3 Ways to Schedule Time to Pray

This is a special time of the year for all the parents and grandparents raising children. No, not Christmas. But that answer isn’t too far off the mark. We’re celebrating the return of School! A regimented schedule and routine have returned to millions of households worldwide.

Wake up the kids, get them dressed in acceptable attire, feed the little zombies, and then shuffle out to the bus stop for pickup. We see the flash of the strobe light in the distance and know we are moments away from freedom from our children.
Of course, I love my brood but never take for granted the sliver of sanity that returns when they are off at school. Many parents depart for their own scheduled day at work. Others head to bed because they worked the night shift. And more go home and put in a day’s work at the house.
The mind-numbing routine of the everyday grind has returned for many of us. We know that children inevitably return with homework, hunger, and stories spat out in rapid-fire succession. Then it’s dinner, more homework, a bath, and bedtime.
Parental veterans of school-age children understand that the most significant battle is sometimes the last confrontation. Use the restroom, and brush your teeth. You already hugged me, but here’s another one. I don’t know what happened to your pillow, wear the pajamas you have on, and go to bed!
If you are laughing, it is because either you have no kids or your kids have graduated, and you remember the struggle is real.
I am the first to admit the difficulty in finding time for a moment of peaceful sanity. After all, I do have five school-age children in my house. When do I have time to pray during the chaos of everyday life? This one truth hurts me just as badly as it hurts you.
I have the time to get on social media, flick through Facebook, and see how my friends are doing. A few minutes can be taken to watch the newest TikTok trend and laugh. Food pictures on Instagram have me drooling before lunch. Youtube shorts have cute kittens. There is even time to scroll through the cascade of daily emails.
But when it comes to prayer, I do not have enough time in the day to squeeze it in. Tell me I’m not the only one who felt the pang of the spiritual kidney shot. It hits close to home for me as well.
How can I find a few ways to pray daily without upending my entire schedule? More importantly, how can I make prayer an integral part of my day?
I’m so glad you asked. You know the routine by now. Welcome to Christian Sanity. Buckle up, sit back, relax, and ensure the spiritual airbags are turned on. Because here we go.

In Bed

This must be a joke. Its lights out when I hit the mattress. And if you mean when I wake up in bed, I know you’re crazy. My morning routine is worked out to the second.
When the alarm screams, my feet hit the floor, and it’s off to the races. And I lose consciousness right before my body crumples on the mattress. Muscle memory controls my ability to pull the cover over my exhausted body. You know the pose. One foot sticking out.
Thank the tech moguls who created daily alarms on my phone because I don’t have the time to turn the alarm on every night.
Despite being one of those who pop out of bed and hits the floor running, I’ve consciously decided to change my waking routine. I still slap my phone silent and swing my legs off the bed. But before I move, I briefly pray—no drink of water or run to the restroom.
This isn’t the opening prayer at church or saying grace at the family reunion. It can be brief, raw, or personal. A thank you for another day. Or a request for His grace at work. Maybe strength to overcome an emotional hurdle. The whole point is communication.
Do we skip ahead to our day and not speak to our significant other? Not if we want to keep the significant other. Or we buy flowers for the indiscretion. What about our children? Do we hug them, tell them to have a good day, or otherwise annoy the sleep zombies we spawned? Absolutely.
How can we profess to be Christians and skip out on talking to the Lord in the morning? I’m not always the most coherent when I wake up, so I use a litany to get started. I have an Irish heritage, and I’ve always liked Saint Patrick’s Breastplate as a prayer (here).
Hunched on the side of the bed, I’ll sometimes start with a quote, “Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me,” etc. Then I would go into a simple prayer of thanksgiving. I woke up. I may creak more than a haunted swingset, but I still woke up.
Another moment of Thanksgiving is for my kids. This is especially easy as they are still in an angelic pose of slumber at the moment of the prayer. A final prayer of renewal of spirit and mind as I stand and begin the day.
When the day winds to a close, and I’m easing to the bedside, I finish as I started. Sitting there, I close my eyes and give thanks for making it through the day. It’s easy to give thanks when we have a breakthrough in our lives. Prayer flies from our lips to Heaven.
But there are times when life is stressful. Problems at work rarely stay on the clock. Issues with kids and school require attention. Who is making dinner tonight? And don’t even get started on chores around the house. During everyday normalcy, we still need to reconnect with God.
Prayer of thanks for surviving the day. Giving new problems to God. Thanking the Lord for what He did for you. The never-ending prayer coverage for loved ones and those in authority over us. A request for a good night’s sleep and a renewed commitment to serve in whatever capacity God has for us.

Time to Eat

While this one may seem simple enough, do you ever need to remember to say a blessing over your food when on the run? Coffee and a banana out the door, but failed to remember the prayer? Fast food drive-thru is quick and convenient, but traffic is too hectic to blurt a prayer.
Do not pretend you never eat fast food. If any food needs a blessing, it’s the drive-thru. And maybe my sister’s cooking. Literally any of her cooking.
Prayer over food is called a blessing. We ask the Lord to bless the food to nourish our bodies. Ask a blessing for whoever provided the meal. And give thanks. We don’t need to repeat a litany of words while crouched on a right knee while we balance a bible in our right hand and make a gesture in the shape of a cross with our left. Prayer does not need to be an extravagant ordeal.
Real prayer is personal.
Think about going on a date. Does our date respond to grandiose gestures made in the public eye or heartfelt and meaningful moments shared between the couple? God is no different. If we are only performing a prayer for others to see, Jesus says we have become hypocrites.
Remember why we are praying and who we are praying to.
One of the best parts about meals is we get to eat three times a day. Obviously, this gives us as many opportunities to pray over the food.

Travel

I know I can’t be the only one who experienced this in their youth. It was time for a road trip. Vacation, family reunions, assisting with relocation, and moving never mattered in the end because the vehicle we would ride in was going on a lengthy trip.
Don’t tell me you don’t know where I’m going with this.
Patriarch, the matriarch, or both would break out the oil and lay hands on the car. Traveling graces, tires and engines, and a hedge of protection with guardian angels would be prayed over the vehicle and the travelers.
Job speaks about a hedge being placed around Job and his belonging. Why shouldn’t we do the same when we pray?
My mother actually started a trend when we departed. Wherever we were, she said a quick prayer for traveling mercies. Now it’s a habit. Whether heading to church, the store, work, or waiting for the bus, we now pray for protection.
The way gas prices are these days, I might start praying for better fuel economy.

In Conclusion

These are just three simple ways we can add prayer into our lives. This also allows us to start and end each day correctly by communing with God. We get several chances daily while we stuff our faces (for us guys) or gracefully consume delectable morsels (for the ladies).
The time spent in prayer can be as short as a simple sentence or as long as we feel the need. We need to add more time talking to our heavenly Father, and we may find ourselves in more spontaneous prayer each day.
Remember, Jesus gave us an example of how to pray to the Father with the Lord’s Prayer. So stretch those spiritual vocal cords and send a heavenly collect call. Don’t worry. God always picks up.