Appointed Time

Prayer is as much a habit as it is also a devotion. At least it should be. As discussed in the lesson on spiritual disciplines, prayer is one of those disciplines. There are some things that you can do to help you establish the discipline of prayer. One thing is to establish a time that is reserved for nothing but prayer. This time slot serves as a standing appointment, which should be jealously guarded. With time this appointment for prayer becomes a way of life.

Does such a measure as this move us from discipline to legalism? Not if we view prayer properly. But if we think of prayer as a duty that must be completed to make God happy with us, then we are already guilty of legalism. The appointment of a certain time does not make us a legalist—our hearts do. Legalism is a frame of mind that flows from the heart thinking that something we do can save us, keep us saved, or gain us favor with God.

But as we already stated, prayer is an overflow of our hearts’ love and joy. We pray because we desire to express our love to our Lord as well as to express our heart’s desires. But there are forces arrayed against us to try to prevent us from praying. Our flesh and the devil are opposed to communion with God. Thus, habits—like an appointed time—help to counter these enemies.

David practiced this habit. It seems that the mornings were David’s appointed times. (Psalms 5:3): “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up.”