Go Soaking? Just Joking.

“Soaking prayer,” which became trendy some years back, is billed as resting/soaking in the presence of God/the Holy Spirit. Sometimes actual prayer (that is, talking to God) is involved, but the emphasis seems mostly on having the mind clear/empty/open. And it’s obvious that participants are expecting something to happen right then. Assorted promos suggest that, as you soak, you might feel a warm/cold sensation, a tingling, a breeze; you might see an aura. You can also entertain a hope to hear God speak, be visited by an angel, understand the Bible better, “get results faster” (faster than what?), experience a healing, come out of spiritual dryness, receive a direct revelation… The idea is that soaking “allows the Lord to show his love for you.” (I’m confused. Since the Lord shows his love to me 24/7, I’m pretty sure he knows he’s “allowed” to.)

When I first started hearing about soaking, the push was for everyone in the group to lie down during the experience. (Psalm 23 is considered a supporting Scripture for lying down: “He makes me lie down…”) But there are also sessions where the people sit. One report had added “energy healing” to the mix: While the soakee sits, others “lay on hands” so that the person receives “energy healing through the soaking prayer technique.” (Note that energy healing would presumably hold the hands above, not literally “lay on hands.”)

Some explain that during this soak, the Holy Spirit will hover over the believer. But per Romans 8:9-11 (and elsewhere), the Holy Spirit already “lives in” believers. So does the Spirit exit the soaking believer in order to hover? Some sources say that after you soak, you’ll finish up full of the Holy Spirit. So the Spirit whooshed out to hover and now whooshes back in? (This conjures up images of the old Ghostbusters movie.) As for Scriptures like “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18) and “live by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16, 25)—those are more about living all the time by the Lord’s way, exemplifying the superiority of that way over the world’s way.

Those who say “My prayers aren’t working. I want more” can be seduced by wild claims, especially if they’re wanting… wanting what? Look at assorted current books on prayer and notice words in the titles, subtitles, and marketing writeups: “how to get in God’s presence,” code, secrets, “move Heaven,” strategies, access, stand in a circle as a “mechanism”… If we’re honest, doesn’t it appear that we’re not only going after the sensational but also trying to find a way to make God do what we want—and right now?

Let’s back up. If we really want to know about prayer that “works,” why not study the numerous examples the Lord himself has given (not hidden) in the Bible? Please look up even these few:

• 2 Kings 19:14-19. King Hezekiah presented wicked King Sennacherib’s threatening letter to the Lord. Hezekiah acknowledged his own helplessness. Then the Lord’s death angel took out Sennacherib’s army (v. 35).
• Nehemiah 2:1-4. This is Nehemiah’s “3-second” silent prayer before he answered the king. Surely just a “Help me, Lord,” not a secret formula. (Read the whole book of Nehemiah for assorted prayers that indicate his reliance on the Lord.)
• Pray according to any number of the psalms. Psalm 77 begins with the psalmist’s agony, but then he decides to think back through all God has done for his people in the past. If you want a “formula” for knowing the Lord and getting closer to him, how could you go wrong with this? Or Psalm 27. Or Psalm 150 (which is all praise).
• Jeremiah 29:7. God’s people were instructed to pray for their captors, their enemies (similar to Luke 6:28).
• Daniel 6:7, 10, 11. Knowing he’ll be killed for not praying to King Darius, Daniel prayed to the Lord anyway, “giving thanks” as usual and “asking God for help.” Wow, giving thanks even in certain danger!
• Daniel 9:21-23. Daniel’s long prayer begins in 9:1. Daniel included himself in the “we” who needed to repent. Given Daniel’s stellar faithfulness, such humility stands out. Then the angel Gabriel says that as soon as Daniel had begun to pray, “an answer was given.” God’s hearing us doesn’t depend on a perfect method or the perfect moment. He’s way ahead of us. Spooky cool, huh?
• Acts 16:25. While Paul and Silas were in prison, they prayed and sang and were heard by those nearby. What a testimony!
• 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. Paul didn’t get what he asked for.

There are plenty more! After “soaking” up several Bible accounts and grasping the heart/intention of those doing the praying, go back and compare that against some of today’s sales pitches about prayer. (Forgive us, Lord!)

These posts debunk some other supposed prayer secrets: “Thin Place? Thin Ice” and “Teresa of Avila—a Master of Prayer?”