Praying is quite a challenge. As Christians, we know we are called to pray, yet we don't. So we feel guilty about our lack of praying. We've grown cynical as we've lost our childlike faith. We've developed spiritual ADD, as we're constantly distracted by buzzing smartphones, demands at work and home, and much more. So when it comes to praying, it's tempting and easy to just give up and say a short prayer before dinner.... that is even if we know what prayer is.
The gospel has a grand promise: that Jesus is making all things new, including us! The spiritual practice of praying has a big role. Praying is restorative. It is meant to be embodied, and we need to immerse ourselves in prayer. The Apostle Paul put it this way: pray unceasingly.
The Daily Prayer Project, created by my friend Joel Littlepage, is meant to help us grow in a praying life. (We've used one or two in our worship liturgies as well.)
It is important to tell the truth about the state of things because God meets us in our confession and repentance. Indeed, a life struggling with prayerlessness is not a "Christless soul," but a heart that, under the influence of God's Spirit, is yearning for a deeper communion with the Father and the Son. That same Spirit "helps us in our weakness," says the scriptures. "For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God," (Romans 8:25–27 ESV). Thanks be to God!
The Daily Prayer Project begins with the recognition of the difficulty of living a life of prayer today and seeks a better model of prayer together as the Body of Christ."
You can sign up to participate in the Daily Prayer Project here. You'll receive two emails every day, a morning prayer and an evening prayer respectively. So whenever you open your email in the morning, you have a written prayer to guide you. What you'll discover is this: as you pray through these prayers, your life will push you further into this task.