Starting Spiritual Conversations with Prayer

Be still and know that God is God and I am not. Be quiet and listen to his promises.

Stillness and quiet are adequate descriptions of contemplative prayer. It’s more about what we receive from God rather than what we give to him. It’s more about his voice that resonates in our hearts rather than giving him our voice. These are reasons why God implores us to pray without ceasing.

If prayer is that important, then starting spiritual conversations ought to begin with it. Through prayer, we can ask God to prepare our hearts, surrender our fears, and request the courage to proclaim. Prayer emboldens, trusts, and surrenders. It reflects a desire to place God’s will above our own – his purpose above our plans.

Before trying to figure out how to best approach a friend or neighbor, believers can begin the conversation by placing that soul into God’s hands and include him in the process. He is the frantic shepherd that leaves ninety-nine sheep to find a lost one. He is the only way to rescue lost souls through the power of his Word.

Jesus encourages his disciples to pray and gives us several models. The words of the Lord’s prayer are a declaration of trust in God’s promises. It recalibrates our soul and leans on God’s wisdom rather than our own. The persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8) was used to encourage his disciples that “they should always pray and not give up.” Unceasing prayer is a hallmark of a life in Christ.

This does not mean that if we pray hard and long enough, that the Lord will finally relent and give us what we desire. Persistence is not a reward, but an ongoing reminder of God’s grace. This includes accepting his will and timetable for those who are lost in sin. Faith never gives up even for people like the judge who “don’t fear God or care what people think.”

Prayer is a complete mystery to me. I don’t understand how it works. Yet, Jesus provides himself as a perfect model. He spent hours on mountain tops even though his schedule was full. Hours before being arrested and crucified, Jesus prayed intensely in the garden. We must conclude that there is something to prayer.

By faith, we pray:
And God provides the words to proclaim.
He opens our eyes and sees that the harvest is ready.
He redirects our eyes off self and onto his purpose.
He prepares us to be available and ready to be used in a powerful way.
He provides us with opportunities to be who we were created to be – his witnesses.

Starting spiritual conversations begins with prayer to help us recognize and acknowledge that evangelism is far more about God than it is about ourselves.