The Discipline of Daily Prayer

A sermon preached by Father Dwight D. Duncan, ssc, Rector, St Matthias, Dallas, Texas
25 August 2002 - The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Year A, Proper 16)

Scripture: Psalm 138


Over the years, groups of Christians have asked me to share with them about how to be aware of God's presence and response to their prayers. Following one such engagement, a participant approached me, saying that she had never been aware of God's presence nor of any particular response of his to her.

Immediately, several comments and questions came to me. But the one which my mind grabbed hold of – or, perhaps, which grabbed hold of my mind – was this: "Tell me about your prayer life." "My what?", the woman responded . "Your prayer life," I repeated.

"Well," she began, "on most Sundays I go to Mass and I've done lots of work in the church: teaching, serving on Vestry ... you know, the usual stuff." "Very good," I said. "So you take your part in the great prayer of the Church, now and again. I must tell you the irregularity of this, however, is working against your connection with God. But I wasn't asking you about your participation in the corporate prayer of God's community. I'm interested in your prayer life throughout the week. Any special time each day for prayer?"

"Goodness, no," the lady replied. "I don't have time for that." "Oh?" said I, "Well, that's a major source of your problem. God's postcards can't get into a mailbox which isn't open."

A moment ago, we sang (said) the words of the Psalmist: "When I called thee, thou didst hear me, and endued my soul with much strength." What is the pre-condition the Psalmist expresses for his reception of God's strengthening him? I mean, what is it which opens up the Psalmist to the awareness of God with him, God's strengthening him? .......... It is his calling upon God, his turning his attention to God and waiting upon God. In other words, it is his prayer.

I must admit to you that even after decades of a disciplined daily prayer life, I find myself still waging battle against slippage. How easy it is for me to find reasons for setting aside my daily time with God. Believe me, when the lady of my story retorted to me that she didn't have time for that, I didn't judge her ... I had to keep myself from blurting out, "You and me both, sister."

You know what I mean. There all those things in our lives demanding attention ... and there are all those things to which one would rather give one's attention because they keep you busy and make you feel you're doing something worthwhile or at least accomplishing something ... much more worthwhile and accomplishing than a time of prayer can seem, when it goes as if you are addressing yourself to a silent void.

And so there are times I will let a day, or days, go by without personal time with God. Until I realize how depleted I am, how less effective I am, how much more quickly all of you are driving me crazy! And, yes, I will admit it, until I realize what a jackass I'm being to you! And there it is: good reason ... for I've been running on my own steam, disconnected from the river of God's grace.

The issue, you see, is not one of God's giving his attention to us. The fundamental fact of our creaturely existence is that God is constantly, continuously, attentive to us. If but for a milli-second, God turned his attention away from you and ceased to be aware of that thought which you are in his great mind, then you would cease to exist; it would be as if you had never been.

No, the issue is our attentiveness to God, whether we are open mailboxes or not. Notice that the Psalmist said he was aware of God's hearing him and increasing his strength because he, the Psalmist, called upon God: "When I called thee, thou didst hear me, and endued my soul with much strength." When I called. If you do not call, how can you be aware of an answer, or receive one?

Every single one of us needs to establish and labor to keep a discipline of daily prayer, a set time everyday which belongs to you and God alone, to visit together, to be with one another. Such a discipline is not peculiar to Christians. Our Jewish forebears knew the need of it. As a practicing Jew, the Psalmist observed such a discipline not once, but four times a day, stopping everything and turning towards God.

It is possible for every single one of us to establish such a discipline, whether you be a traveling salesperson, a real estate broker, an office worker, a parish priest, or a parent with wild, little children about! Of course, it requires you to order your life and to order it in relationship to the lives of those around you.

But it is possible, yes even with energetic little critters in your care, and well I know: my sons grew up with a mother who met with God every day. During her audience with God, my wife, Jean, ordered Jeremy and Joshua to their rooms for time to themselves, or with one another. And they were under this order (and threat!): "Don't bother me unless you're bleeding." Jean is still at it: now she is at prayer at 6:30 in the morning, before leaving for school at 7. And I must kiss her good-bye before she starts loving on God!

The discipline of daily prayer is not for the purpose of making you feel good nor is its value dependent upon your awareness of getting anything out of it. It is for the purpose of fixing your soul on its proper center: which is not yourself, but God. In setting you upon him, the discipline helps you to receive his grace, a gift all of us desperately need to deal well with the life he sends or allows us. Further, in turning us towards God, the daily discipline of prayer sensitizes the eyes, ears and hands of our souls to what God will show us, say to us and give to us in the daily events of our lives, outside the time of prayer.

All of us know the discipline which friendship requires of us: the first thing you must do to make a friend of someone is to give them your attention ... take it off yourself and give it to them. But that beginning is also the necessary ingredient by which the friendship continues, grows, and bestows its blessing: attention, regular attention, given to one another. We should not try to get God more cheaply than we do our human friends. It just won't wash.


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