How to Pray When You Don't Feel Like It
This journal entry discusses a new believer who suffered from depression and drinking. He wondered about how to pray when you don't feel like it. This is a common question for many new Christians.
NOTESDAILY STRIDES
Trace Pirtle
3 min read
“Jim” is a new Christian. He accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior about two years ago, but continues to struggle with mild depression and drinking. Jim identifies as a “believer,” yet he realizes that his mood and behavior don’t reflect what God wants for him.
As a result, Jim is conflicted with many questions and concerns. One of them is how to pray when you don’t feel like it.
Jim’s feelings about prayer aren’t unique. Some days we just don’t feel like praying. But let’s look at Jim’s common concern and see if God’s Word can help us address it.
What Does it Mean to Pray?
If we look at Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary, we see that “to pray” is always used of “prayer” to God.
It’s the most frequent usage in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), the Book of Acts, the Epistles of Paul, Hebrews, and Jude. We’ll look at a few of these references shortly.
Vine’s also indicates that " pray " means, for example, “wish”, “wish for, “to desire,” and “a vow.”
I offer these definitions just to have a common understanding of how “pray” is used in Scripture. Jim agrees that these definitions are consistent with his concept of what it means to pray.
Why Do We Pray?
To discover how to pray when you don’t feel like it, it’s important to answer the question, “Why do we pray?” first. Without knowing why something is important, feelings will always get in the way.
Here are a few reasons why we pray:
It is the will of God. “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, NKJV).
We receive instruction on how to pray. “Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples’” (Luke 11:1, NKJV). Jesus follows with what we consider the “Lord’s Prayer.”
Personal time with God. “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place: and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly” (Matthew 6:6, NKJV).
Acknowledge our weaknesses. “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26, NKJV).
Present requests to God. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6, NKJV).
How to Pray When You Don’t Feel Like It
After reviewing just a few of the reasons why we pray, Jim was able to see more clearly that praying is not dependent on his feelings. He now understands that:
We pray because it’s God’s will that we pray. It’s His way of keeping us in constant communication with Him. When we are in prayer, no matter how we feel when we start, it keeps us from spiraling deeper into depression, anxiety, or other states of being that keep us from God. That’s when Jim turns to drinking.
Jim admitted that he really didn’t know how to pray and that it often felt uncomfortable, even silly. But he now understands that Jesus gave him all the words he needs to offer a prayer pleasing to God. He now recites the Lord’s Prayer.
For those times when Jim has a “wish” or “desire” that seems impossible, he knows that he can go into a quiet place, close the door, and let God know in secret what is on his mind and heart. He doesn’t need to fear condemnation as he used to.
Jim also understands that God sees our weaknesses, the times when we don’t feel like praying, and the circumstances that led to it. All he needs to do is sit quietly as one who listens rather than the one who speaks.
Finally, Jim sees that prayer is part of the personal relationship God wants with each one of us. He says, “Now I will always feel like praying, especially when I don’t feel like it.”
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