INTRODUCTION — When Prayer Becomes Breath
I was driving home from helping my daughter move sheep when the thought hit me. It wasn’t profound at first. Just a whisper. A nudge. One of those quiet moments when the Spirit seems to lean in and say, “Pay attention.”
Missouri has given us many gifts, but being close enough to help our daughter and son‑in‑law with the sheep might be one of my favorites. Every five or six days, we move them from one paddock to another. It’s simple work. Good work. Work that lets you breathe a little deeper and remember that God made you from dust and intends to keep you grounded.
On that drive home, Bott Radio was on — one of the joys of living here (Teaching and talk about the Bible 24/7). Dr. Erwin Lutzer was finishing a message, and he said something that stopped me cold. I’ll paraphrase it:
“Your relationship with Jesus is based on an unanswered prayer.”
He was talking about Gethsemane. About Jesus praying that the cup might pass. About the Father saying “No.” And then he said, “Aren’t you glad?”
If the Father had answered that prayer, you and I would still be in our sins. Still under judgment. Still without hope. Still destined for eternal separation from God.
I pulled into the driveway and sat in my truck for a moment, stunned by the mercy of God in unanswered prayer. I have praised God over and over for answered prayer, but this, I think, was the first time I ever praised and thanked God for unanswered prayer.
I thought about my own life.
I once prayed that God would never call me to the pastorate. He said no. And I am glad.
I once prayed that God would let me marry a woman my father warned me about. God said no. And I am glad — because I would have missed the bride who has given me three children and more than forty years of joy.
I once prayed that I could own a minor league baseball team. God said no. And I am glad — because I would have missed the life He had planned for me.
God’s “no” is often His greatest mercy.
And that is why we need a prayer life shaped by Scripture. Not just prayers in our lives, occupying space and time, but a prayer-shaped, prayer-saturated life, a life that is shaped by the prayers we pray and the answers He gives (and doesn’t give). Because left to ourselves, we pray small prayers. Selfish prayers. Short‑sighted prayers. Prayers that would ruin us if God answered them.
But when we pray the Scripture — especially the Psalms — something changes. Our desires change. Our language changes. Our hearts change. And here is another insight that should motivate us to pray. Listen to the aged apostle John, in his inspired mature reflection from 1 John 5:14-15 (NASB). “14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.”
When we pray according to God’s will, “WE KNOW” that He hears and we have the requests we have asked of Him! If that isn’t a powerful incentive to pray the word of God and specifically the Psalms, I don’t know what it. The word of God is the will of God. Let’s learn to pray the word of God.
For more than two decades, the Psalms have been the scaffolding of my prayer life. They have given me words when I had none. They have steadied me when I was afraid. They have corrected me when I was angry. They have lifted me when I was weary. They have taught me how to pray when I didn’t know what to say. They have given me direction and hope when I was in both physical and spiritual and even emotional agony. They have helped me to journey better in this sojourn we call life.
This book is an invitation to join me on that journey.
To learn to pray the Scripture. To learn to pray the Psalms.
To pray with the ancient rhythms of God’s people — morning, midday, and evening. To let the Word of God shape the words you bring to God. To help you see prayer as spiritual breath that will give new wings to your spirit.
My prayer is simple:
May God use this book to teach you how to breathe again.
Would you pray for me as I continue the process of bringing this book out to a larger reading audience?
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