help: praying

OpenDoor said:

Has anyone else experienced this?

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Yes - you 'think' you have to impress.

You have indicated that you have no difficulty in sharing your faith. Have you noticed this is 'you' in action - no hidden agendas? When it come to prayer perhaps you are intellectualizing the process - that there is some sort of formulae that you must follow - that others are judging you and gauging you on how well you perform to 'their' criteria.

Prayer is not about performance - it's about communication.

So I have a question - can you be you with God? Remember the Pharisee in the temple and the poor man praying? God is not looking for an oscar winning performance. He is looking for you.

Prayer doesn't have to sound Holy and well structured like many people hear from the pulpit. Just pray as if you're talking to someone normally. God's a person too. I'm sure there is nothing you can do or say that will impress him. So don't even try. The best prayers are the ones that are sincere and from the heart. Others will appreciate it as well. You don't have to sound like Robert Schuller for God to hear you.

Can you imagine if you were God, listening to millions of prayers from people trying to sound like a poet?

When you pray natural and just say what's on your heart, it's duck soup.

I can relate somewhat. Even church leadership can find it hard to get up and pray sometimes. I found for myself that whether I was comfortable leading prayer depended WHO was present. It shouldn't but it wasn't about wanting to impress ... it was about my being in senior leadership and certain people above me expecting a certain prayer style and the HUGE pressure to conform and pray in a certain style. I could see what was wrong with that and it was one factor in my stepping down. If I couldn't pray from the heart things were out of whack as far as I was concerned and I wasn't prepared to be less than genuine for the sake of appearances and performing.
My reason for sharing this ... maybe there is something in my experience that will click with you. Is it always difficult or just in some situations or in the presence of some particular people?

OpenDoor said:

I very much believe in prayer.
I also have no struggle praying alone or with others (in church or prayer groups).

However, if I am asked to lead a group in prayer I have a VERY hard time. On many occasions when I have been asked to say an opening or closing prayer (or even giving thanks at the dinner table) I will ask if someone else would be willing to take the lead.

I know that not everyone is to be a leader but I do not want to use that as an excuse in case this is a spiritual weakness/attack.
On many occasions it's as if I know in my heart what I want to say (the idea), but I remain unable to form it into words (that others can understand).

Obviously I have prayed to improve upon this, but as of yet it still remains.

As a side note, I never have any problem sharing my faith with others or discussing the gospels with those who believe and those who do not.

Has anyone else experienced this?

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Greetings and may God bless all who read. Greetings OpenDoor. Yes, I have experienced this the first time I was asked. As a matter of fact, it was outside on a public corner when a fellow brother in Christ that I believe God had arranged for me to run into, requested immediate prayer. He felt it could not wait and asked me if I could pray with him. Oh no, I said to myself, what am I going to say? How am I going to lead him in prayer?

At first I was embarrassed, shy about it, looking around and there were a lot of people walking about but God caused me to remember that He was with me. How could I deny prayer with a fellow believer who was in dire need? I just closed my eyes and let God's Holy Spirit guide me. I tried not to think about the people around me and of what to say, I just started thanking the Lord, concentrating on God's Holy Word in spirit and in truth and opened my mouth. God's Spirit came over me and took control. Praise God!

This could be God's way of preparing you to pray for groups according to part of His will for your life. I was asked and led to pray for this very same brother along with his family together just today, shortly before posting this message. God is good. I am feeling more confident because of God's presence.

Just keep your devotional prayer time with God, keep meditating on God's Holy Word and the Holy Spirit will guide you. Ask God to lead you just like David did as written in Psalms 31:3, "For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me." Amen.

I understand what you are going through (in my way). I am too shy to pray out loud (and I always sound ridicilous to my own ears when I pray outloud, I can't take it). I can't think of anything to say either and I can't formulate my thoughts that fast...


So I think it's a gift: either you have it or you don't. I don't. Some others do.

1> Pray silently & quickly that the Holy Spirit will pray for you through your mouth.

&/OR

2> Pretend/imagine you are in a closet, with just you & Jesus talking.