The Possibility of Prayer - A Review
The cliché trifecta of spiritual disciplines that get tossed out whenever we talk about discipleship in Christian circles are prayer, Bible reading, and attending church.
When discussing the application of Romans 12:1–2, “How do we get our minds transformed?” Pray, read the Bible, go to church. “How do we imitate Paul as he imitated Christ?” Pray, read the Bible, go to church.
If those aren’t the exact words you’ve heard for decades, they’re probably close, or you’ve recently come to Christ, or you grew up in a vastly different theological tradition. If so, just trust me, this is a thing.
There is plenty of encouragement for reading the Bible. It usually comes in a spurt around December and January every year when congregations print out Bible reading plans and encourage folks to read them. Many folks start out the year well exploring the contours of Genesis and then getting lost somewhere around February in the book of Leviticus. Like the rush of gym memberships, we do well for a little while at the beginning of the year, but life and the habits of our normal routine quickly conquer what feels like an added extra in the schedule.
At least there are resources for Bible reading. Prayer seems a much harder nut to crack.
John Starke’s book, The Possibility of Prayer: Finding Stillness with God in a Restless World, is a resource that many people may find useful in developing the spiritual discipline of prayer. The book begins with the assumption that prayer is not simply something that pastors and seminary professors—you know, the super saints—are called to do. Instead, prayer is both a duty and a privilege for all believers. He manages to make his case in a concise book that realistically anticipates the challenges for many believers to carve out time to pray.
The book is divided into two parts, each with six chapters. In part one, Starke explores the difficulties of prayer in our always-on, perpetually distracted world. The liquidity of modernity teaches us to believe that we are behind schedule and that if we simply devoted a little more time to productivity, we could get through the next project we would have a little breathing room for important, but non-essential stuff like prayer. The problem is that the breathing room never comes. Starke also works through the general difficulty of prayer. It is hard. Especially for those who have an instantaneous dopamine rush in their pockets at all times, the idea of sitting still for a few minutes to contemplate the holy and wait on the Divine seems impossible. Apart from God’s grace, it is, in fact. Starke’s argument is that prayer is hard, but that it is vitally important. The harder it gets because of cultural and personal stresses the more important it is. This theme sets up the second part of the book, which discusses the practical side of prayer.
In part two, Starke moves beyond his case for prayer into reflections on the practical side. In this portion of the book he tries to balance the more theoretical themes of practicing prayer with specific comments about the content of prayer. He successfully avoids duplicating the formula often offered—ACTS, mirroring the Lord’s Prayer, etc.—and instead works through life structures that can be vitally important to a life of prayer. This begins with seeing prayer as communion with God, rather than an opportunity to self-improve or get a shopping list before the almighty. That approach to prayer shapes the way that we pray, which opens us up to a Christian approach to meditation (not the mind-emptying approach of some Eastern varieties, but a mindful contemplation of God, his attributes, and his goodness). Prayer, however, requires solitude. That is exactly what it is hardest to obtain in our always-on world. We are addicted to the tools that are keeping us from God on a regular basis. Prayer should also include patterns of fasting and feasting. We fast from worldly goods (media and food) for the purpose of prayer and to be reminded of our reliance on God. We should end those fasts with a feast—a rich fellowship with others in celebration of God’s goodness. Starke also highlights the importance of other spiritual rhythms for developing a life of prayer, especially Sabbath and regular participation in corporate worship. It becomes apparent by the end of this portion of the book that prayer is more than what one does for a few minutes a day, but it is a pattern of life that is God-centric and deliberately distinct from the patterns of this world.
The Possibility of Prayer may not have been the best title for this work, because the content of the book goes well beyond the particular act of prayer into habits of life that lead to holiness. To be fair, these are also habits of life that enable to practice of prayer. My criticism of the title is, therefore, muted, but it is possible for someone to pick up this book expecting a more detailed how-to manual or at least a range of options with specific instructions. That is not what is offered in this book. Starke would have had to write a different book.
The book Starke did write is encouraging, Scripture-saturated, and helpful. Someone might pick up this book and find they got something different from what they expected, but they would still be getting something worthwhile.
In particular, Starke walks through a number of Psalms in the book, highlighting their importance as prayers to God. They are, in one sense, example prayers for us as we seek the words to communicate with the Almighty. Rather than simply stating that and offering a formula for praying the Psalms, Starke provides an example of how the Psalms can enrich our prayer life.
Additionally, The Possibility of Prayer, challenges the busyness of our culture—the very characteristic that seems to make prayer impossible. As we try to put together a plan for holiness in the rubble of civilization, this is the sort of book that can remind us why certain bricks are to be avoided.
NOTE: I received a gratis copy of this volume from the publisher with no expectation of a positive review.
The way we talk about humans also has moral implications, which are more significant than how we treat our pets. In his 2011 book, Less than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave, and Exterminate Others, David Livingstone Smith explores how language changes culture and leads to the justification of extreme violence against others, especially when they become perceived as less than human.