Five Things Every Christian Needs to Grow

by R.C. Sproul

For instance: • Luther suggested to Master Peter that he set aside time for prayer every day. Because pressures frequently threaten to disrupt our prayer time, it is helpful to have a regular time or times scheduled. • The Reformer also suggested that, like Jesus, Peter go apart to a quiet place where it would be easier to concentrate. Luther told him: “Prayer is like your task as a barber. The last thing I want you to do is to have your mind wandering when you’ve lathered up my face and you take out that blade and start shaving me. I don’t want you to start wool-gathering and end up slitting my throat.” • Luther also recommended that Peter pray out loud. There is something helpful about articulating communication to the Lord aloud. Luther suggested emulating Jesus, who prayed out loud when He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, even though He was by Himself. Perhaps the richest suggestion I gleaned from Luther’s booklet is to pray “through” three things: the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Apostles’ Creed. There is an important difference between praying the Lord’s Prayer and praying through the Lord’s Prayer. To pray through the Lord’s Prayer is to focus attention on each of the petitions for a time. For example, instead of simply praying, “Hallowed be Your name,” I might say: “O Lord, we live in an age where Your name is not only not revered or honored but is used as profanity. Bring such an awakening to Your glory that no one would think of dragging Your name...