What is the ideal amount of times to pray a day?

[SlavicBaptist]

I'm not sure, I usually pray once a day (night). What do you think?

[Betty]

I don't think there is a set amount. I pray all during the day. Even when washing dishes, I will often talk to God about an issue I am having or someone who I feel led to pray for. You can have little mini prayers through out the day. Hope this helps.
betty

[mikhen7]

I too, all through the day! In Bible college I had a professor who would never pray until he had a shower and was dressed. He wanted to be presentable to God. I respect that. But really I think you should give the new day to the Lord each morning and ask for His guidance for the day and His wisdom to help you make correct and wise decisions, after all, every morning his mercy is new for us--maybe we should thank Him for it!!

God Bless!!

[readytogo]

In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul writes:

16 Rejoice evermore.

17 Pray without ceasing.

18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

It's pretty impossible to "pray without ceasing" and still get anything accomplished in life. Prayer is simply talking to God. What we are to do is talk to God any chance that we get---while driving, when waiting for the bus, when preparing meals, etc. We don't have to stop everything that we're doing for a formal time of prayer constantly. We can "pray as we go". Many Christians also set aside time in them morning before they even get out of bed, and then do the same thing before they go to sleep at night. You have to "work out" for yourself the times that you want to talk to God. Giving thanks to God is appropriate all of the time.

[LivnForChrist]

I pretty much pray throughout the day.

[mattfivefour]

Yep, continual communion with God, even while doing the work of this world. That is how we are to live. And that does not come from trying to be like that—it comes from allowing God to take control of us, daily submitting ourselves to Him, daily feeding on His Word and praying that He take that Word and work it into obedience in us. When our lives revolve around Him, He will fill our every moment in some way and we will enjoy a taste of the continual communion and constant communication Adam had with God prior to the fall. The full meal will come when we arrive in Heaven!

[Lindabear]

I just ask myself, is it possible to pray too much? Of course the answer is no, so pray every chance you can, any where, any time.
It's kinda of like when I first got saved, someone told me they thought I was ODing on this "God" thing! Oh if only that were possible!
Problem is we can never get enough of God or His word...so same with conversing (praying) with God.
I will never forget the feeling when coming out of one religion to true salvation and realizing Prayer was now a true joy of simple conversing with my creator and savior, not a work, with empty repetition to soothe my conscience!

[ForgivenOne]

I talk to God every day, multiple times a day even. If something's bothering me I tell him about it and then let it go. This doesn't mean I always start out with Dear Lord, Dear Jesus, or Dear God {each person starts out their prayer differently, you get my point of course}:) or end with Amen; most of the time it's Hey God? .... like having a conversation with Him. Just talking to him as if in an 'every day kind of conversation' seems to have the same effect as a prayer. I get the same sense of relief and/or happiness, depending on the situation, as if I'd done a prayer. He is Great that way :)

[Meg]

I think its important to read the Bible every day. I read various Books of the Bible at random, often going over the table of contents, asking the Lord which Book will speak to me. I also think focused prayer once a day is good for me, and I am trying to get better at on-the-spot prayer, which Robert is really good about (he's a great influence on me, helping me loosen up a little, I need that). But I like what everyone else is saying too. When you have heavy issues though, it is important to get alone and pour your heart out to Jesus Christ, asking for His wisdom and insight, which is so important in our lives.

[Any Minute]

In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul writes:

16 Rejoice evermore.

17 Pray without ceasing.

18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

It's pretty impossible to "pray without ceasing" and still get anything accomplished in life. Prayer is simply talking to God. What we are to do is talk to God any chance that we get---while driving, when waiting for the bus, when preparing meals, etc. We don't have to stop everything that we're doing for a formal time of prayer constantly. We can "pray as we go". Many Christians also set aside time in them morning before they even get out of bed, and then do the same thing before they go to sleep at night. You have to "work out" for yourself the times that you want to talk to God. Giving thanks to God is appropriate all of the time.

This is a great post readytogo!
I often find myself praying or just thinking about God and His word while driving. Of course if you see me driving and praying with eyes closed, you might want to start praying also.

I was looking up some things on the book of Daniel and thought of this thread when I came across this from What should we learn from the life of Daniel?

Taken in part from article:
"As a result of his devotion, Daniel not only found favor with those around him, but above all he found favor with God and was held in high esteem by Him (Daniel 9:20-23). Notice also in those verses what the angel Gabriel told Daniel about how swiftly the answer to his prayer was dispatched. This shows us how ready the Lord is to hear the prayers of His people. Daniel’s strength lay in his devotion to prayer and is a lesson for us all. It is not just in the bad times but on a daily basis that we must come to God in prayer."

I know Daniel prayed often for himself and his people, Israel, but what a great example of prayer and trusting in the Lord!

[Hannah]

I'm not sure, I usually pray once a day (night). What do you think?

We don't need to make a hard and fast rule of when and how long we should pray.

Jesus often went off to pray alone. There were times when Jesus plans to pray were interupted and he ended up teaching a crowd of people instead.

So be flexible.

I find it best to pray after I have spent time in God's Word first. Then you have fresh in your mind the Word of God.

I also pray often through the day when I am doing some housecleaning or other job that enables me to work and pray.

When used to work I often prayed on the way to work (I used public transport so I wasn't driving at the time). This was a good time as you couldn't do much else in a packed train or bus.

My hubby goes for long walks (exercise) and he saves his prayer time for his daily walks. He also prayes with me once a day after dinner (we pray for friends and family each day and this is the best time we have found in our day to do so).

There is no set time or amount to pray. I'm sure you will find what suits you.

[caleb_matthau]

You should pray all day.