“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35).

Jesus prayed regularly.

We all know we should as well. So, if we want to get started in the exercise of praying every day, how would one go about it?

There are many ways to pray regularly. Today, I will share with you how I organize my prayer life.

First, I journal my prayers. I write them out. I don’t type. I write them down on paper with pen. The reason I do this is because of the pace. I can’t write as quickly as I type, and certainly not as quickly as I think. The exercise of writing forces me to slow down, slow down my thoughts, slow down my breathing. It is this slowing down that often leads to clarity. Too often, thoughts are rushing at me. Writing thoughts and prayer down forces me to slow down and organize my thoughts.

Second, I divide up my prayers to the following:

• Rejoice – I start my prayer by thanking God. I tell God everything I am thankful for. It’s amazing how starting the day with gratitude has a way of shaping the entire day for gratitude.
• Repent – I confess my sins. I confess my pride. It’s a daily cleansing. I need it because I am a repeat sinner.
• Request – This is where I ask God for his help. I divide up my requests in the following way:
  • Monday – World, missionaries, and friends abroad
  • Tuesday – Family, Helen, Karis, Kaitlin, Kailey, and Kaleb. My parents, Helen’s mom. My sister and her family
  • Wednesday – Friends
  • Thursday – Little Church and Lakewood Grace
  • Friday – Our elders and deacons
  • Saturday – For our staff
  • Sunday – For the weekend services
• Reflect – This is where I write down thoughts and reflections throughout the day.

The whole process normally takes me about thirty to forty-five minutes. You don’t have to pray as long as that. But you do need to pray. Take as long and as short as you need.

This is what works for me. You can try it out for yourself. The main thing is to find a system that works for you.

I will tell you that you will have to work at it. It won’t just happen. You will have to be intentional in carving out the time and space to make it work. However you organize your prayer life, the main thing is to pray every day. Pray like you mean it!

“And his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice” (John 10:4-5).

The topography of Judea is such, quite often, there are multiple herds grazing on the same hillside. What is remarkable is that each sheep know their shepherd’s voice. They will not follow another. Only the voice of their shepherd will they heed. Multiple shepherd’s can call out for their sheep at the same time, and the sheep will only follow their shepherd’s voice.

It’s kinda like when your child is playing in the playground and there are dozens of kids at play. But when your child cries out, you hear your child’s voice.

This is the context in which Jesus referred to himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep.

The understanding is that his sheep would know his voice.

Do you? Can you discern his voice from the chorus of voices shouting out for your attention and loyalty? Can you discern his voice and guidance from the voices and guidance of others?

The only way to know the voice of the shepherd is to know him through his word. How else will we know Jesus? Our spiritual experiences? dreams? personal whims?

If we love Jesus, we love his word. Ignorance of the scriptures is ignorance of the Shepherd.

Set aside 10-15 minutes every day to read through God’s word. Get his word in you. If you’ve never read through the Bible, start with the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. For help and guide to read through the Bible in a year, YouVersion is a fantastic free resource. You can find many different Bible reading programs.

Knowing the shepherd’s voice is essential to the well-being of sheep. Sheep’s life depend on it.

You see, the devil doesn’t fear sheep. The devil only fears the shepherd. When it comes to sheep, the safest place for sheep is in the presence of its shepherd.

Know your Savior’s voice. Know his word.

“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Before the days of satellites and GPS the only way for sailors to get their bearing out at sea was by “shooting” the sun. Only by locating the sun and their position to it could sailors figure out where they were and which direction they were to sail in order to reach their destination.

Without the sun, they were hopelessly lost.

What was true for sailors is true for us. The only way for us to find our bearings is by looking at God.

Without the Son, we are hopelessly lost.

So, how does this work in real life? What does it mean to seek God first?

There are times when there are more uncertainties than there is clarity. Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you didn’t know where to go, what is best, which way to turn? What do you do when you don’t know?

This is where seeking God first comes to play.

When you find yourself in a situation where you don’t know, stick to what you know. Fall back on the things you know with absolute certainty and do those things. In time, as you are busy doing what you know uncertainties become clear.

So, what are some things you know with absolute certainty?

• God loves you. God wants what is best for you. God knows better than you what is the best for you
• Since that is the case, worship him, read his book, pray to him. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• You married? Stay absolutely faithful to your spouse. Love them. Serve them. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Single? Stay chaste and holy. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Love God and serve others. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• The list could go on and on. You know what belongs on this list of certainties.

You see, even in those times when we don’t know what to do with certain particulars, there is much we do know. In times of uncertainty, turn to what you do know and do those things.