Somewhat rambling discussion of Yancey's ideas on prayer, our attitudes to it and whether prayers get answered. As usual, Yancey has a keen eye for anecdotes, though some of them and some of the ideas have been recycled from others of his works. ( )

Philip Yancey, in Prayer: Does it Make a Difference?, addresses all our doubts, fears and perplexities about faith and praying to an invisible God who often seems far away.

He argues for prayer as a relationship rather than as God as Genii and all round fixer. He argues that prayer affects the pray – er in profound ways.

His straight-forward no-nonsense approach to this tricky subject is refreshing. He tells us that there are no easy answers to unanswered prayer. There is no immediate answer for suffering, sickness, war and death. They are part of the fallen human condition and cannot be got round.

Another telling point he makes, and he makes hundreds of excellent points throughout the 344 well-written pages, is that there is no right way to pray. I suppose it could be put in the negative as well: there is no wrong way to pray!

He has researched this subject and interviewed hundreds of people as well as drawing on his extensive correspondence. This is an in-depth examination of the very nature and purpose of prayer and it is not possible to do justice to the topics covered in this excellent book on this subject.

My Recommendation:

Cons: I can’t think of any.

Pros: He tells it like it is. ( )

Yancey raises many questions but he answers very few of them. "Prayer" strikes me more as a literary critical work than as an experimental work. For help on the subject of prayer I recommend Charles Spurgeon, E.M. Bounds, Leonard Ravenhill or A.W. Tozer. These men were first and foremost men of prayer. They knew not only what it is to 'pray'; they knew what it means to meet with the living God... and, indeed, they spent hours each day in prayer. ( )

Yancey delivers yet again with a fresh perspective for modern Christians who have gotten caught up in the "modern" part. Excellent reading, insightful and intelligent as always ( )

Reading Philip Yancey’s work is like sitting down with a wise, sensitive friend who opens himself up with vulnerable transparency, as a fellow sojourner rather than a spiritual expert. As I read "Prayer", my clumsy attempts to commune with my Creator and the insecurities that hang over me as I search for intimacy with God faded into earthly insignificance. Yancey weaves a poignant picture of a loving God who craves relationship with me in all my utter humanity. As I read the last couple sentences of this book, I knew I had received a precious gift: a deeper understanding of what it means to be a friend of God.

Yancey begins with an insightful discourse on “Keeping Company with God” and continues to wax eloquently about the mysteries, the language and the practice of prayer. He also boldly delves into prayer dilemmas. Each topic is sprinkled with nuggets of Truth and revelations that had me jotting notes, smiling, crying, and sometimes singing praises to Jesus.

Surprisingly, some of this book’s most profound insights don’t come from its author. In each chapter, Yancey generously shares a variety of blessed “inserts”—myriad short stories, poems, and testimonies about prayer written by others. The honest cries of other souls yearning for connection with our Maker often left me breathless, humbled and a little less lonely. Furthermore, Yancey shows no fundamentalist bias in his selections, with contributions from across the globe, as diverse as Christ-followers themselves.

"Prayer" is full of wonderfully enlightening analogies, Biblical references, and quotes. I loved the author’s likening of confession—an especially difficult concept for me in light of God’s omniscience—to the healing that comes after asking a spouse for forgiveness about a sin they are both acutely aware. Another of my favorite sections was “Battering the Gates”, full of familiar Bible stories: the widow nagging the judge for justice; the guest incessantly banging on his neighbor’s door for some decent hospitality; the years Hannah spent begging for a child. These reminders gave me renewed passion for those requests I’ve been presenting for many, many years, seemingly without a response from God.

Not only is this book the single best piece I’ve ever read on prayer, it may be one of the best books I’ve ever read on Christian spirituality. So clearly did I see God’s longing for me to be with Him as I read "Prayer", that I repeatedly paused with the book open on my lap to carry on a conversation with my Lord. ( )