“…train yourself to be godly” (1 Tim 4:7 NIV).

The word “discipline” often gets a bad rap. When we think of discipline, we think of punishment. While it can mean this, it also has a positive meaning: training to help us grow and mold our character.

A few years ago, I learned my pastor focuses on one spiritual discipline a year. While I practice many spiritual disciplines such as reading and studying my Bible, praying, and community, I had never thought about focusing on a single discipline for the year until I heard him mention it.

In 2020, I’m working to include things in my life that will help me become more like Jesus. To reach this goal, I’ve chosen prayer as my spiritual discipline. Prayer and renew, my word of the year, go hand in hand. I’m implementing steps to develop a more intentional prayer life by writing in a prayer journal, reading plans in my Bible app about prayer, reading books about the practice of prayer, and taking prayer walks.

Jesus’s life is an example of how to live each spiritual discipline. He modeled prayer for us in the following ways:

1. Jesus taught the disciples how to pray. In Matthew 6:9-13 NIV, he told them, “This, then, is how you should pray.” We now know this prayer as the Lord’s Prayer, and it’s an example of how we should approach God: with reverence, worship, and dependence.
2. Jesus prayed for us. The entire chapter of John 17 is a prayer from Jesus. We see that he prayed for God to be glorified through him, he prayed for his disciples, and he prayed for us, the believers who would come along well after his life, death, and resurrection. We can use this prayer as a guide.
3. Jesus prayed alone. Jesus went away by himself to communicate with his Father in Matthew 26:36-46 and Mark 14:32-42. Here, he took Peter, James, and John with him, but they stood watch (and fell asleep) while Jesus pleaded with his Father.
4. Jesus promoted corporate prayer. Corporate prayer, or the act of praying together in groups, is seen throughout the New Testament. It’s about people coming together to seek God’s will. Jesus said, “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” (Mt 18:19-20 NIV).

Practicing spiritual disciplines allows me to partner with God to grow in his grace and produce the fruit he wants to see in me. I’m eager to see how God uses what I’m learning about prayer to help me grow closer to him and to other believers.

Dear Jesus, thank you for giving us so many examples of how to pray. As I focus on prayer this year, help me to learn and grow and become more like you. Amen.