A Praying Life: Connecting With God In A Distracting World

A fantastic book at giving the insight into the author, Paul Miller, and his own prayer life, both the hardships, the wins, and the lessons learned. I was very challenged by this book and feel as though I will read it again in the future just to continue to get reminders of what prayer is at the basis, and why the importance of prayer is so great. Paul also poses challenging questions around things such as why “God permits difficult situations in our lives” or how laments in the biblical sense can actually be something that draw us closer to God.

Some quotes that stuck out to me and challenged me among many others are

“You don't create intimacy; you make room for it.” ... no matter who you're talking about, friends or God, “You need space to be together. Efficiency, multitasking, and busyness all kill intimacy. In short, you can't get to know God on the fly. If Jesus has to pull away from people and noise in order to pray, then it makes sense that we need to as well.”

“When you stop trying to control your life and instead allow your anxieties and problems to bring you to God in prayer, you shift from worry to watching. You watch God weave his patterns in the story of your life. Instead of trying to be out front, designing your life, you realize you are inside God's drama. As you wait, you begin to see him work, and your life begins to sparkle with wonder. You are learning to trust again.”