Developing a Prayer Life in Seminary: Two Perspectives

Two seminarians chime in on the importance of developing a prayer life in seminary.

1. Luke Urban

Luke attends Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. He graduated from TCU in 2010 and loves all things Fort Worth. He is studying to go into student ministry.

Developing a prayer life is important as you go through seminary life. It is important because of the busyness of your schedule, to prepare you for future ministry, and to equip you lead your family.

One of the reasons why you want to develop a prayer life in seminary is because of the busyness of the semester. There is so much reading that you will have to do it is important to have a prayer life that is growing and developing. It is essential that God is changing your heart knowledge not just your head knowledge. If we are going into ministry, we have to make sure that we have a growing faith and that we are not stagnant in our walk with God. A growing prayer life in seminary is evident of a mature Christian.

The second main reason to develop a prayer life in seminary is to prepare you for future ministry. In ministry, you are going to have to balance many different things on a tight schedule. That is why it is important to have a consistent prayer life. Also, if our prayer life is not growing then our witness to our non believers and those in the church will not be as strong. When our prayer life is growing, then consequentially our faith is growing.

The third main reason to develop a strong prayer life is important in training your family. God may call you to get married one day, when that day comes you need to be prepared to lead your life in prayer. Prayer should be an essential building block of your marriage. Also, it is important that you are able to teach your kids how to pray and model a life of godly character to them. When we pray with our kids it models how to surrender and abide in Christ daily.

Lastly, developing a prayer life in seminary aligns us with where God wants us to go. When we develop a prayer life in seminary, we can feel God’s guiding to where he wants us to serve and who he wants us to serve. If our prayer life is growing, then we will be able to see and hear the Holy Spirit’s leading and guidance in our lives. Our prayer life will show if we are abiding in Christ or not abiding in Christ. The definition of abiding in Christ means that we are in God’s presence daily, surrendering situations to God.

Developing a prayer life is important for ministry, it guides us, it trains our future family, and helps balance our schedule. When we dedicate ourselves to our prayer life then it will produce fruit in our lives and growth in our relationship with Jesus Christ. Lastly, a growing prayer life in seminary is essential for a maturing believer in Jesus Christ. It is evident of God’s growth in us and his conforming process in our lives. A prayer life is important for all that are going into ministry.

2. Timothy Sudolcan

Timothy lives in Fort Worth, TX with his wife Melissa. He is working on his M.Div. at Southwestern Seminary. After Seminary, he plans on pursuing a ministry position while also writing fiction books. Be sure to check out his blog at Onaclodus, and follow his adventure.

How often do we need to pray? What does prayer look like? How can I know I’m doing it right? Often, the interesting aspect of beginning seminary life is not the amount of security you find, but the lack of depth you uncover.

It was during my first semester, finals week quickly approaching, that I discovered a lack of prayer. How could I be so blind? I was reading the books. I was writing the papers. I was learning more and more about the God I love. Why was I so incredibly stressed out? The answer came in the midst of me having a mini-panic attack. Now, I’m normally a pretty relaxed guy. It takes a lot to get me from relaxing to worrying, but I had found my breaking point. I had found the end of my rope.

I didn’t want to admit that I was slowly drifting away from God. I didn’t want to admit that I left my quiet time months ago. The same excuses drifted into my mind. I needed to focus on school. I needed to learn more. I was now a seminary student. My relationship with God was supposed to come easy. I wanted to believe I was growing closer to God, when in fact, I had turned away from him.

During my meltdown, my wife sat with me and helped me see the truth. I was learning about God, but I was not learning with him. I was trading other’s words and experiences for my own. I was trading the warmth of his presence for the chill of my mind.

I can already see you reading this and laughing, “Come on! Everyone knows this stuff.”
Honestly, I would have probably said the same thing. I knew that I needed to pray. I knew that I needed to talk and walk with God, but I still faltered. So, either I had lied to myself and believed in a truth that I actually did not hold to, or I simply stumbled. Of course, I would love to sit here and say that it was the latter, but I think it was actually a mixture of both.

My mind is a jumble of mess most of the time. Trying to understand why I do things can come across as a nightmare for the logical thinker. It often is not black and white. Sometimes, as Paul would attest to, I do the things I know I shouldn’t do.

So why am I saying all this? Why am I proving the point that I stumbled in my prayer life and that I don’t really know the whole reason? I’m saying all this to point back to the beauty of Christ. You may not understand why you suddenly fell back into sin. You may not understand why you are having a hard time getting up in the morning and opening up the word. All that being said, there is one thing that is understandable: God calls us to come. We don’t have to sit and try and figure out the reasoning behind our failures. God calls us to come.

The fact of the matter is, God doesn’t give us all the answers. Often he merely says, “Come here and trust me.” I went through a hard time my first semester in seminary, but it was beautiful. During those times, I felt my heart ache for God. My heart didn’t ache for good grades, or completion of papers. My heart ached for his presence.

I know it seems simple, but most of the time we don’t need deep theological truths to bring us back to Christ. Most of the time, we need the gentle reminder that Christ is enough. Most of the time, we need a simple word that will guide our heart back to our true love.

I want to leave you with a verse God has laid on my heart.
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” —Col 4:2

This is a verse I look at when I pray. Wherever you are in your walk right now, seek him. Your surroundings often have a way of quieting the voice of the Holy Spirit. Distance yourself from distractions and approach the wonders of the cross.

Be active in prayer. Be steadfast in prayer. Be in prayer.