Personal Prayer Coaching Level I: The Prayer Closet
Concepts of Habit Formation in Prayer
Concepts of Habit Formation in Prayer
Dr. Maxwell Maltz's Theory: A plastic surgeon who theorized that it takes days to reach the threshold for personal change.
Modern Research by Phillippa Lally: A psychology researcher at University College London, whose work was published in the European Journal of Social Psychology. Her findings indicate:
Behavioral change takes significantly longer than the traditionally cited three weeks.
Emotional and behavioral automaticity occurs on average at the -day mark.
The range for habit adaptation varies widely among individuals, from as few as days to as many as days (nearly nine months).
The Three Great Enemies and Ministry Priorities
The Three Enemies: The primary obstacles to a healthy prayer life are identified as Worldliness, Pragmatism, and Narcissism.
The Call to Intimacy: Jesus called his disciples primarily to be "with Him." This is exemplified by the question to Peter: "Peter, do you love me? Then feed my sheep!"
The Danger of Misplaced Love: While believers serve in the Church and may love the ministry, they are strictly warned not to be "in love" with the Church or the ministry itself, but to be "in love" with God.
Correcting the Imbalance:
Current Trend: We major in public ministry on behalf of the Lord and minor in private ministry to the Lord.
The Required Shift: We must recognize that we have the matter backward and shift focus toward the private encounter.
Etymology and Definition of the Prayer Closet
Scriptural Basis: Matthew 6:6 — "When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father."
Greek Term: Tameion: This word for "room" or "closet" is used in three specific contexts by Greek authors:
A secret chamber: A closed and locked room.
A safe or cupboard: A place to keep essentials.
A locked chest: A place where treasure is safely kept.
Socio-Historical Context: In the first century, the tameion was likely the household pantry or storeroom. It was often the only interior room in a home that actually had a door, making it the only place where one could be truly shut in and separated from the outside world.
Connotations: The word carries the meaning of being shut up, concealed, or closed.
The Hebrew Perspective: The Chuppah
Definition: The Hebrew equivalent for the closet concept is chuppah (derived from chaphah), meaning a canopy, a cover, or a concealment.
The Prayer Closet as a Bridal Chamber: In Hebrew thought, the prayer closet is a tent set apart to conceal a bride. It serves as a "dressing room" where the believer puts on wedding garments to await the bridegroom (Christ).
Significance of Prayer: Ignoring prayer is a failure to signal to heaven that the believer is ready. Prayer keeps the believer "dressed and radiant," with an ear turned toward heaven.
Legal Meaning of the Chuppah: In Jewish tradition, the chuppah is the legal point of transition from a single state to a married state. It is where the bridegroom takes possession of the bride and they declare a covenant.
Daily Declaration: Entering the closet is a daily step under the invisible chuppah to declare readiness to meet Christ and to declare love for the Lord.
Physical Symbols: Traditionally, a simple wedding canopy is used. In its absence, a tallit (prayer shawl) supported by four poles may be used, or the bridegroom may simply cover the bride.
The Home Connection: The chuppah symbolizes the groom's home and the bride's new domain. Just as Christ went to prepare a place, he provides an invisible chuppah we enter through prayer.
The Secret Place (Cether)
Terminology: The phrase "secret place" appears dozens of times in the Bible. In Hebrew, this is cether, meaning to hide or be concealed.
Metaphors of Shelter: It represents a shelter, a covering, and a dwelling.
A Place of Formation: Psalm 139:15 suggests we were made in the "secret place" (the womb). Thus, the prayer closet is a place of spiritual formation.
A Place of Protection: Psalm 32:7 describes God as a "hiding place" who protects from trouble and surrounds the believer with "songs of deliverance."
Theology of the Garden (Gan)
God as Gardener: The creation of the garden in Eden was God's final act, demonstrating his nature as a gardener who enjoys growth and fruitfulness.
Purpose of the Garden: The primary purpose was not growing plants, but "growing" the man and woman. The garden was God's wedding gift to them.
Definition of Gan: Derived from ganan, meaning an enclosure or a place that is covered, surrounded, or hidden.
Safety and Defense: The garden was designed to be defended; a principle is established that if one protects their prayer life, their prayer life will protect them.
Connection to Jesus: Jesus, having no house with a literal closet, sought the open spaces of nature and gardens, specifically Gethsemane.
The Two Wonder Trees and the Duty of Prayer
Phonetic Wordplay: There is a play on the Hebrew words for garden (way-yiṭ-ṭa‘) and "put" (way-yā-śem).
Central Symbols: The middle of the garden contained the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
The Mandate (Genesis 2:15): The man was placed in the garden to "work it" (grow/cultivate) and "take care of it" (guard/shamar).
Pleasure vs. Duty:
Communion: The pleasure of prayer, involving the presence of God.
Intercession (Watching): The duty of prayer, involving vigilance and guarding.
The Serpent's Deception: The focus was shifted from the abundance of choices to the single boundary. The message of the serpent was the rejection of restraint and boundaries, paralleling modern ideas of unlimited personal rights.
The Absence of Gratitude: A critical observation of the Genesis narrative is that gratitude is entirely missing from the dialogue of Adam and Eve. G.K. Chesterton described gratitude as "happiness doubled by wonder."
Wisdom vs. Knowledge: Referencing Proverbs 3:18, wisdom is the "tree of life." While knowledge answers "what," wisdom answers "why" and is a metaphor for God or the Holy Spirit.
The Rivers of Eden and Global Impact
The Spring: A stream went out of Eden to water the garden. It did not originate in the garden but ran through it.
The Four Distributed Rivers: Upon leaving the garden, the stream formed four distinct rivers:
The Pishon: Encompasses the land of Havilah, associated with "good gold," bdellium (aromatic resin or pearls), and onyx (or emerald).
The Gihon: Encircles Ethiopia.
The Hiddekel: Flows toward Assyria.
The Euphrates.
Progressive Intensity of the Flow:
Pishon: Springs forth and spreads out (puddling).
Gihon: Bursting forth and bubbling (artesian-like overflow).
Hiddekel: Courses like rapids.
Euphrates: Breaking forth and creating fruitfulness.
The Principle of Multiplication: Prayer does not produce the river, but it allows the river to flow to and through the believer, multiplying its impact as it exits the garden toward the globe.
Biblical Trajectory of the River
The City of God: Psalm 46:4 mentions streams that make glad the "city of God" and the "tabernacles" (plural) of the Most High.
Ezekiel’s Temple Vision (Ezekiel 47): A river flows from the holy place, rising in intensity from ankle-deep to knee-deep, waist-deep, and finally chest-deep (swimmable). Everywhere the river touches, it brings healing and life, leading to an abundance of fish and a harvest of souls.
The New Jerusalem (Revelation 22:1): A pure river of water of life proceeds from the throne of God and the Lamb.
The Holy Spirit (John 7:38): Jesus stated that out of the believer's belly shall flow "rivers of living water," signifying the Spirit.
Usage and Legal Limitations
Source Material: This presentation is a companion to the book The Prayer Closet by P. Douglas Small, published by Project Pray Publications (Alive Ministries, Inc.).
Licensing: Purchased materials constitute a "single user license" for one entity for teaching use.
Restrictions: Materials cannot be legally or morally copied, reproduced, or sold. Images are used by permission and are subject to copyright. The presentation must be used without alteration and not exported in a manner inconsistent with the holistic approach presented.