It feels like I spend a lot of time praying these days.
My team has an initiative to pray often and specifically for the community we are in contact with. However, I find myself also entering into prayer and praying for random people that come to mind more consistently than I ever have before, in addition to the designated prayer times.
Whether that is because I have fewer people to talk to and so I spend more time talking to God, or because I am exercising the muscle of prayer - the intentional act of setting aside a designated time for prayer has created a routine which is becoming a rhythm.
During support raising, I prayed for God to raise up more harvesters at 9:37 in the morning and the evening. Now, I set aside 20 minutes a day, starting at 5:15pm, to correspond to one of the Muslim prayer times - praying for them as they pray. The routine of praying at a designated time every day has bled into a rhythm of prayer throughout the day.
If you have a mind to, I would encourage you to set aside a time, set an alarm, and have an accountability partner/group to enter into intentional prayer with.
Whether it is five minutes or an hour, it has changed the rhythms of my life and I hope it does for you too.
Suggested times:
9:37-38 am and pm - Pray for more harvesters (Matthew 9:37-38)
Early morning - Praise God for new mercies everyday (Lamentations 3:22-23). Give Him the day and pray for the people you will interact with.
At night - Look back on the day and talk to God about all the things that have happened - intentionally listening for His response.
Pray during the times that Muslims do their prayers - pray for Muslims to know Jesus.