Preparing the Heart for Prayer

It has frequently been observed that nothing is more intimate and expressive of our relationship with God in Christ than prayer. But how much conscious thought do we give to how to pray rightly, or how to pray in the right frame of heart and mind?

The stakes are high, for Satan is a diabolical saboteur of every device, every instrument, and every means of divine grace and spiritual warfare—prayer especially. Who among us does not struggle against distraction or disruption, not to mention stifling guilt and demoralizing shame?

But aside from external spiritual attack, we are warned in God’s Word against praying with wrong motives in James 4:3. Further, we are told in Proverbs 15:8 that there are some whose devotional activities are regarded as abominations “to the Lord.” However, God does not leave us to figure this out on our own. The proverb continues, “But the prayer of the upright is acceptable to him.”

The Right Way to Pray

There is a wrong way to pray, and there is a right way to pray. Thus, our Savior addressed His disciples and addresses us today, “Pray then like this” (Matt. 6:9).

One essential feature of true Christian prayer is its childlike simplicity and conversational frame. In prayer, we speak with God and to God as sincere friends, as those who enjoy the covenant favor, love, loyalty, and friendship of God our heavenly Father. While we could speak of appropriate postures, gestures, times, or topics of prayer, I will outline here some thoughts on how to prepare the heart for prayer.

In Job 11:13–15, we read the following counsel from one of Job’s three aged friends:

If you prepare your heart,
you will stretch out your hands toward him.
If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,
and let not injustice dwell in your tents.
Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish;
you will be secure and will not fear.

In these few verses, Zophar the Naamathite rightly, but ironically, suggests that Job must be diligent to direct, or “prepare,” his heart even as he clasps or stretches out his hands to God in prayer. In principle, Zophar was right. But as is so often the case in the haunting book of Job, this wise counsel was misapplied. Little did Zophar know that Job, by the effect of a sincere faith in God, consistent righteousness of life, and unimpeachable integrity, could declare with King David in Psalm 57:7,

My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast!

Let me suggest four dimensions to this stirring resolution of the godly believer in his preparation for prayer.

1. Remove distraction and publicity from prayer.

As God directs in Matthew 6:6, we are to remove all thoughts and occasions of show and self-serving demonstration from our prayer life. This does not mean that we avoid public prayer meetings, but it does mean that we do not seek out notoriety, fame, or applause for our spiritual devotion and activities thereof.

2. Put on humility in our prayer.

The second dimension follows close on the heels of the first. As suggested in Ecclesiastes 5:1–2, we come into prayer to wait on God, even as we prepare our petitions in a spirit of humility and meekness. We do well to imitate the heart and model of the penitent publican in Christ’s parable rather than that of the braggadocious Pharisee (Luke 18:9–14).

3. Turn wholehearted attentiveness to the task at hand.

Heart and mind are to be indivisibly united in focus and affection as we approach the throne of grace in prayer. Is your heart aflame with love for the God who beckons you to approach freely through the Son whom He gave over to die for your sake? Is your mind taken up with the matter of prayer and the glory of Christ your Savior and King? With David we shall sing,

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name! (Ps. 103:1)

4. Depend on the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit gives us the new heart that delights in prayer rather than despairs to commune with God. He gives us the mind that apprehends the gospel truths we are to rehearse in praise and for which we pray to be granted to our loved ones. He drives us out of ourselves to meet with God. He Himself prays for us in ways beyond human expression. The Apostle writes, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26).

Please do not misunderstand me to be suggesting that these four dimensions of preparedness are achievable by some mechanism of laborious meditation or by some superficial “penance checklist.” No, these are sanctified dispositions and habits of the seasoned prayer warrior. They are freeing and simple liberties rather than burdensome or heavy obligations. They are necessary correlates of a renewed human nature belonging to one born again and made holy by the Spirit of Christ sent from above.

Preparedness for Prayer Together

In effect, consider the bearing these four dimensions of heart-preparedness in prayer have on our corporate prayer meeting. We gather to commune together with God before His throne, not to be seen or to broadcast our piety.

We come to receive grace from God by this means before we ever presume to add some sort of value to the experience of others or to the throne room of our Creator, who has no need of us. We come as suppliants rather than as paragons of human spirituality.

What place does the work and ministry of prayer have in your life? What sort of attention does it deserve? In God’s providence, other obligations sometimes press in, and there is no shame in that. Our God is no harsh taskmaster, but a loving and patient Good Shepherd known as such to those whom He calls. But do we give ourselves wholly to the activity of prayer when we head into the heavenly throne room?

Finally, dependence on the Spirit is marked by a natural mode of expression that employs scriptural language and biblical confidence as we pray God’s Word back to Him, lay hold of His promises, and seek for a deepening communion with Him. The sweet hour of prayer is no time for ostentation or impressive soliloquys. The language of prayer is the soul’s simple conversation with God.