Benefits of prayer closets
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Faith Fitness
Bro. Sam Kaufman
All four of our children used the King James Bible to hone their skills as they learned to read.
They have cut their teeth on the church pews. Now, through prayer, they are entering into their prayer closet.
That is wonderful to see. After all, our goal is to provide a spiritual upbringing for our children that they will hopefully and prayerfully latch onto and maintain as they go on in life and become adults.
But the closet has become somewhat of a sticky situation. It is one of those “good problems” to have.
We have four children ranging in ages from 8 to 14. We also have a four-bedroom home that has several closets. It has been our mission to follow Matthew 6:6, which states, “But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father, which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.”
I’ve prayed that all of our family members would feel that desire to spend quality time with God in a prayer closet. The Lord answered those prayers in a way I would not have predicted. It came through a trial.
Sometimes that’s what it takes for us to draw closer to God. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In this instance, my wife led the charge to the prayer closet, and everyone else seemed to follow.
A prayer closet is an interesting place. Time has a way of flying by there. For instance, I woke up about 8 a.m. this morning and needed to listen to a meeting at 9.
I hit the prayer closet, and the next thing I knew, the 9 a.m. alarm was sounding. It was a great way to start my day! Conversing with God sets a very positive tone.
The only problem we’ve encountered, however, is that we have just one closet we can actually pray in. The rest are too cluttered and too small.
So, now, it’s almost as if you need a ticket to get in. My wife is probably in there more than all of us, which is a great deal.
We all want her to be happy!
We’ve actually argued on occasion about who gets the prayer closet. There is literally no other place like it in our home to get down to prayer business.
I guess that’s a good problem to have. Our two boys feel the need to enter daily, and so does one of our daughters. Even our youngest girl has visited the closet. If you knew her, you know that’s a good thing.
God can work out things in our lives in the prayer closet. I believe the Lord has answered many prayers from there. Furthermore, it is a place you can go and instantly feel the presence of God.
We all need that!
It can also be a place of slumber. I saw the light on in there at about 1 a.m. this morning. Our oldest son was in the closet fast asleep on his pillow and sleeping bag. He had apparently gone in there to pray, but later conked out.
Jeremiah is one that usually yells as he dreams at night. I went into the closet and saw him get up, look at me and ask if I “shot him” yet. By looking at his eyes, I knew he was talking in his dream again.
I eventually rounded him up for bed.
At other times, there could be multiple people in the prayer closet. Usually, it is my wife and one of the children.
One thing is for certain: The prayer closet has strengthened us all and drawn us closer to God. We all look forward to locking out the world and getting with God for a time.
It is one way to spend personal time with God.
On a separate note, a boy went home from church one day and told his parents he discovered God’s name. His mother was curious and asked him. His reply was “Andy.” And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own.
And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.