Adam Dressler - This Is How We Pray: Discovering a Life of Intimate Friendship with God

The wish to pray is a prayer in itself.

Georges Bernanos

I believe that everyone is interested in prayer, even if only marginally. Prayer is one of those things that continues to remain universal, throughout different times and places. We know that we arent alone. Whether its through religion or astronomy or a hike in the woods or a boat on the open water, we want to reach out to whatever else is out there in the universe, hoping to make contact with something that affirms what we already knowthat there are parts of our insides that simply cannot accept that life is merely physical. So we stretch out our hearts, in whatever ways we know how, to try to connect with whatever exists outside of our physical lives.

Is this not the basis of every prayer ever prayed?

There are numerous books on prayer that men and women far more advanced in its art and mystery than I am have already written. So why another one?

Books about prayer tend to fall into a few categories. Some of these books are written from a place of theology, meaning that their authors set out to explore the many different beliefs that inform why we should pray, and what we should think about prayer. Other books are written from a place of practicetheir authors focus more on the devotional aspect of prayer, exploring the specific techniques we can strive to master in order to experience a deeper, more fulfilling life of prayer.

I want to get this out there from the beginning: this book will probably fail at both of these. I am neither an expert theologian, equipped with the knowledge and intellect to wrestle prayer into a submission of the mind, nor a particularly pious man, armed with a quiver of rapturous prayer experiences that will move your heart.

The truth is, I am a fairly average person. I grew up in a typical Midwestern home. My mother raised us kids in our small-town Presbyterian church, faithfully taking us to worship services on most Sunday mornings, modeling for us the importance of things like singing hymns, giving some of your money to God, and spending an extra half-hour in the church lobby after everyone else has already left so you can talk with the elderly widow who is lonely and just wants someone to listen to her share about her flowers and her sons and how much she misses her husband.

My father is a generous man who worked hard and made sure that we never wanted for anything and, in his own way, modeled for us a different kind of faith. It wasnt until much later in his life that he began a relationship with God, showing us that its never too late to start something new and that God answers our prayers. But sometimes he takes his time.

I say all of this to let you in a bit on who is actually writing these wordswhich is important. I want you to know that I didnt grow up the son of a preacher. I didnt spend my vacations in a monastery. Ive never led a crusade and I am surprisingly ineffective in most of the evangelistic attempts I make. I have shockingly little of the Bible memorized. As you will see in this book, I often prefer sleeping in over getting up early to pray, and in many ways, I am still very much a beginner in the mystery of prayer.