Lessons From The Closet

If ever a person needed to feel like their prayer life was effective, it certainly seems to me it is now. One of my single greatest struggles at times, is to quiet myself. That includes quieting my multitasking mind, and praying in a way that is focused and results in a refreshing. A period of time where I converse with God and He converses with me. I’m super accomplished at the desperate christmas list type of praying. It is where I ask God for everything from prosperity, to close parking spots at the store. The world around me has morphed into a chaotic state. I have found myself challenged more and more to pray in a manner where I feel like I am rising to the occasion, to the needs around me. 

While taking a rest from the blog ministry of the 5 o’clock worker I had planned to attend to a  few other teaching ministries I am involved in and squeeze in a vacation at the beach with my family. Well, you know what they say about well laid plans—it didn’t work out quite the way I thought it would. I had planned to blog, “The Chosen Life” a series of devotions mostly completed, but just needed some editing and tweaking. However, God redirected my study and efforts toward a topic that I needed to look into a little more these days. Prayer. 

My prayer life needs refreshing. Actually, I think it might even need renovating. I compare it to some of the other disciplines that God has called us to. To ensure we live a balanced, purposeful, rewarding life. For instance, most of the time I try to eat a pretty healthy, balanced diet and exercise regularly. However, sometimes a change in schedule, fatigue, or the demand of the mechanics of life can throw me off my routine. Before I know it, I am not consuming good nutrition, gaining a few pounds, and I am falling into bed with the promise to hit the lap pool or the treadmill tomorrow. After struggling with the fall out of wandering away from these particular disciplines, I recommit and restructure. Pretty soon I’m reaping the benefits of a happier and healthier mind and body. 

My prayer life faces the same challenges. God recently revealed to me that my prayer mindset is fatigued and anemic. I can see where disappointment and discouragement have helped me put on a few pounds of doubt. So I returned to the scriptures to review what God has to say about prayer—after all, He invented it. He created me with the capacity to pray. It is His spiritual Wi-Fi, and just like my household internet at times, the connection just isn’t that great! It seemingly drops at the most inconvenient times. Since God desires for me to pray and is waiting to hear from me, the problem with my connection isn’t Him, it’s me. If I am honest, the most likely culprit is interference with my connection to Him.

While doing my preparation for this, I made a list of the basic things I believed prayer to be and not to be. I know that prayer is not fretting. I’ve tried it. It is not worrying. Prayer is not a multitasking activity if it is to result in true fellowship with God. After reviewing the list, I went to the place in the Bible where the disciples said, “Lord teach us to pray,” (Luke 11). It was a good reminder that even His disciples found prayer challenging. They realized they needed His tutoring to grow in this area. Even while they were with Him physically, they struggled in this intimate pursuit of the petition and revelation. And just like when the disciples asked Jesus for help and received it, I went to His teachings.

In Matthew 6:6 the scriptures says “When you pray, go into your closet, shut the door and pray to your Father.” First it says, “When.” This means I must be purposeful in my time. I recognize it is a spiritually romantic notion to only pray when I feel like it. This mentality has not worked in any other area of my life. Not in exercise or nutrition, finances or productivity. It hasn’t worked in any relationship I have applied it to. My point is spontaneity is overrated by me. Sure it is wonderful to pray on the spur of the moment when we face challenges or want to praise and give thanks for the unexpected blessings that come my way. I am certainly called to remain in an attitude of prayer continually.This means I should always be available to pray and on the alert for things to pray for. But what my spiritual mentor, Ann Clark, would refer to as ‘deep knee prayin’ requires purposeful intent. It requires a “When.” It requires a commitment to God that is motivated by not just His holiness in us calling us to His side but His onliness. This means for me to say “God, this time is for you. You are the only person I want to talk with right now; you are the only thing I want my mind centered on.”  

I tell my life group what I need is the Gilligan approach. The line from Gilligans Island theme song states, no phone, no car, not a single luxury. No distractions God, it’s all you! This is what it means to “When.” The “When” in scripture is followed by, “Go and shut the door.” This reaffirms my efforts to eliminate all distractions. I can promise you, if I don’t do this, it isn’t long before I am making my grocery list, or asking myself why I decided to have two dogs instead of one. In the challenging times we are facing that, frighten and discourage us, accidental cosmic collisions aren’t going to strengthen our faith in the Father that He can handle all that is happening and provide the peace that we so desperately need.

I recognize closets can be confining and can make us feel like we are missing the action. That somehow we have to be on the alert, always in the know. This is partly due to the informational technological age I have been impacted by. The other part is the voice that is telling me to keep my closet door cracked…just in case… but it isn’t the voice of my Father. It is the undermining whisper of the enemy that doesn’t want me to be alone with God. 

Remember, Satan wants all the attention. He is selfish and the father of all lies so he is going to try and sabotage my intent to commune with God in solitude. This is a good place to remember I am going into a place of prayer with Almighty God. He is not a colleague or some mere ethereal casual acquaintance. The God of the universe is waiting. If I can’t manage to keep the door shut, He is more than able to help preserve the intimacy and protect our fellowship. He loves me and is a strong, powerful Father that delights in one-on-one face time with His children. I just have to allow His word to refresh and remind me what Jesus said to His disciples. When I close the door, I can always start with this simple request…”Lord, teach me to pray.”

I hope you will meet me in the vineyard next time, where I share about the importance of the Paternity test and the impact it had on the prayer life of this 5 o’clock worker.

Sharon Bundo, 5 o’clock worker