Worried About Everything Because I Pray About Nothing: How to Live with Peace and Purpose Instead of Stress and Burnout

Pastor Veach (Help! I Work with People) provides guidance for cultivating a “healthy prayer life” in this lighthearted outing. “Nobody is born knowing how to pray,” Veach suggests, using scriptural analysis and personal anecdotes to explore “the purposes and practice of prayer” while providing advice on praying. He describes “refusing to do for my kids what they can do for themselves” and contends that God does the same for Christians, aiding their personal development by pointing them toward their purpose without doing the work for them. The author rebuts those who claim prayer doesn’t do anything and asserts that it’s like a workout in that its benefits can accrue long after the exercise has ended. To help readers better recognize God’s responses to prayer, Veach notes that God’s guidance will always be in harmony with the Bible and that, according to Proverbs, circumstances might be nudges from God. Some of the advice falls flat (“You’ll know in your knower” is particularly unhelpful), but Veach’s ability to comically relate his points to daily life amuses, such as when he observes that people often avoid God and dentists for the same reason: shame over not living up to their standards. Christians will appreciate this insightful program for improving prayer. (Aug.)