You'd better spend much time in prayer

I'll never forget his response!

Quite a few months ago, I asked Larry Riley (pastor of the First Baptist Church in Clarksville, Tennessee) if he could do lunch and let me 'pick his brain.' I had some pastoral concerns and I really needed some insight.

So, as we sat in the booth of Chedder's and prepared to dig into the food that had been delivered to our table, I asked him, "How do you stay energized and passionate in the tasks of pastoring when you are getting bombarded on every side almost all the time?" Without taking a breath, Larry leaned forward, looked me straight in the eyes and asked, "How's your prayer life?"

His response reminded me of the answer I already knew. Much of pastoring feels like what Bilbo Baggins said about his own condition: "I feel thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread." Pastoring will be mentally and emotionally draining. If you don't work to keep the tank filled, you will hit "empty" and bad things always happen at that point.

How do you keep the tank full? You need to spend much time each day in prayer. You need to learn to take your concerns and frustrations to the Lord and find relief. You need to experience God's affirmation of you and your work in prayer. You need to simply enjoy the sweet fellowship with your Lord that is only possible as you regularly spend significant time with Him in prayer. 

So, I've got one question for you. I hope you will listen carefully and answer honestly. If you don't like your answer, then make the necessary adjustments. Because the effectiveness of your ministry (and your sanity) depend upon your answer to this question...

"How's your prayer life?"