Praying Like a Child

Ch 3 Become like a Little Child

Chapter 3 begins Part 1 ‘Learning to Pray like a Child’ of Paul Miller's book 'A Praying Life'. Much of the content is very similar to that given in the link you provided in the first post, Roger.

He gives an interesting and very helpful observation concerning the number of times Jesus either encourages his disciples to be like children or describes them as children. Paul Miller draws a lot on this image and one gets a fresh view of what prayer can be. In essence, as he says in the talk in the link, he applies the gospel to prayer. “Come overwhelmed with life. Come with your wondering mind. Come messy. Instead of being frozen by your self-preoccupation, talk with God about your worries.” Children don’t hold back, wondering what may be appropriate. Thinking about how I enjoy my young nephews and nieces sheds a whole new light, and they’re not even my children.

He refers to the time Nathanael met Jesus and sheds some light on the words of Christ which always left me wondering. After Nathanael had put down Nazareth as the last place one might expect a Messiah to come from he then meets Jesus who says “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Jesus ignores the slur to his family and background and “enjoys that Nathanael is real, without guile, a man who doesn’t pretend”. I find that a quite remarkable insight into how Jesus delights in people. How many times does he denounce the hypocrite? He chose someone like impulsive Peter as a disciple, a key disciple. He surrounds himself with uneducated fishermen, activists, and men whose sins are open to all, childlike men, Paul Miller suggests, and then tells them to ask for anything they want in his name.

I’ve often felt we’re too concerned about being ‘proper’. I get annoyed with myself at how easily I can slip into a solemn earnest drone when leading prayer in public, from a felt need to confirm to some caricature of tradition or something, who knows? Do you think we really grasp the depths of the prayers in the Psalms and prophets, their pleadings and questions? I wonder what my gut reaction would have been watching Eli and Hannah. I may not have condoned Eli’s rebuke but I suspect I’d have regarded Hannah’s behaviour as unfamiliar. Perhaps I need to recognise my helplessness more.

Ch 4 Learn to talk with your Father

This expands on the theme of asking like a child. “Don’t be embarrassed by how needy your heart is.” He notes that our childlike faith dies a thousand little deaths through disappointments and growing cynicism. I’ll be interested in how he approaches the unanswered prayer later on in the book.

One of the sections is titled “Learning to Play Again” and I confess I’m not entirely certain if ‘play’ is a helpful word. But he makes an interesting observation. Don’t grow anxious with a wondering mind in prayer, go with it. I’m going to work with that. I’ll keep my prayer list but I’ll aim to be less concerned with how I go from one item to the next.

The section that follows is titled “Learn to Babble Again”. I think I know what he means, don’t worry about getting the words exactly right just pray, but maybe the choice of the word ‘babble’ is unfortunate given the immediate verse that came to my mind was Matthew 6:7 “and when you pray, do not keep on babbling like the pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.” That’s the NIV which is still very much in my memory. The ESV has instead “do not heap up empty phrases”. I don’t think Paul Miller’s advice is contrary to this verse. Indeed praying like a child is perhaps the very opposite of repeating standard formulas which I believe Matt 6:7 is about.

I’ve read Ch5. The chapters are very short, which I always find helpful and usually encourages me to read on. But it does take time to think over and write about so I’ll leave it there.

I’ll be interested, Roger, in what you think of how far he pushes the picture of a child for the approach to prayer. I find it is challenging a part of my thinking, but I suspect it’s a part of my thinking that needs to be confronted, asked “how did you get in here?” and perhaps politely shown the door.