Rediscovering Prayer

by Addison Bevere

Separator Words with God by Addison Bevere
Prayer Is A Way Of Life

I pray that this Sunday finds you well.

If receiving this Sunday email on prayer is a new thing for you, then welcome. I’m glad I get to spend a few minutes with you.

Last week I mentioned that my life is being transformed as I realize prayer isn’t just another “thing” to do; it’s the thing that brings everything we do together.

This week I’d like to offer a thought on living in prayer, or prayer as a way of life.

I’m often asked, “How long should I pray for?”

The problem with this question, and any answer I may offer, is that it places boundaries on prayer, reducing it to something that starts and stops, making it a box that we check before we get on with our day.

But God’s design for prayer is too robust to fit into a transaction. Even the Lord’s Prayer is a framework, not a formula. (We’ll come back to this in the coming weeks.)

The truth is God wants to have words with you. And having words with him is less like starting the conversation and more like joining it. This is one of the reasons why Paul tells us to pray constantly—God desires constant communion with us (1 Thess. 5:17, Rom. 12:12).

As an early church father put it, “For we can only accept the saying ‘pray ceaselessly’ as realistic if we say that the whole life of the Saint is one mighty, integrated prayer.”

Response

Praying without ceasing is not a constant chore . . . it’s an invitation into a place of ongoing rest, a place where we recognize that the Lord is at hand, and we can and will face whatever lies before us.

Closing Thoughts

Next week, I think I’ll share a three-word prayer from Words with God that I use to center myself when fear or anxiety chase my peace away.

For now, as you move into this week, remember that prayer is more about joining the conversation than starting it. In both silence and sound, God has words for you.

Until next Sunday,

Addison

Separator Words with God by Addison Bevere

P.S. In case you don’t have yours yet, Words with God: Trading Boring, Empty Prayer for Real Connection is now available as an ebook, book, or audiobook! Click here to get yours.

P.P.S. If you have friends, family, or enemies who should join this conversation, please forward this message along to them. They can also join us by signing up to receive these Sunday Entries below.

The Invitation

At the beginning of most weeks, I share a short prayer guide, offering words and practices that will help you see, hear, and experience more of God in your daily life. I’d love for you to join us.

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The Entries

The Promise Hidden in Your Trials

Did you catch the promise couched in the prayer? While trials and temptation are inevitable, so is our victory. Whether it be now or then, every problem has an end date. Every pain will be swallowed up in joy. Every broken part of us will be healed and restored.

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How to Break Free from the Trap of Self-Focus

When you pray this week, begin by meditating on God’s holiness, His love, His tenderness, His faithfulness. Think of this as a holy inhale—you’re breathing in God’s Life and breathing out the temptation to make yourself (or your concerns) god over your life. (And please read Romans 8:5–8, specifically in The Message.)

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Praying Like This Will Transform Your Year

You’ll notice the prayer begins by placing our attention on God, the One who inhabits the heavens, the One who upholds all things by the word of His power. Once we’re settled in His tender holiness and the surety of His will, we then move into our requests, our fears, our trials, our pains. They all have a place in our prayers, and I encourage you to make each line specific to you, the people in your world, the cares of your day, and trials in your way.

Continue Reading →

Addison Bevere is the COO of Messenger International, a ministry founded by John and Lisa Bevere in 1990 that exists to develop uncompromising followers of Christ who transform our world. Messenger is dedicated to providing people with access to life-transforming messages regardless of their location, language, or financial position.

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Addison Bevere

Husband, father, author, poet, speaker & follower of Christ

addison-thumbnail-2021
Addison Bevere

Husband, father, author, poet, speaker & follower of Christ

2025 © Addison Bevere. All Rights Reserved.