Especially fresh Christians ask themselves: How often do Christians pray? Is there a divine prescription? Which traditions play a role? This is an overview of the subject.
The answer to the question is: That is up to each Christian. For Christians, the relationship with God is more important than the number of prayers. With a lover, you don’t ask: How many times have I kissed her today?
For Christians, there is no prescribed number of prayers per day. But traditions have emerged: before every meal (3 times), after getting up and before going to sleep. Christians who follow this tradition pray at least 5 times a day. In addition, there are other personal prayers.
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How many times a day should a christian pray?
Counter question: How important is your relationship with God to you? Do you involve him in every problem and ask him for help? Is he your best friend? Do you pray before and after meals? How about before you go to bed? How about on the way to work? Such polemical questions are meant, I know. The point I want to make is this:
The inner attitude toward God decides. There are many people who call themselves Christians and pray before meals and aloud in church – but not at home in their closet. Jesus himself gives us the hint how to behave:
And when you pray, do not do it like the hypocrites! They like to pray publicly in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by the people. I assure you: These people have already received their reward!
If you want to pray, retire to your room, close the door behind you and pray to your Father.
Matthew 6:5-6
Meaning: The inner attitude towards God is much more important.
Of course, I’m not God, but I’m going to be bold and say one thing: God would rather you pray once a day with all your heart than several times a day without love.
How and how often do Protestant Christians pray?
On the whole, there is not much difference between the prayer of a Catholic and a Protestant (evangelical believer). From the outward attitude (humility, direction, etc.) there is little difference.
Protestant Christians, however, pray directly – they do not pray to any saint or to Mother Mary. They pray directly to God or to Jesus. No other intermediary is needed to present the wishes to God. Also, the use of certain aids (like the rosary) does not exist among evangelical Christians. It would not be wrong to use it, but it is rather uncommon.
If you want to learn how evangelical Christians pray, read this chapter;- it is written primarily for this very audience.
Evangelical Christians focus on a personal relationship without fixed prayer rules. Therefore, no exact statement can actually be made for Protestants, since this answer is very personal.
How many times do you have to pray in a day as a Christian?
There are no fixed prayer times in Christianity, established by its founder (Jesus) or direct successors (apostles). The rule of thumb is this: Praying is not a service that simply has to be done. Praying is a promotion of the relationship with God.
Therefore, prayers do not have to perform a certain number of prayers.
The inner attitude towards God and Jesus counts in the prayers of Christians
In Christianity, God does not ask how many times a person has prayed per day. This question is not relevant to the life of the individual Christian. Jesus did not leave us a fixed instruction how often a prayer has to be followed or how exactly the prayer should be performed.
God wants a relationship with each individual. So talk to God as you would talk to a good friend. Of course, even among people there are certain rules that are observed when talking to each other. For example, you shake hands, dress appropriately, etc. But these rules do not apply to best friends; you can probably open the door to them in your underpants and greet them with a “What’s up?
This is rarely meant as an insult, but more as a sign of trust. You should always keep in mind that God is the creator of all life – but do not hide behind any traditions when you pray with God.
Jesus taught us the “Our Father.” This describes a relationship level rather than a doing level. (The curious can follow this link if they want to know more).
However, it doesn’t hurt to pray with God more often – after all, you talk to your girlfriend/wife/husband/boyfriend more often during the day and don’t just have one good conversation a day.
How often should a christian pray?
I assume that you have already answered the previous question of “why” for yourself. You want to improve your relationship with God by praying more. How often you should pray is completely up to you. I’ll give you 6 helpful tips on how to significantly improve your prayer life:
- Set fixed times or points in time. Get up a few minutes earlier, talk to God again just before bedtime? Set this time and keep it sacred. Use your lunch break to have a little conversation with God.
- Pray every time you walk through a door. No joke: a quick “Thank you, Lord Jesus” already counts as a prayer. It’s certainly not as nice as a long conversation, but you’re thinking about God. It is best to change the prayer text regularly.
- Go to church every Sunday. Sounds banal: But if you have not done it so far: Start. Then you have a fixed time once a week to pray.
Again, Christians should not pray a certain number of prayers per day. Much better, they should see it as an opportunity to pray.
How many times a day do monks pray?
This depends very much on the order. Each order or monastery has its own fixed procedures. Mostly they pray in the morning, at noon and in the evening. Depending on how the daily schedule is still structured, there is time for personal prayers of the monks. Their day begins around 6 am and ends in the evening at 9 pm.
Monks pray a lot compared to other workers. You can and may take it as an example – but do not take it as a duty to despair of it. In the Augsburg House of Prayer, for example, people pray in shifts 24 hours a day.
Conclusion: How often do Christians pray?
Every Christian prays differently often. And that’s okay. Some have a very intimate relationship with God, through a long time of prayer each day, others pray whenever they feel like it. One thing is important to understand: God desires a relationship with each individual.
