inspiration to keep going.
1. Silent agreement
You can silently echo the prayer of someone else, whether watching a prayer meeting online, agreeing with a prayer on the radio, your own church, or group of friends. I don’t mean literally echo. You can add your own words or Amen.
2. Corporate intercession
This involves praying for others, your church, family, friends, city, nation or anyone who is on your heart or the focus of prayer, out loud, so people can hear you. Praying loudly or emotionally does not make your prayers more effective, but it can stir the souls of others and help inspire agreement. That last statement is not supported by Scripture; just a personal observation.
3. Private/devotional intercession
Similar to corporate intercession except it’s done in the privacy of your (metaphorical) prayer closet.
4. Pray the Bible
Whenever I pray corporately, I try to launch my prayer from a scripture verse and weave several supporting scriptures throughout. This ensures that your prayer is rooted in truth, because believe it or not, it’s possible to pray selfish or unwise prayers (or did you think God really wanted you to marry that boy in third grade?). Praying Biblical prayers ensures your words align with God’s heart. A great resource for Biblical prayers is here.
5. Sing your prayers
The vast majority of my Biblical knowledge comes from the time I spent in the House of Prayer. Spending time meditating on who God is as shown through His Word grounded me and has kept me through the difficult seasons of life. One thing we would do in the House of Prayer is sing the Bible and sing our prayers. It is easiest to do this with instrumental music in the background, especially if you don’t play an instrument. Even if you don’t have a great singing voice, this expression of creativity will unlock your heart and help you connect with God.
6. Contemplative prayer
This might be my favorite, mainly because it is designed to help you encounter God. Like Biblical meditation, this may be mistaken for a New Age practice, but this is an ignorant mistake. Meditation was prescribed by the Bible long before New Age was a thing.
2 Corinthians 3:18 says, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
The idea of contemplative prayer is to become still and quiet and focus on God. That’s it. I will sometimes focus on the image of Christ on the cross or the Revelation 4 scene of Him on the throne. This is harder than it seems. You will want to start with a few minutes at a time and gradually increase it.
7. List prayer
This is an effective way of praying for everyone you love or whom God has placed on your heart. This is a great app for helping you consistently go through your prayer list.
8. Prayer calendar
This beautiful prayer calendar is a great way to teach your children to pray, but it works for adults, too!
9. Prayer walking
I don’t what it is about walking and praying, but it stirs me up with spiritual desire. I like to pray in tongues when I do it. You can prayer walk around the block, around the country (like my friend Andy who walked around the island of Japan), or just walk in your house. The activity helps engage your whole self while praying (and keeps you from falling asleep).
10. Tears
The Bible says that God keeps our tears in a bottle. It also says that He is near to the broken and contrite. So sometimes you may not have the words to pray, but God can hear your heart, and your tears can touch His.
I hope that trying some of these methods will help you grow in your faith and become more rooted in God. Even if your prayer life has been inactive for a while, it’s never too late to start.