You wake up in the morning to pray, and it just seems like the energy to pray isn't there. It's time to go to church but then it's like you would rather embrace your bed or go some other place. It’s quite embarrassing to admit it but it does happen.
The question is, why is it happening? I may not know all the reasons why but I can list and talk about some. This is not to judge and condemn you, but to open your eyes to see.
1. Sheer Laziness: You’ve made yourself too comfortable by continuously postponing your time with God. it has happened so much that it becomes a habit and now you see yourself making excuses not to spend time with God for no particular reason. You are in a relationship with your father and you should understand that he wants a communion with you, he wants to have a companion in you. Solving this is about building self discipline also by yielding to and obeying the voice of the Holy spirit. My last paragraph will emphasised more.
2. Distractions: This could in different forms like that interesting movie series taking all your time that you keep pushing your time with God forward. For example, you’ve spent time on that series, now its 11pm and you are tired and very stressed. Then you are like " I don’t think I have the strength to study the word and pray anymore". So you sleep or you mumble a few words of prayer and sleep off.
Distractions can come from the type of company you keep, there are friends who may not be in one accord with you. What they are after is different from what you are after and before you realise it, your priority changes because they keep coming in the way of your time with God and fellowship with the saints. You may also be too embarrassed to pray before them because you feel they will judge you for being "too spiritual " or you think they may feel judged because you are too spiritual. Your friends should know who you are from the very beginning. Strive to be a light to them instead of dimming your light to fit in. If you can’t influence their lives as a believer, stay away and with love from your heart, pray for them. The bible says in the book of acts, that the disciples were in one accord. When you are in one accord, your aim is same. Some may keep you busy doing what is actually of no use to you while some may just be in your face all the time giving you no room to spend time with God. Are your relationships distracting you instead of encouraging you to get closer to God?
3. Trials: This one can hit one so hard that sometimes it makes you wonder if there is any need to pray. The devil may make you feel God has disappointed you and you may be so pained that you don’t want to talk to God at all. Sometimes you may face situations that may make you think prayer can’t help you, which is an obvious lie from the devil. You may also face situations that tend to occupy you all the time that you unintentionally forget to spend time with God.
If you are facing trials, it's tempting to keep God far but that's when you should hold him closer. We are in this body and will face trials but you should know God is with you through it, even if the trial you are facing seems like the world is crumbling at your feet. God wants the best for you and he always will. Romans 8 says that we may face whatever we face but nothing can separate us from the love God has towards us and in all of it, in him, we are more than conquerors. God has a way of giving us peace despite the presence of turbulence around us.
4. Schedule: You may feel your schedule is too tight that putting prayer or time with God in it will disrupt things. It may be you just realising halfway into your day or when it's almost over that you haven't spent time with God. If you feel you are busy, God wants to be a part of that busy life. When you involve God in your life, you walk in his wisdom and by his grace. Your strength renewed in him too.
5. Condemnation: The bible says there's therefore now no condemnation for them that are in Christ Jesus - Roman's 8 vs 1. God has the power to forgive sins, no matter how bad you think it is, he has forgiven you. Forgive yourself and move on.
There could be several other reasons which I may not know about, but your time with God is above this reasons.
As much as we shouldn't make spending time with God a religious and forced act or something you just have to do to get it done with. Understand that spending time with God is intentional. I may not know exactly what everybody’s reason who is going through this phase is but I know you have to be intentional about your time with God. Your knowledge of God opens your eyes to see more than just the ordinary or beyond what an unbeliever can see.
As much as you pray, spend time with God in his word. Spending time with God aligns you with the purpose to which he has called you and then you know why you are here and how to fulfil that purpose with God by yourside. God is your maker, he's planned your life and ignorantly living off God's plan or will for you isn't ideal. A product manufacturer knows why he's made a product and if he/she doesn't state the function of it or if the users don't work closely with the product manual and abide by its rules, that product can't accomplish it's purpose. This is a mere product or a mere machine but then you are made in the image of God, to be like him and to live like him. If you don’t walk closely with him, you may never know who you are and how you ought to live. Our lives as Christians is centered around God and if you are not making God the center of your living, then you are not actually living. The bible says, in him we live and move and have our being. Please don’t miss out on fellowship with God. I may not have stated that reason of yours but consider it, pray about it, study the word and allow God lead you right on what to do but then you have to be intentional about it. Aside going close to God just for what we want from him or when we need something, let’s get close to be filled with the knowledge of him and of who he is.
