Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God by Timothy Keller
Week 5: Chapter 4 — Prayer and the Word
Read Chapter 4 of Prayer by Timothy Keller. Primary Scripture: Psalm 119:97–105; Colossians 3:16.
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Keller argues in this chapter that prayer divorced from Scripture becomes either an echo chamber (we only hear ourselves) or a blank screen (we project our wishes onto God). The Word and prayer belong together—and learning to pray the Scriptures back to God is one of the most transformative practices available to us.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Keller draws heavily on Martin Luther's practice of 'praying the catechism'—taking doctrinal content and turning it into personal address to God. Have you ever tried to turn a passage of Scripture or a theological statement directly into prayer? What happened? What made it easy or hard?
2.Keller argues that reading the Bible without prayer leads to mere information, while praying without the Bible leads to subjectivism—we end up inventing a God to suit ourselves. How does this help explain why both 'Bible people' who rarely pray and 'prayer people' who rarely study the Word can end up spiritually stunted?
3.Keller describes 'meditative prayer'—not emptying the mind but filling it with Scripture and allowing that content to descend from the head to the heart. What is the difference between reading the Bible as study and reading it as the opening move in a conversation with God?
a.How do you currently read the Bible? Which mode feels more natural to you?
b.What would it take to shift your Bible reading more in the direction of meditative prayer?
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