Written Prayers

What do you think of written prayers? By “written prayers,” I mean the practice of writing out at least a portion of your prayers. Have you ever given the practice any thought? For many of the deeply devoted, the thought of writing out one’s prayers sounds artificial. We look with suspicion at anything done well; anything involving preparation. We equate sincerity with spontaneity. If we pray, preach, or witness on the spur of the moment, giving it little or no thought, it must have been done because we are incredibly spiritual. If, however, any of the aforementioned acts were done as a result of planning and preparation, then it had to be a work of the flesh. That’s how some think, anyhow. I’m not sure how one comes to such a conclusion. I am certain that no conclusion is reached as a result of scriptural exposition, but the conclusion is reached nonetheless. The fact is that most such thinking is the result of tradition, which esteems thoughtless, spontaneous devotion very highly.

What do you think of written prayers? I was standing in the front of the auditorium of a Pentecostal church a few minutes before service was to begin. I was speaking to the pastor, who was telling me with beaming eyes and an enthusiastic voice that he was going to be, in a short time, a grandfather again. “My grandson will have quite a name to live up to,” he said. His grandson was going to be named “Wesley.” Of course, this pastor compared his grandson’s name to that of John Wesley. This particular pastor revered Wesley very highly, as do many Pentecostals (though Wesley was not Pentecostal). John Wesley was a devoted Christian whose thoughts on holiness are soul-stirring. Many Christians, both those who worship more formally and those who worship more spontaneously, think highly of John Wesley. In my library, I have a volume entitled, The Prayers of John Wesley. Wesley wrote out at least a portion of his prayers.

What do you think of written prayers? John Wesley was not the only Christian who penned his prayers. George Müller, in his autobiography, included the prayers he prayed in various times of his ministry. The reformers left behind volumes of the prayers they prayed. We are all aware of Martin Luther’s tremendous courage when standing before the emperor at Worms when he said fervently and uncompromisingly, “Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise.” From where did he receive such courage? He tells us that, as he was standing before the emperor, he was praying. He prayed, “O Thou my God, stand by me against all the world. Do Thou do it! Thou must do it! Thou alone! It is indeed not my cause but Thine.” The people of God, from the time of the ascension of Christ until the present day, have left us with the words of their prayers for our edification and reflection. St. Augustine prayed this way: “Let my soul take refuge from the crowding turmoil of worldly thoughts beneath the shadow of Thy wings; let my heart, this sea of restless waves, find peace in Thee, O God.” Missionaries with hearts aflame for the souls of men have left us the words of their prayers. Whether you are reading David Brainerd’s journal or Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret, it is clear that missionaries have given us a window into the depths of their souls by recording the words of their prayers. Listen to the fervent prayer of David Livingstone concerning the continent of Africa – “May God in mercy permit me to do something for the cause of Christ in these dark places of the earth!” In addition to these men, I have acquired other volumes containing the prayers of the saints throughout church history. I have eloquent collections of prayers by Dr. John Baillie, Robert Burns, Alfred Tennyson, John Donne, Carl Sandberg, Peter Marshall, Samuel Johnson, St. Patrick, Helen Steiner Rice, George Fox, Abraham Lincoln, John Calvin, and many others.

What do you think of written prayers? Furthermore, what do you think of reading or quoting someone else’s written prayer, and making it your own? Have you ever thought about it? Chances are, if you are a Christian who has attended church for any length of time at all, you have already done that.

The month was March; the year was 2003. It was only a few days after President Bush gave Saddam Hussein and his sons the ultimatum that led to the second war in Iraq. I was attending the annual Holiness Convention in Export, Pennsylvania. The auditorium was full for the evening service, which was just getting under way. The President of the Institute began the service by leading the congregation in song. The opening song was the patriotic hymn “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.” When we got to the final verse, hands went up all over the auditorium. Voices rang out in unison –

Our fathers’ God to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing.
Long may our land be bright
With freedom’s holy light,
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God, our King.

We were singing a verse of a hymn that was written as a prayer. Though the words were written by Samuel Francis Smith, we quoted them, and directed them to heaven, making those words our own prayer.

Many hymns are written as prayers. You have most likely sang someone’s prayer, and made it your own. Some such hymns include Take My Life and Let it Be, Revive Us Again, I Need Thee Every Hour, How Great Thou Art, Have Thine Own Way, Great is Thy Faithfulness, and countless others. If you are against quoting someone else’s beautifully written prayers and praying them for yourself, you have just outlawed many of the most beloved hymns.

What do you think of written prayers? Has it ever dawned on you that many Bible writers recorded their prayers? I was in a particular place in life where I was keenly aware that my spirit was becoming bitter. During this time, I prayed many times this prayer: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Those are not my words. I borrowed them. King David, Israel’s second king, prayed those words and penned them within the Hebrew Scriptures. I took those words and prayed them because it was the request I wanted the Lord to grant, and I could not think of a better way to pray it. The Bible is filled with the exact words that the saints prayed. The Psalms are full of written prayers. Daniel’s eloquent prayer is recorded verbatim in Daniel 9. Elijah’s short but powerful prayer is recorded for us. Paul interrupted his discourse in Romans 9 to insert a prayer of doxology. Many times, Paul concluded his epistles with prayerful benedictions.

What do you think of written prayers? Most likely, many of you are reluctant to accept the idea because in your tradition of spontaneous worship, it is a new concept. But really, if you read the Bible, you have read many written prayers. If you sing hymns, you have prayed someone else’s beautifully written prayers.

What do you think of written prayers? Would it help you formulate your opinion if you could know what a highly revered Christian thought of the idea? What if you knew what someone like Matthew Henry thought about the notion of a Christian writing out some of their prayers? I don’t know what Matthew Henry thought about it, but here is what he said about it:

It is good for us to keep some account of our prayers, that we might not “unsay” them in our practice.

What do you think of written prayers? Do you think there could be some benefit to you if you were to write out your own prayers?  Just think about it.