Help! I'm Not Good at PrayerНамуна

I felt like a failure.

It didn't matter what I did as a leader and a pastor. I got criticized this particular season, and people kept leaving our church. We lost access to the venue where we held services, and everyone had an opinion on what we should do next, most of which was in two contradictory directions.

Overwhelmed and anxious, I prayed more desperately than I had in a long time. Without clarity on what to do or where to lead our people, I needed God's wisdom and a divine infusion of courage.

During that season in my life and leadership, I rediscovered a few verses at the end of Hebrews 4. These verses invited me, with all my desperation and imperfections, into prayer and God's presence.

These verses hold the final invitation of this plan that you need to understand. You're invited into the throne room of God, not because of what you've done or not done but because of what He's done for you.

If we only pray when we feel worthy of God's presence and attention, we won't pray when we most need to pray. When we were most unworthy of God's love, Jesus came and died for us. His loving sacrifice for us on the cross is the ultimate declaration of our worthiness.

At the beginning of this plan, we look at the feeling of "I'm not good at prayer." We explored how our ability in prayer doesn't determine God's availability to hear us.

We also discovered that the purpose of prayer is not to get good at prayer but to build intimacy with God and allow God to make us more like Jesus. The path to that purpose comes as you embrace God's invitation to come near Him, just as He draws near you.

When you embrace the invitation described in Hebrews 4:16, you find you're welcome in the place that holds what you need. "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

Just as Jesus celebrated the neediness and desperation of the tax collector in His parable, the writer of Hebrews highlighted the significance of boldly entering God's presence like a child who knows their father has what they need.

I'm praying that you won't let feelings of inadequacy or comparison keep you from prayer any longer. God is delighted when you turn to Him in prayer, and your imperfect, authentic words honor Him by inviting Him to show His glory in your situation.

You may not feel good at prayer, but God is good anyway! He invites you into His presence, and He has what you need. You don't have to be a professional at prayer - you just need to be someone in desperate need of what God can provide.

You bring your neediness to God and watch what He does in response!

If you enjoyed this plan and would like more practical resources to take your next step with Jesus, click here for complimentary access to my Fresh Prayer Action Plan.