Ok so that’s a little harsh and not very compassionate I get it. But to be fair, no one has ever accused me of being overly compassionate either. In all honesty many of the reasons we give for not doing something are less legitimate reasons and more excuses. I’m too tired. I’m too busy. I’m too this or that. Just about all of these things are simple excuses for not doing whatever is in front of us.

This post is about the reasons we give for not praying. Or to follow my less compassionate side – the lame excuses we give for not praying. Again the point is not to offend you but to open our collective eyes to the way we’ve tried to dumb down what it means to follow Jesus.

Here are some of the key reasons I hear for people not praying: it’s too personal, doesn’t he already know, I don’t even know what to say, and does it really even work? Ok so let’s look at these one at a time.

It’s too personal. I guess? Maybe? But if you’re talking to God, who knows everything about you anyway, can it really be too personal? Admittedly, this reason is mostly heard in response to someone not being willing to pray in public. For a person who thinks prayer is too personal to pray out loud I really want you to think about that for a minute. If your prayers are that personal, then why wouldn’t you want someone else to experience the closeness of that kind of relationship. So I understand the personal nature of prayer. I really do! I’ve had some prayers that I have prayed that I don’t include other people on. But in general prayer is a conversation with God about things God cares about! It doesn’t have to be overly personal all the time. Make it conversational.

Doesn’t he already know? Yep sure does! But I know much of what happens in my children’s lives and I still talk to them. I know that my wife probably emailed people about vacations and talked to a lot of people on social media through the day but we still find things to talk about regarding how our days went. Just because he knows doesn’t mean he doesn’t want you to tell him. Not praying because God already knows is a pretty weak excuse for not praying. I’m not even going to apologize for that one.

I don’t know what to say. Well, that’s a bunch of crap too! You can talk to the barista about the kind of coffee you like, your buddy about the score of the game, your friend about your favorite show you just binge watched. You can find something to talk to God about. Likely, you’re making it a bit too formal. Just have a conversation. Tell him what’s going on. What are you excited about? Afraid of? Looking forward to? Anxious about? All the things you would tell a friend or coworker, he wants to hear these things from you!

Does it even work? Well this is where things get fun. I love to have this conversation with people about prayer. Does prayer work? Well give it a try and find out. You won’t believe me regardless of what I tell you anyway! 😉 So try this little exercise. When you get up in the morning try to pray. A friend of mine introduced me to a way of praying that’s a lot like ordering at the drive-thru. You tell the little speaker thing what you want. Then you drive around and expect it to be there. Well, pray this way. Tell God what you need that day. Then get up and go on with your day just expecting it to be there. Caveat – don’t pray for anything you can touch. So no praying for a new car or a million dollars!

Just pray this simple prayer. Lord, today I need…

That’s it. It’s that simple. Lord acknowledges you’re not in control. Today sets the time frame on when you need this answered. I is what makes it personal. And need expresses the thing going on in your life that needs addressed. Then what you ask for is the thing you actually would benefit most from that day. Remember nothing tangible! So pray for peace, focus, productivity, joy filled heart, compassion, etc. These are the things you’ll benefit from most so pray for them. Then sit back and watch to see what God does in your life as a result of this kind of prayer. Then you can tell me if prayer works.

If you pray for things like this and watch as your day unfolds, I’m pretty sure you’ll quickly see how well prayer actually does work. Go ahead. Give it a try. I dare you.