One of the greatest gift the Lord has given us is the ability to come to Him in prayer and receive from Him by faith. However, many Christians lack the prayer life that our Lord desires for them, to have the intimate relationship that Jesus came to provide for us. A 2023 Pew Research Center study found that only 68% of Christians pray once a week, and only 45% daily. And a 2021 Lifeway Research study found that those Christians who did pray daily, their prayers usually ranged from 5-10 minutes.
When we neglect prayer and lack the dedication to it that the Lord desires us to have, it will deeply effect our lives. Meeting with the Lord only an hour or two a week is like trying to win the strongest man in the world contest by lifting weights an hour or two a week, then expecting to win. You would be laughed at, called dumb and could never win. It is the same in spiritual things. If you are not strong in the Lord and the power of His might you will have very weak faith and be overcome by satanic influence.
A lukewarm prayer life will lead you to being spiritually weak. And that lack of spiritual strength will hinder you from accomplishing what God has called you to do and your ability to live victorious in Christ.
That’s not the only thing though. In fact, there’s a whole list of problems that arise when we neglect prayer. A weak prayer life can cause a person to be easily led astray by popular, but unbiblical teachings. I have seen countless people who have fallen for doctrines of devils and demonic signs and wonders that they would not have if they just stayed with the Word of God and had a strong prayer life.
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; – Luke 18:1 KJV
When we neglect prayer, we open ourselves up to being drawn away from fulfilling what God has called you to do. That’s exactly what happened to Peter and the disciples. Jesus was trying to get them to pray in the Garden, but they were overcome by demonic oppression and could not even stay awake. I have experienced this before. Because they were not prayed up, they all scattered and Peter denied the Lord.
Neglecting prayer can lead to a lack of intimacy with God, making it difficult to hear His voice and know what He wants you to do. If I get too busy in administrative things of ministry and natural activities I become insensitive to spiritual things. It hinders my ability to understand what the Spirit of God is saying unto my spirit. Yes, we do live in the natural world, but when natural things become more important than spiritual things, we become dull spiritually. I have discovered that the more I give myself to prayer, the more spiritually sensitive I become. I am able to pray about things the Spirit of God reveals to me that will enhance my anointing and ministry. I am also able to pray my way out of traps the devil has set for me because the Spirit of God shows me how to avoid them. I also find that gifts of the Spirit operate through me more frequently and I see and know things supernaturally.
We cannot merely go through the motions of religion. There are many, not you of course, who have church without Jesus Christ due to a lack of prayer. This is because prayer is the missing link between God and the Church.
There is much, much more that happens when we neglect prayer, but hopefully this has encouraged you to become more diligent in not neglecting it. God is with us!
