praying with an alert mind

The other week I was making my way to Paisley University for a workshop on a topic related to my new job. Near the campus a bus drew away from a stop and at the same time a girl jumped to her feet from the shelter to try and hail it down. Too late! Because I was approaching I saw exactly what happened. The girl was so engrossed on her mobile phone that the bus approached, passengers got on, and it then drove away, without her realising it…until, of course, it was too late.  

If staying alert is important at a bus stop how much more is it crucial in our walk with God.

I love David’s words in this regard when he prayed in Psalm 5:

“Give ear to my words, O Lord,

Consider my groaning.

Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,

For to You I pray.

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;

In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.”

(Psalm 5:1-3)

I believe that when David uses the word ‘watch’ it indicates that he is seeking to pray with an alert mind. 

The apostle Paul uses similar language when he says, “devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful” (Colossians 4:2).

True prayer involves ‘keeping alert.’ In its most basic sense, that means to stay awake and not fall asleep during prayer. While in Gethsemane, Jesus “returned to his disciples and found them sleeping and said to Peter, ‘Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation; the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak’” (Matthew 26:40-41). It is impossible to pray while sleeping. And that is why, like David, mornings are a good time to pray.

Paul’s thought, however, is much broader than mere physical alertness. He also means that Christians should look for the things they ought to be praying about. We sometimes pray vague general prayers that are difficult for God to answer because they do not really ask anything specific. To be devoted in prayer requires something specific to pray for. We will never persistently pray for something we are not concerned about. And to be concerned, we must be alert to specific needs. 

One of the joys of my life has been climbing the hills of central Scotland over the last few years with my dog, Bella. I’m constantly inspired by her love for the open hillside. She is so incredibly aware of her surroundings; her sense of smell and her auditory capacities are truly remarkable. She alert to all that’s going on around her and responds immediately to it, especially when sheep or deer are involved.

That is the kind of alertness that David exhibited in Psalm 5 and that Paul exhorted the Christians of Colosse to display.

If our own experience is any guide, there is a real possibility that the Colossians had grown sleepy in prayer, and failure to ‘watch and pray’ had made them poor guardians when the testing crisis came.

God’s Word issues the call to watch and pray…to be alert to the specific needs of our family, church fellowship and the people within it…to pray for community and country with a focused and alert mind and heart.