God`s Prayer Program Passionately using the Psalms in prayer by T M Moore

God`s Prayer Program Passionately using the Psalms in prayer 

by T M Moore

At present I am really into studying books of the Bible.  I recently completed Mark`s gospel and thought this book might help me with reading the Psalms.  

The very first chapter set the scene and gave 6 excuses people give for why they don`t pray as they should.  I wonder do you ever give one of these?

• I tried and it didn`t work
• I don`t feel like praying
• I don`t have much time for prayer
• I am not worthy
• My concerns are so petty
• I didn`t know what to pray

I think I could personally tick at least 5 out of 6.  The author then goes on to detail 17 reasons why we ought to pray and I was very struck by some of these.

Prayer is the most characteristic aspect of the life of faith.  Of course we know all about Abraham, Moses, the prophets, Paul and even Jesus praying but they are examples of why we should pray.  The phrase that struck me was "it is all but impossible to describe the Christian life or to think of being in a relationshp with the living God through faith in Jesus Christ without the discipline of prayer being a significant part of that experience."

God`s commands us to pray.  If we spend time in prayer we will discover a great deal of satisfaction and power.  We must learn to pray in a way that will be pleasing to him and fulfilling for us - in other words it works both ways!

Prayer reminds us of our need for God.  So obvious but true.  We should be relying more on God that our own wisdom.

Prayer lets us be ourselves safely.  It is during our prayer times that we can be very honest with God.  That goes back to one of the excuses we give for not praying - "God accepts us on the basis of his grace not our worthiness."

Prayer satisfies our need for fellowship.  Remember that famous song taken from the Psalms "as the deer pants for flowing streams so pants my soul for you O God."  We are made for God not merely to know him but to enjoy rich and prolonged fellowship with him.  It is only as we respond in prayer to God that we find the satisfaction of knowing that God cares enough to listen and to address our needs and concerns.

Prayer is the way to know great and hidden things.  God knows exactly what we need and when we need it but he wants to hear us ask for it!

Prayer maintains the devil`s defeat.  Imagine using prayer as the weapon to defeat Satan - well we can!  God has defeated Satan so we can also claim the victory through prayer.

Prayer strengthens faith and assurance.  We believe that God hears our prayers and we tell others that God is listening to us when we pray.  We remember what he has done for us on Calvary, that it is only because of that death we can come to him in prayer.

Prayer helps us get beyond the flesh.  This means that God wants to use us as his instruments.  We are tapping into a power that is available to us so that we experience more of the presence of God in our lives and we begin to realise what God can and will do through us.

Prayer fulfils God`s purposes for creation.  Remember when God looked at everything he had made back in Genesis and declared it as good.  Well God also declares our praying as good.  He loves it when we pray and will respond appropriately because that is what he delights in.

Prayer is transformational.  You better believe it!  "No prayer, no growth; much prayer and prayer in the context of God`s own distinct and prescribed program of prayer and nothing is impossible for us."

Prayer makes us more like Jesus.  Remember all those times when we read about Jesus taking time out to pray - well during those times he was strengthened to do what he did before all the people he met.  As we grow in prayer and as our prayers become a more powerful and meaningful part of our lives, we will begin to be more like Jesus both in our prayers and in our daily work.

Prayer is the way to know peace.  Perhaps there are times when we go through great trials or suffering, that is the time when we shall thank God.  In such times we are promised that the peace of God will come over us in ways we cannot begin to understand and we will be able to bear up under our trial in the grace of our Lord.

Prayer is the way to keep us in focus.  Prayer allows us to practice the life of heaven on earth and know the power of eternity breaking into our present experience more and more each day.

Prayer sets us apart.  We are called "saints" by Paul in many of his letters to the early churches and the word literally means "set apart ones".  we have been set apart unto God and for his purpose in the world.  Prayer is an important way that we maintain and express our set apartness.

Prayer prepares us for the Lord`s return.  We need to pray more and more effectively if we are going to be ready for the Lord`s sudden return.

Prayer engages us with God.  During our prayer times we are brought into God`s presence to bring our requests to him and we will find grace to help us in our times of need.

As you can imagine each of these were lessons in themselves.  Definitely lots of food for thought!

Chapter 2 set out some very important information about the Psalms.

Firstly the authorship - some of the authors are named while a large proportion are not.  It was amazing to learn that not all the Psalms were written by David and in fact some were written as far back as Moses.  There are various reasons and purposes for the Psalms, some given in times of great emotion and others deal with particular subjects.

The Psalms can be arranged in 5 separate books - Psalms 1 - 41, 42 - 72, 73 - 89, 90 - 106 and 107 - 150.  It is almost as if whoever arranged the Psalms may have intended to represent the journey of faith from initial trust and understanding to the beginnings of growth and development through the maturity of continuous thanks and praise.

T M Moore then showed how many people in the bible used the Psalms throughout their lives.  A fact that really struck home to me was the realisation that many of the people we read about in the New Testament were Jewish and obviously used the Psalms as part of their discipline within the Jewish community they grew up in.  Another striking fact was about the Philippian jailer in Acts 16 - why did he come running in to Paul and Silas asking what he needed to do to be saved when the earthquake struck the prison?  Well it was probably because Paul and Silas were singing the Psalms of salvation possibly Psalm 67 and the 10 other Psalms which are titled in this way.
There are many examples in history of people who used the Psalms - Augustine was brought to faith through the Psalms and the Protestant Reformers such as Luther and Bach developed the Psalms into more familiar tunes.

The chapter concluded with 8 reasons why we should use the Psalms in prayer and worship.

1. We know they are pleasing to God
2. The Psalms allow us to pray comprehensively
3. The Psalms enable us to pray honestly
4. The Psalms help us in praying reflectively in thinking about our lives from God`s perspective not merely on our own, or a perspective conditioned only by pressing needs.
5. The Psalms challenge us to pray beyond the limits of our own resources.
6. The Psalms are a faithful stimulus to our imaginations, enlarging our vision and understanding of God and of our calling as his children.
7. Praying the Psalms regularly reminds us to pray for things we might otherwise neglect such as our rulers, the persecuted church, our enemies, the spiritual warfare and all its trials and temptations, the lonely and downcast, the poor and needy and a host of others.
8. Praying the Psalms satisfies like nothing else.

In chapter 3 T M Moore talks about the methods for or approaches to praying the Psalms.  The illustration is made of a wheel with 6 spokes.  For the wheel to work all the spokes have to be in place and functioning properly.  On a wheel only 1 spoke is required to bear the weight of the load at any given time, the one that is perpendicular to the ground.  However since the wheel is in constant motion all the spokes must be strong and functioning, ready to serve as needed.

The whole idea of learning to pray the Psalms is to make the Psalms our own prayers.  This involves discipline and will allow us to be guided and informed as we compose our prayers before the Lord.

The 6 methods are: 

1. Verbatim praying
2. Paraphrasing praying
3. Praying over a Psalm
4. Responsive praying
5. Guided praying
6. A combination of all of these

In each instance a detailed description is given and examples from the Psalms appropriate to the heading.

In chapter 4 T M Moore looks at the barriers to praying the Psalms.  There is obviously the language of the Psalms as we need to change from the third person to the second person which in effect personalises the Psalms.  The second barrier is that there are many references to the Old Testament which need to be prayed in light of the New Testament categories for example references to the delivery from Egypt can lead us to think about our own deliverance salvation.  Praying through the Psalms on a regular basis helps us to recall and celebrate all his glorious and powerful work on our behalf enabling us increasingly to give him the praise and honour which are due him and help us to grow in love for him each day.

In chapter 5 T M Moore makes the statement that praying the psalms can contribute mightily to having a stronger and more vital spiritual life.  The evidence will be seen dramatically in 3 areas - the role of prayer, the vision of unseen things and our relationship with the Lord. 

When we pray we will have a greater sense of God`s presence, a greater consistency in prayer, more comprehensiveness in prayer, a greater sense of freedom and enrichment in all our prayers. 

Paul tells us that fixing our gaze on unseen realities can be a source of great strength in the midst of all kinds of trials.  We need to envision God`s glory - following God`s prayer program can help us to regain this sense of who God is and to see into the unseen realm where he rules in glory with Christ at his right hand.  The Jesus of the Psalms is a powerful ruler.  All the nations are in his hand and all his people together with all creation, jump to the service of his word and leap with joy at the prospect of his coming in judgement.  Praying the Psalms can enhance our ability to see Jesus in this role, exalted at the Father`s right hand, extending his rule over all the earth and coming again in judgment.  The Psalms present God`s love as steadfast and unfailing.  The images which the Psalms invite us to pray with thanksgiving are intended to fix in our minds the sense of God`s presence with us throughout all the days of our lives.  We begin to see the unseen world all around us, to experience the sudden intervention of angels, to be reminded of God`s promises by the whispered word of his Spirit.  By praying the Psalms we are reminded of how vast the world is and that the unseen world is a place of great energy where divine love is continuously directed towards us for our benefit and God`s glory.

Praying the Psalms will help in our relationship with the Lord and our prayer life will become more meaningful.  It will also strengthen our walk with the Lord.  This is true in 5 ways - the sense of God`s presence throughout the day, God`s glory in everyday experiences, strength for spiritual warfare, knowing greater joy and peace and more of the full and abundant life.

In the final chapter T M Moore encourages us to stay with the program.  Yes praying the Psalms will require more time and concentration in our prayers but there will be the challenge as we set ourselves to pray - how do I manage my time, how do I deal with distractions, how do I resist the devil and how can I be accountable.  T M Moore deals with all these issues in this chapter and gives encouragement to everyone attempting this program for the first time.


Now to put it into practice ...

At the end of the book there are schedules to follow.  The first is for praying the Psalms over the period of a month.  The second takes you through the Psalms in a week.  The last one is a suggested schedule for praying through the Psalms on a single day devoted to solitude with the Lord.

The first recommends 3 different periods of prayer during the day - morning, mid-day and evening devotions.  The morning consists of 3 periods of prayer, an initial prayer of praise and thanksgiving, a portion of Psalm 119 or another psalm related to sharing God in his word, which is to be used prior to bible reading or study, then a psalm of intercession to guide your morning prayers.  The mid-day period consists of various psalms of intercession, supplication or complaint.  The evening psalm is generally one of praise or resting in the Lord.

The second schedule recommends 7 periods of prayer.  In this schedule the Hebrew words indicated at the beginning of the devotions period or prayer represent sections of Psalm 119 and are usually marked as such in English bibles.  In this schedule an effort has been made to group Psalms related to the passion of our Lord at the times of the week when the events suggested would actually have taken place.

The last schedule suggests 2 approaches to praying through the psalms on a single day devoted entirely to prayer.

Whilst I enjoyed this book particularly the actual theory for praying, why we should pray, what prevents us from praying, the various types of prayers represented in the Psalms, I was left with the feeling of failure before I began!  How could I possiblly implement this program into my daily quiet time?  I like to know the background to a Psalm, who wrote it, when it was written, what it related to and for what purpose am I to think about. 

Just after reading this book my Pastor read a Psalm in our morning service.  It was Psalm 81 and although he did not preach directly from this Psalm I was beginning to see various things from this book which I could put into practice.  The Psalm opens with the encouragement to sing to God then relates back throughout the Psalm to various times in Israel`s history when God delivered them.  So this is a Psalm to encourage us to give God praise and glory for what he has done - it talks of the testimony of Joseph, how God answered the people of Israel when they asked for water at Meribah, God`s deliverance from Egypt then goes on to the time when Israel refused to listen to God and turned their backs on God.  When I thought of the verse that my Pastor took which was not in the Psalm - 2 Chronicles 7 verse 14 I suddenly could relate it to this Psalm because I read these words "but my people would not hearken to my voice and Israel would none of me.  So I gave them up unto their own hearts lust and walked in their own counsels.  Oh that my people had hearkened unto me and Israel had walked in my ways."  God directly spoke to me about not listening for his voice.  I immediately had to ask God`s forgiveness for all the times I had turned my back on him and went my own way and asked God to help me listen more attentively.  So perhaps this praying with the Psalms works!  Maybe I need to spend more time in the Psalms, to hear God speaking and to take on board what I need to do - repent and turn around yet again! I really will try and put some of the ideas into practice from this book over the coming weeks.