There are some Christians who wonder as to how long their prayer times should be in order to consider themselves a "true believer."
Some who are involved in prayer groups like to spend longer prayer times, while some who just focus on discipleship groups and church events like to pray less and do more of the other things.
Seriously, how long should a "true" Christian pray? How many hours should a Christian spend in prayer to become "intimate" with God? How long should a Christian pray to be able to call himself a "true Christian"?
Let's talk about that.
When length of duration is given much emphasis
Friends, being a "true" Christian is not dependent on the number of hours spent praying. The Lord Jesus spoke of some who pray longer times, but aren't necessarily following God's will:
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation." (Matthew 23:14)
There are also some who pray repeatedly, thinking that praying again and again will make their "Christianity" valid or will show that they are authentic followers of Christ. To this, the Lord Jesus also has some words to say:
"And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words." (Matthew 6:7)
Still, there are others who pray, but their prayers aren't acceptable to God. The Lord Jesus speaks thus,
""Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.' And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."" (Luke 18:10-14)
It's not just the amount of time
Friends, the amount of time spent isn't really the most important thing to consider when praying. It's what we pray about.
We can spend longer hours in prayer but miss the heart of God. Why is that? It's because we're not praying right (see James 4:3 for example).
Prayer is always a two-way communication with God, with the intention of communing with Him -- with us as His children in Christ, and Him as our Father through Christ.
Think about it: when we spend time with our earthly fathers or mothers, even with our friends, do we think about the amount of time we should spend so that we could be considered "true children" or "true friends"?
In the same way, do we become God's children by staying inside the room to pray self-seeking prayers? No.
We become God's children only through faith in Christ:
"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:12-13)
As God's children, we will naturally want to spend good quality time with our Father. While the amount of time we spend praying to Him indicates how much we prioritize Him, the quality of the time spent praying to Him also matters as much.
I pray that when we, as His children, spend time with Him, we'll want that it will never end.
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
