A Virtuous Woman of Prayer
Written by Jennifer P.

Lord, I have shut the door,
Speak now the word
Which in the din and throng
Could not be heard;
Hushed now my inner heart,
Whisper Thy will,
While I have come apart,
While all is still.

Dear ladies, I have been thinking much about what to write for this month’s topic “Becoming a Virtuous Woman,” and the thought that I first had was, “Well, I need to pray about it.” That thought of prayer stuck in my head. I could not get it out. So I have chosen to discuss becoming a virtuous woman through prayer. This is an area that is covered extensively in the scriptures, and even though it is never mentioned in the passages of a woman’s role, yet I believe that prayer is an integral part of our spiritual growth. Prayer is the means by which we talk to God, sharing with Him our needs, fears, praises, and intercessions for others. John MacArthur in his book “Lord, Teach me to Pray” expressed beautifully the deep connection of prayer in a Christian’s life: “Prayer is like breathing for Christians. When you don’t pray, you’re holding your breath spiritually—fighting the very existence and presence of God in your life.”

As women, prayer should become like breathing for us. “Pray without ceasing” (I Thess 5:17). As future wives, it will be our role to support our husbands and children in prayer. As single women, we must develop that role by praying for what pertaineth unto us now. It takes time to develop a strong prayer life. This is an area that I know I need to work on myself. We rush about so much during the day and when we do stop to pray, we find our minds wandering to other tasks or falling asleep! And yet the Bible instructs us to pray! It not only instructs us to, but it commands us to. How can we do this?

First, spend some time alone with God. You will never be able to focus on prayer if you are distracted by the things of this world and the whirlwind of life. David in the Psalms said, “Early will I seek Thy face.” He prayed at morning, noon, and evening. I have been trying to make prayer my first thought in the morning before I get out of bed and the last thought as I am going to sleep at night. It is not always easy, but God knows my heart. Find a time that works best for you.

Second, think about the content of your prayers. This applies even to our praying without ceasing. Do you just say “Thank you Lord for this food; may it nourish us and strengthen us, Amen.” every time you sit down and eat? Do you rush through your prayers? Stop a few minutes longer and thank the Lord for his gracious provision for the present and His provision of the future. Ask for His help during the next part of your day and ask that your actions in the next few hours may be pleasing to Him. Mention a request that someone may have mentioned to you before you sat down to eat. Thank Him for the company you are enjoying during your meal. It may take some thought, but I know you will be able to make your prayers much more meaningful than just, “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food.”

Third, write down your prayer requests. This helps you to remember the long term requests as well as the ones mentioned to you just a few seconds before you went to prayer. You can categorize them (don’t I wish I were that organized!) into family, friends, personal needs, missionaries, etc. This will also help you to keep your thoughts focused. A friend of mine gave me a beautiful prayer journal last year that I need to put to more use. I write my prayers down, sometimes things that I did not pray for in my prayer time, but that were also in my heart. What a blessing it is to read back over those prayers and see the ones that have been answered. I have seen a growth in the depth of my prayers by seeing what I used to pray for. I don’t write in it every day, but I try to use it at least once a week.

Fourth, pray scripturally informed prayers. Pray God’s promises back to Him. There are several wonderful examples of prayers in Paul’s writings and we are even given glimpses into Christ’s prayer life. What greater example could we ask for than that? I have often tried to use Paul’s prayers when praying for my friends’ spiritual growth (Col 1: 9-11, Phil 1:3-6, etc.). Christ said to pray in His name, even better to pray in His words.

Sweet is the hour of prayer. You will find that the more time you spend in prayer, the closer you will draw to God, and the more you will desire to spend time in prayer. I find that sometimes I have to skip my morning prayer time for some reason and wish I had had it through the rest of the day. I talk to God and pour out my heart to Him. I ask Him for His wisdom and for His provision. I ask Him for the help my friends’ needs. Nothing is too small to pray about. During the day, I will mentally say small prayers to help me face a situation or to praise God for His goodness. When He answers your prayer, don’t forget to thank Him! It brings our thoughts back to the fact that God is the one who provided, not us.

I will never forget dear Mrs. B. and the sweet person she was before she died. Her sweet spirit developed out of continual study of God’s word and prayer. She prayed for everything and every one. It was said of her that when she died, the Church lost its greatest prayer warrior. It was very special to have her say to you one day out of the blue, “I prayed for you today.” If you asked her to pray for something, you knew that request would be faithfully prayed for until it was answered. She also prayed that we would be blessed in whatever that answer turned out to be. Oh, to be like Mrs. B. and have a prayer life like that! I have a huge book that a friend gave me containing the entire works of E. M. Bounds on Prayer. One of these days (hopefully very soon) I will pick it up and read it. John MacArthur’s book really taught me a lot about prayer and I know I still have a lot to learn. But I am convinced that by developing a stronger prayer life, I will grow spiritually stronger and continue in my struggle to become a virtuous woman. One day I will marry a godly young man and when I do, I hope my prayers will be some of the strongest support he has in this world. Let us bow our heads and knees before our sovereign God, surrender our wills, and ask “Lord, teach me to pray.”