Prayer

My phone alarm goes off every afternoon at 1:05, serving as my daily reminder to pray for wisdom. The idea came from Mark Wessner, MB Seminary President, who chose the time because of its closeness to James 1:5 which says, "If anyone lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all and without finding fault, and it will be given to you." 

As this Scripture outlines, the first step toward acquiring wisdom is to ask for it. This implies, of course, an attitude of humility and dependence because we only ask for things we value and that are beyond our grasp. Praying for wisdom is an honest confession that greater insight and perspective is needed before we can act with proper understanding. This earnest request shows reverence for God from whom wisdom flows.

The wisest people I know are the same people who continually ask God for wisdom. And yet, those who need wisdom the most are the ones who despise it (Proverbs 1:7). This contrast goes beyond irony―it is the distinguishing mark between the foolish and the wise. The wise look beyond themselves, but the eyes of the foolish see only themselves.

Prayer is the foundation of wisdom, but there are additional steps we can take as well:  

Study the Bible

Wisdom flows from God's character and represents His knowledge and understanding. We encounter wisdom whenever we encounter God. Reading, reciting, and meditating on God's Word allows us to soak in God's thoughts so His perspective becomes our own.

The author of Proverbs 8 chooses to personify wisdom as the person of Lady Wisdom*. She raises her voice over the streets and invites people to listen to her instructions. Her words hold more value than choice gold or rare jewels (vv. 10-11). The implication of Lady Wisdom's call is to listen attentively. We do this by reading God's Word because God is the source of all wisdom.

How’s your prayer life?

If you’re like me, there’s room for improvement. I want to develop a lifestyle of prayer where I naturally worship, give thanks, and petition God throughout the day. How can we ignite our prayer life and move in a stronger direction? Here are four suggestions:

Try Some Different Approaches to Prayer

We sometimes need to shake up our usual approach to prayer to revitalize it. In her book Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices that Can Transform Us, Adele Calhoun describes several approaches to prayer that you might find helpful for reinvigorating your prayer life (I have included some of her ideas in my list below).

The prayer that Paul writes in the third chapter of his letter to the Ephesians is as inspirational as it is poetic: "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine..." It's commonly cited in benedictions and prayers, and yet it never seems to tire.  

The ability to not only do more, but immeasurably more is astonishing. But to do immeasurably more than can be imagined? This is, well, hard to imagine. Because our imagination is—theoretically—limitless. 

This reminds me of an amusing exchange between Luke Skywalker and Han Solo in A New Hope when the former tries to convince his reluctant partner to rescue Princess Leia who is scheduled to be terminated. Faced with the need to inspire immediate action, Luke appeals to Han's primary motivation:  

Luke: She's rich.
Han: Rich?
Luke: Rich, powerful. Listen, if you were to rescue her, the reward would be...
Han: What?
Luke: Well, more wealth than you can imagine!
Han: I don't know, I can imagine quite a bit!

My imagination can feel boundless about some things—tangible things like wealth, possessions, and experiences. But how often do I imagine more of Christ's power at work within me? How often do you or I pray for his glory to be made evident through the way that our lives reflect his kingdom? How often do we dream about what immeasurably more might mean in our lives and ministry? How often do we marvel at the sheer vastness of the possibilities? 

Perhaps it begins with mustering up more imagination about the things that matter most. 

Here's to more hope, more imagination, and more of Christ's power at work within us.  

Keith Reed is the Associate Director of MinistryLift at MB Seminary. 

photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash