Brian Chapell, president of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, has written several books on marriage, Christian living, and expository preaching. In this book, Chapell sets out to change our priorities in prayer such that “when Jesus’ priorities come first, our prayers will change. They will be less self-oriented, more Christ-directed, more blessed, and ultimately most satisfying to our hearts.”

The basic premise of the book, as you may be able to gather from the title, Praying Backwards, is that we should begin our prayers where we usually end them, by thinking about what it means to pray “in Jesus name” before we start. “When our routines [tagging on a quick, ‘in Jesus name, amen’ to the end of our prayers] have desensitized us to [Jesus’] priorities, then it’s time to begin where we end.” Chapell sets out to describe what this looks like by describing what it means to pray in Jesus’ way, to pray without doubting, to pray in the Spirit, to pray boldly, expectantly, and persistently, and to pray in God’s will and wisdom.

A constant theme throughout the book is that when we begin praying in Jesus’ name, our entire modus operandi in prayer changes. As Chapell says, “When we perceive the greatness and goodness of our God, our prayers become not so much a seeking after God for our purposes but an offering of ourselves for his purposes.” I think I need to read that sentence again.

This is not a superficial treatment of prayer as it is thoroughly laced with scriptural content. Chapell also deals effectively with difficult subjects such as the persecution and starvation of Sudanese Christians in light of the petition to “give us this day our daily bread”. He calls the reader to lift their understanding above the superficial and material to that which matters most.

In addition to being a thorough treatment on the subject for the average lay-person, the book contains two very helpful features. First, every chapter is concluded with an example prayer highlighting the subject of the chapter. These serve as effective reinforcement of the subject matter of the chapter. Second, the book has a study guide which consists of a series of questions on the themes of each chapter. I found the questions to be thought provoking and a helpful reminder of the main themes of the book. It’s a good review and reinforcement of what was just read. He must be a preacher or something.

Overall, Chapell writes with a very pastoral style. His points are reinforced first with scripture and second with effective, and often very personal, illustrations. He does not approach the subject of prayer academically; rather, his illustrations indicate that what he writes is what he lives.

I highly recommend this book as a helpful spark to your prayer life and as an interesting discussion starter for your own family’s prayer life.

For more reviews on this book, visit Diet of Bookworms.