2014: The year of praying continually


2014 -- it's still very young, and it could be a year of great spiritual transformation -- if we know the right changes to make.

Research has shown that the single most determinative factor in personal success is willpower. It's the commitment to stick with a plan even when the going gets tough. And nothing shores up willpower like setting goals. So here's my goal for 2014:
By the end of 2014, I want to have an ingrained habit of praying continually -- filling countless moments throughout the day with communion with God, surrendering to him in the small things, and working prayer into the cracks and crevices of my life.
I am done thinking this is a good idea or reading about someone else doing it. I don't need to read through Brother Lawrence's Practicing the Presence of God again (although I plan to do it anyway). This is the year I just do it. Little by little. Moment by moment. Letting mistakes go and staying focused on the goal. This has been brewing in me for years. And it's no surprise. I'm convinced it's the way Jesus prayed, and therefore it's the way any Jesus-follower should learn to pray.

Pray small! Small prayers make for big changes.

It makes me a little nervous to say something like this in front of others, but I am also convinced that unless we "out" ourselves, it's too easy to turn back. Public commitment to a goal builds willpower, and willpower breeds results. And in prayer, results mean a changed heart and the closeness with God for which we were created.

I will be writing about this journey. If you're motivated to come along, let's do this together!

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