Practicing the Way Website
John Mark Comer’s Practicing the Way website teaches the ideas in his book, Practicing the Way, offering videos and other material about the so-called spiritual practices (or disciplines) interspersed with discussion questions. At each video’s end, assignments are given to develop the relevant practice. This appears to be aimed at groups; indeed, Comer’s materials and teachings are reaching vast numbers of churches.
This article covers and responds to two of Comer’s videos on the website: Prayer and Solitude. The videos feature John Mark Comer with a couple, a man and a woman. Sometimes all three are in the video; at other times, it is Comer or the couple by themselves. The links to these videos cannot be provided because they will only go to the main page unless one has signed up on Comer’s site. If you have signed up, then it will be easy to find these.
Prayer
According to the video on prayer, prayer is
“Learning to set aside dedicated time to intentionally be with God, in order to become like him and partner with him to do what he’s called us to do in the world.”
The four stages of prayer are given as:
Talking to God
Talking with God
Listening to God
Being with God
I do not see any differences between the first, second, or fourth points. Prayer is modeled in the Bible as verbal communication (silent or aloud) with God that usually includes one or more of the following: praising, petitioning, confessing to, and thanking God. When one prays, one is speaking to and with God, and is with God. One goes before the throne of God through faith in Jesus Christ, due to his finished work on the cross.
Listening to God, if that refers to being sensitive to the Holy Spirit and/or receiving scriptures brought to mind in prayer, can be considered as part of prayer. But there is no biblical basis to expect God to speak since he has spoken in his word, which is sufficient.
The video offers these questions:
Questions to discuss with group
1. What emotions does the word prayer elicit in your heart?
2. What challenges do you face in prayer?
3. What invitation do you sense from God to go deeper in prayer?
I do not see the purpose of the first question unless one is having trouble praying, which is covered in the second question. The problem is that the teachings from Comer on prayer are not going to be all biblical.
I view the third question as a trap. It implies that normative biblical prayer is not deep enough, and it suggests that there are ways to go deeper. This is exactly the point and purpose of contemplative practices (spiritual practices, disciplines), that normative prayer is not sufficient; one must do the special contemplative practices such as contemplative prayer, breath prayers, imaginative prayer, or others.
Comer quotes Teresa of Avila, “we are all beginners in prayer,” and reads from Luke 11 about Jesus’ answer on how to pray (known as the Lord’s Prayer). Comer states that there are four things about this prayer:
1. God is our Father
2. Who is in heaven: Heaven “is a tricky word.” The word is the heavens, or the air or atmosphere. “Our Father who is in the air.” Accessibility to God.
3. Hallowed be thy name: Worshipful enjoyment of the Father’s company. When you pray and “you begin to enter into the inner life of the Father, and the Son and the Spirit…”
4. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven: Our prayers make a difference.
I do not think Jesus meant that God “is in the air” when he addressed God in heaven. Actually, Luke 11 does not refer to heaven at all, but it is in the parallel passage of Matthew 6 (Comer may have pointed this out but I can’t recall if that was the case). I looked up “heaven” in the lexicon on Bible Hub:
Usage: The Greek word “ouranos” is used in the New Testament to denote the sky, the abode of the stars, and the dwelling place of God. It is often translated as “heaven” and can refer to the physical heavens (the sky and outer space) or the spiritual realm where God resides. In a broader theological context, “ouranos” signifies the place of eternal bliss and the ultimate destination for believers.
Cultural and Historical Background: In ancient Greek culture, “ouranos” was associated with the sky and the divine. The Greeks personified the sky as the god Uranus, who was considered a primordial deity. In the Jewish context, heaven was seen as the dwelling place of God, angels, and the righteous after death. The concept of heaven as a place of reward and divine presence is deeply rooted in Jewish and Christian eschatology.
There is no mention of the word “air” here. The meaning understood by Jews appears to be that Jesus is referring to God in the heavenly realm. It is possible this was also a polemic from Jesus against the pagan god Uranus, who was associated with the sky. Jesus was addressing the biblical God, his Father, cleanly knocking Uranus out of the picture (as a sidenote, the planet Uranus was not discovered until the 18th century, so there is nothing here about the planet Uranus).
Regarding entering “the inner life” of the Trinity as suggested by Comer, I have questions. What “inner life?” What does that even mean? Where is the biblical basis for such a notion? This is mystical language that may sound spiritual to some but means nothing. Comer continues:
“Through prayer, we partner with God to bend reality in the direction of our Father’s wisdom and good intentions, that through prayer we drag the future age of the kingdom of God into this age.”
Praying to God is not partnering with God. Christians are called to serve God. If some Christians view prayer as a partnership, that is their choice, but I know of no biblical basis for that concept. However, this is a concept in Open Theism . Interestingly, Comer (and Tim Mackie) appear to be fans of Open Theist Gregory Boyd, and seem to agree with some of his beliefs as expressed in Boyd’s book, Cross Vision.
The rest of the statement fits more into Open Theism than biblical Christianity. Biblical prayer is done to become more amenable and submissive to God’s will. Nobody can “bend reality” for God nor can anyone “drag the future age of the kingdom” into the present. This sounds like hubris.
After the teaching on prayer, the screen directs people to “take a few deep breaths.” I see no reason for this but it reminds me of the focus on breath and breathing in contemplative teachings (which has roots in Eastern meditation).
Recommendations are given to make prayer a daily practice or “rhythm” (“rhythm” is a popular word in Contemplative teachings).
Tyler Staton’s book, Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools, is recommended. Staton took over as pastor of Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon, when Comer stepped down. Staton is the USA Director of 24 – 7 Prayer, a movement founded by Contemplative enthusiast Pete Greig. and has appeared in many videos with Comer, Greig, and Tim Mackie discussing this area.
Solitude
Comer opens the video teaching on solitude by stating that noise pollution is “literally killing us.” This is one of the hooks to draw people into contemplative practices. Contemplative advocates want you to be convinced that the best way to deal with busyness, distractions, and noisy environments is through these practices, and that the only way to have intimacy with God is through these practices.
Comer adds that
“Over thousands of years of Christian spirituality, one practice has emerged that is utterly essential for life with God.”
Note that Comer states that this practice (solitude” is essential for the Christian. In other words, you cannot truly practice Christianity and/or have “life with God” without solitude. What Scriptures teach this? Answer: None. (Please see the CANA two-part evaluation of Ruth Haley Barton’s books Invitation to Silence and Solitude and Sacred Rhythms for more explanation).
“Christian spirituality” is not always Christian, at least in the sense of being based on biblical teaching.
Comer states (I think this is a quote though I did note the source):
“Solitude isn’t absence, it’s presence, the presence of God. It’s in the quiet that we befriend God as he already befriended us in Jesus.”
I am waiting for a biblical basis for the idea that we “befriend God” in solitude. There is certainly nothing wrong with being alone to contemplate God or the Bible, or to pray. But it is not commanded or even taught in Scripture. If one is alone to contemplate God, read the Bible, and/or pray, it is the Holy Spirit who will assist one to grow closer to God and to grow more Christ-like, not the solitude.
The emphasis is placed wrongly on solitude when it should be on God’s word, prayer, and the Holy Spirit as the means of growth and becoming closer to God. However, Comer and other contemplatives teach that one must practice silence and solitude (and other such practices) in order to be close to and intimate with God.
Comer quotes Mother Teresa:
“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence.”
Again, waiting for the biblical basis for this concept. In the Bible, there are numerous accounts of God reaching people who are in the midst of very noisy and busy environs such as Gideon, Moses, Jonah, Paul, and others. Is God hampered by a noisy environment or by your thoughts? If one is restless and distracted, can that keep God from speaking to you if he so desires? This is aside from the issue of whether one should expect God to speak to them, this is about the ability of God to speak to whom he wishes at any moment in time no matter what the person is doing or where that person may be. Contemplatives would have one believe that God is thwarted by distractions, noise, or busyness.
Comer refers to Luke 5:16:
“But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”
The fact that Jesus would go away to pray alone does not mean solitude is needed in order to have true prayer or to truly know God. Jesus was often surrounded by crowds and had to withdraw in order to pray.
There is nothing wrong with solitude, but Comer and others tell us this is a pattern to follow. He quotes several people, including Ruth Haley Barton.
Silence and Stillness: “Companions” of Solitude
Comer claims solitude has “two companions, silence and stillness.”
Silence is outer and interior, avers Comer. Outer silence is quieting outer noise but interior silence where one quiets all the thoughts, emotions, and rumblings of the heart is designed to lead to stillness.”
Comer quotes Eastern Orthodox mystic Bishop Kallistos Ware (Eastern Orthodoxy and mysticism go together) about stillness. He claims that
“most of the great ones of the way of Jesus would say that solitude is one of the most important practices of Jesus.”
The “great ones” referred to here undoubtedly means the mystics. Comer, as a student and admirer of Dallas Willard and admirer of Richard Foster, believes in and advocates mysticism, especially in his book Practicing the Way. I do not consider any mystic to be great about anything related to Christian theology. Mysticism always devalues Scripture as well as the nature of God. Most mystics are panentheistic (God is contained in creation and is also greater than creation; everyone is contained in God) and usually undermine God’s wrath on sin. Modern mystics in many cases appear to also embrace Perennial Wisdom, a view incompatible with the historic Christian faith.
However, stillness is absolutely necessary for the spiritual life, according to Comer (who quotes Henri Nouwen on this idea).
Another quote Comer gives is from Dallas Willard:
“Solitude and silence are the most radical of the disciplines for the spiritual life, because they most directly attack the sources of human misery and wrong¬doing… Silence is required to complete solitude, for until we enter quietness, including not listening and speaking, the world still lays hold of us.”
This is also quoted on Ruth Haley Barton’s website for her Transformation Center, and it comes from Dallas Willard’s Foreword to Barton’s 2004 book, Invitation to Solitude and Silence. Comer is not only a student of Dallas Willard’s teachings but has also expressed admiration for and influence from Barton.
However, this view about silence is from mysticism and asceticism, the practice of denying worldly pleasure (supposedly) for the sake of holiness. Asceticism was practiced by the desert fathers (today contemplatives always add “the desert mothers”) who thought denying pleasure and even mortifying the flesh would bring about spiritual gain or rewards. However, Scripture speaks against asceticism.
According to Comer, “Jesus needed this core discipline.”
Did Jesus need anything beyond his physical human needs (such as for sleep and food) during his human life on earth? Did Jesus practice any “discipline” that is clearly seen in Scripture? I think not.
Comer thankfully does emphasize that the disciplines are not commands but are rather invitations to “follow Jesus.” He then quotes Barton about how one achieves intimacy with God through silence and solitude.
The Assignment
An assignment is given at the end to develop the practice of solitude (and silence and stillness):
1. Find a quiet place
2. Take long, slow deep breaths
3. With each inhale, welcome the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
After the 3rd step, the woman suggests that if your mind starts to wander, come back to your breathing or to your prayer word (which could be “come Holy Spirit,” “Lord have mercy on me,” or just “Jesus,” as explained prior to this by the man in the video).
4. Spend a few minutes resting in God’s love to you; soak in God’s love.
They follow with two more steps and then urge you to do this every day. The man claims that so many “great followers of Jesus” tell us “to spend a few moments after waking up to be intentionally with Jesus.”
The second and third steps are breath prayer practices. The suggestion to come back to your breathing if your mind wanders is from Eastern meditation (specifically Buddhist). To go back to your “prayer word” is from the modern Contemplative movement started by three Trappist monks, Thomas Keating, Basil Pennington, and William Meninger.
The writer of this article has spoken and written extensively on these men and this movement and has read books by Keating and Pennington. In a video, these monks explain that their teachings derive mainly from ideas of Roman Catholic monk Thomas Merton, the 14th century book The Cloud of Unknowing, and Eastern forms of meditation. Coming back to a “prayer word” is from Hindu meditation. The “prayer word” is like the Hindu mantra.
There is something called a “reach exercise” for those who want to go further. The reach exercise for solitude is to practice solitude for a full hour each morning and, in three weeks, to go on a solitude retreat (from half a day up to longer).
To press upon you the importance of solitude, the woman states that “there are some things that can only happen in longer periods of solitude,” so, she urges, you can start planning a time of solitude now.
The recommended reading for this practice is Ruth Haley Barton’s book, Invitation to Solitude and Silence.
Whatever may be said for other practices taught by Comer, the teachings on these two, prayer and solitude, are reason enough to warn against Comer’s Practicing the Way website and book. No biblical case can be made to support these ideas and, in fact, God’s word exposes them as extra biblical and in some cases, unbiblical.
God has provided in his word sufficient guidance for spiritual growth for the Christian.
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