Habit Reboot: An 8-Day Devotional by Darryl DashSample

Core Habit #2: Speak with God

In some ways, prayer is both easy and challenging at the same time.

On the one hand, prayer is surprisingly easy. You don’t have to learn how to pray. There’s no formula or procedure. You can begin to talk with God and share what is on your mind.

In prayer, we get God’s ear. God, who made us and who knows everything about us, invites us to come boldly into His presence and relate to Him. If you don’t feel like praying, then pray about that. If you are angry, tempted, or discouraged, then tell God. When we pray, we can tell God whatever is on our minds.

Although prayer is easy, it’s also very hard. It may be one of the hardest things in the world. Our minds wander. We struggle to be honest. We see prayer as a duty rather than as a privilege. We begin to question whether prayer is worth it.

Prayer is supposed to be easy, but we often find it hard. We begin to worry. We don’t know what to say. We have a hard time slowing down. Nobody responds, and it feels like we’re talking to ourselves. We wonder if God is there or if prayer makes a difference.

Prayer is both easy and challenging at the same time.

So just start!

“The hardest thing about prayer is the small gap between thinking about praying and actually praying,” writes Tim Kerr, “that is, JUST TO BEGIN.” The hardest part is just to start praying.

Shrink that gap. Acknowledge any fear, resistance, or discomfort you may feel, and then take a moment right now to practice your new habit of prayer. Don’t worry about what to say. Recognize that you’re in God’s presence, talk to Him like anyone else, and tell Him whatever is on your mind. If you find it hard to pray, tell Him that, and ask for His help.

I’ll give you some tips on how to pray tomorrow. But right now: just begin! Take a moment to pray and tell God what’s on your mind.