At the beginning of every school year, everyone always says “this school year is my academic come back”. Many people will start going to library more, coming early to class, taking notes but by the third week the motivation and initial enthusiasm starts to wane and they begin to regress. The difference between the top students and hardworking students and others is structure.
Setting a study timetable, having an assigned study partner, attending study group meetings, having a seat partner in class and taking notes are examples of structures that keep your momentum. Structure will keep you.

Zeal and enthusiasm are great but what would keep you in your goal is structure and strategy.

Over the course of this week, we discussed staying in the place of prayer, praying over all that we have received and not overcompensating which is extremely important but you must understand that the backbone that would keep this momentum and keep our devotional altar constantly on fire is structure as earlier stated. It is not enough you want to do it or you plan on doing it, set structures to ensure you actually do it even on days you do not feel like it.

Proverbs‬ ‭21‬:‭5‬ ‭
New King James Version
15 The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.

The NLT version puts it this way

Proverbs 21:5 
New Living Translation
5 Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.

This text doesn’t exclusively emphasize diligence in natural activities, but this principle ought to permeate every aspect of the believer’s life, even in prayer. The author of Proverbs said: Good planning and hard work leads to prosperity. Just like in your natural life to excel at something you have to plan, you have to put in the work, wishful thinking would not make you succeed, wanting to succeed would not make you succeed, a known quote says “if you fail to plan then you plan to fail”.

As with every other endeavour in life, it will be futile to leave your prayer life to chance, there are practical ways to equip yourself for a consistent prayer life, these include:

1. Daily times of Prayer
You may have spent 6-7 hours praying at camp meetings, stretching yourself in the place of prayer. You’ve received words on how the rest of the year would run and your life is changed forever. But the one thing that would sustain you is retreating to the place of prayer daily. It’s our sustenance. We see an example in Jesus.

“So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

One thing that was known about Jesus was how often he withdrew into solitude to pray. If Prayer was such a significant part of Jesus’ life, how much more us?

Before you go out today, sit with your daily schedule and pick a dedicated time for prayer. Whether it’s 6am, 6pm for 30mins, 45 mins or an hour. You must do your best to keep it.
So set 20 alarms today to remind you of prayer times!

2. Fellowship with other believers.
We’ve spoken at length on the importance of personal daily times of prayer. The place of corporate Prayer cannot be overemphasized! We’ve just finished a weekend of ample time spent in corporate prayer. One benefit we notice is how much it rejuvenates us, it stirs up! That’s what fellowship with other believers does to our soul and we see examples littered in early church.

“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬-‭14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

After Jesus had ascended, one thing they did immediately was to gather in a room to pray as Jesus said and that was the first time they spoke in tongues.

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭2‬:‭42‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

After they had heard the gospel from Peter and had been baptized. They didn’t just leave, they sat under the apostles’ teaching and they PRAYED TOGETHER!

Corporate prayer wasn’t taken with levity in the early church. They did so because it did something to your spiritual growth. Take every corporate prayer as important!

3. Accountability.
This is one of the most imperative steps towards a functional and effective prayer life.

Finding a trusted person who can offer assistance and direction when required is essential to a blossoming devotional life. Your prayer times should be communicated to this person, who will also monitor your progress; they should be able to call you to order in critical times.

There will be times this year when life and its chaos might want to throw you off track but always remember that consistency isn’t just about showing up every day. It’s also coming back to pick up the rope where you left off.
This is why it is important to have someone who can call you back when you derail from the plans you made at the beginning of the year.

Is a consistent Prayer life possible? Yes, it is! But it doesn’t occur by chance, but rather by a deliberate choice, effective planning, setting structures and keeping to these structures.

Prayer Point
Lord, establish in me a consistent prayer life that flows naturally from my love for You. Make me diligent in setting aside daily time for communion with You, and let the fruit of this faithful discipline be evident in my spiritual growth and character throughout the rest of this year.