And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert, and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:18
“To pray unceasingly, as Paul asks us to do, would be completely impossible if it meant to think constantly about God… To pray, I think, does not mean to think about God in contrast to thinking about other things, or to spend time with God instead of spending time with other people. Rather it means to think and live in the presence of God. As soon as we begin to divide our thoughts into thoughts about God and thoughts about people and events, we remove God from our daily life to a pious little niche where we can think pious thoughts and experience pious feelings.
Although it is important and even indispensable for the spiritual life to set apart time for God and God alone, prayer can only become unceasing prayer when all our thoughts – beautiful or ugly, high or low, proud or shameful, sorrowful or joyful – can be thought in the presence of God. Thus, converting our unceasing thinking into unceasing prayer moves us from a self-centered monologue to a God-centered dialogue.
To pray unceasingly is to lead all our thoughts out of their fearful isolation into a fearless conversation with God. Jesus’ life’s a life lived in the presence of God His Father. Jesus kept nothing, absolutely nothing, hidden from His Father’s face. Jesus’ joys, fears, His hopes, and His despairs were always shared with His Father.”
Henri J. M. Nouwen in The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life, compiled and edited by Wendy Wilson Greer (New York: Crossroad, 1999) 107-108.
Would you describe your prayer like as a self-centered monologue to a God-centered dialogue?
I found it fascinating how Nouwen deconstructs the way we wrongly tend to approach prayer as thinking about God. Instead, he shows us how to invite God into every moment of every day, thinking and living in His presence.
I see how this becomes both indispensable for the spiritual life and our experience of intimacy with God.
And I notice how this will shape our generosity in exponential ways. Imagine God telling us to do things as a result of what we see with Him. He will undoubtedly nudge us to move toward brokenness with compassion and help.
Many have said they have appreciated my focus on prayer this. I hope that is true for you.
Why do it? In shifting from President & CEO to Founder, I actually think my best years are still yet ahead of me. But I need discernment to develop new rhythms and to reach radical new levels of generosity.
Join me. I call it my journey from “fearful isolation into a fearless conversation with God.”