The more you study prayer—and the more you pray—the more you realize there’s a lot to know. It can actually be intimidating.

So I came up with a saying to help keep my brain on the right track:

Pray consistently, whole-heartedly, and expectantly in Jesus’ name. 

[I walk through this statement step-by-step in my podcast called “When you pray like it doesn’t matter” which you can link to here.]

When it comes to praying “whole-heartedly” we often fall short. When we doubt that God can actually bring any real change to our situation or to our requests, it means we’re being half-hearted (and not whole-hearted) in our prayers.

A symptom of this is when your mind continually wanders. I realize it happens sometimes. It happens to me too. But when your mind is ALWAYS wandering, maybe it’s because you’re thinking of prayer like a religious box to tick instead of a profound opportunity to speak with the Creator and King of the universe.

So here’s a helpful corrective. In Matthew 6:6 Jesus says, “when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father…” When you do that, why not try praying out loud?

When you pray out loud, your words are more likely to be honest, conversational, and focused.

Will it be perfect? Probably not. But it sure can help. And it will most likely take you to the next level.

So if you’re having trouble keeping your head in the game, find a place alone and pray out loud.

You’re more likely to be honest, conversational, and focused as you meaningfully interact with the Creator and King of your soul.

By Matthew Ruttan