The Habit of Prayer and Solitude

Introduction:

The idea of forming spiritual habits is to draw us closer into a love relationship with our Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, to move past the checkboxes of religion and get to the heart of the matter.

I was counseling a struggling married couple and told the man to express his love to his wife so she doesn't have to guess if he loves her or not. So, he spent some time writing a beautiful text to her as she went to work expressing his love and devotion for her. Then he copied and pasted the exact text every day. After the second day, I'm sure the loving text became offensive because there was no heart in it.

Spiritual habits are much the same way. It's learning how to tap into your soul and share it with the Lord.

Last week we discussed the habit of Biblical Meditation. I'm hoping some of you began to read your Bible, looking at it through the mirror and seeing God's desire for you on the other side. We are moving from the checkbox of Bible reading to the Biblical influence on our hearts and lives.

This week we are rediscovering Prayer and Solitude. Many people don't pray because they don't know what to say or what to pray. So, we have created checkboxes to help us. We have a prayer that we pray for the meal.

My dad would always pray the same thing. "Dear heavenly Father, Thank you for this food we are about to receive. Bless it to the nourishment of our bodies and our bodies to your service in Jesus' name, Amen." Every single time. I believe he meant the prayer, but there was no heart in it. It was a checkbox prayer.

Here is my simple definition of prayer and solitude:

“Prayer is the communion of heart and mind with the Spirit of God.”

“Solitude is the space you give God to speak.”

Moving past the checkbox of prayer.

The checkboxes of prayer

In our discipleship process of 180° we teach the basic elements of prayer. The 4 elements of prayer according to 1 Timothy 2:1: supplications, prayers, Intercessions, and thanksgivings.

1 Timothy 2:1 ESV

1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,

So we form lists and check boxes around these things. If we’re not careful, we begin to instruct God on what he should do by telling him what we want.

We understand that prayer is the answer to anxiety.

Philippians 4:6 ESV

6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

These are wonderful aspects of prayer, but they are human efforts and not divine revelation.

Finding the power of Prayer through Solitude

When you couple prayer with solitude you give God the space to answer and instruct you.

Dealing with the time factor of solitude

Life is so demanding, so busy that it’s hard to find times of solitude and quite. This has been a trapping of Satan since the beginning of time. He would say, “If you have time to worship you have time to work.”

Exodus 5:1–9 ESV

1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ ” 2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” 3 Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.” 4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” 5 And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” 6 The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, 7 “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. 8 But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

Are you a slave to the world or a saint of the Most High God?

Now it’s not just work but a hole host of extra curricular activities.

And on top of that any second of solitude we get is spent scrolling through the fake lives of people on social media.

We must take our example from the life of Jesus.

Jesus practiced prayer and solitude.

The demands on Jesus were 24/7. I would match his schedule up to yours any day of the week and yet he found time for prayer and solitude.

Mark 1:35 ESV

35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.

You must carve out time to get alone with God and your own thoughts.

Solitude is the quieting of your mind by removing distractions in order to hear God.

Jesus taught his disciples prayer and solitude.

Mark 6:30–32 ESV

The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.

Establishing the Habit of Prayer and Solitude.

Create time in your daily routine for prayer and solitude.

In Emotionally healthy Spirituality this is call the daily office.

Daniel paused 3 times a day for prayer and solitude.

Plan a day once a quarter for prayer and solitude.

Enjoy God’s creation in some form or fashion.

Go for a hike, or a run, or sit by the fire.

Plan a yearly vacation that is at least 5 days long.

Spend time with just your family.

Spend time listening to the Lord for the answers of life.