To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.

Psalm 25:1–3

Prayer is an activity we practice in various times and different ways. Some expressions of our prayers are more intense or focused than others. Sometimes we feel more “in the mood to pray,” while at other times it takes energy and willpower to move us to prayer.

So it is important to realize that regardless of our time or place or energy level for prayer, in prayer our hearts and minds should be aimed to God. This is basic. But we can sometimes be diverted from this truth.

Arthur Dent noted that when we pray to “Our Father who art in heaven,” we are directed toward God in heaven, and this is where we are to be focused. He wrote, “Our hearts in prayer must mount up into heaven, and be lifted up above all earthly and frail things, how beautiful or goodly soever, and be wholly fixed upon the Lord.” He then cited Psalm 25:1: “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.” The psalmist began his prayer with his heart and soul concentrated on the Lord.

In our fast-paced, technology-driven, action-packed culture, our times of prayer need to be oriented to God, rather than on “all earthly and frail things”—no matter how interesting and alluring those earthly things may be! Usually our attention is drawn and diverted to dozens of things almost simultaneously. In prayer, our attention is on God—listening to God and speaking to God. We are to be “wholly fixed upon the Lord.”

—Donald K. McKim, author, Everyday Prayer with the Puritans