Reality of Prayer

Edward McKendree Bounds wrote extensively on prayer during his decades of pastoral ministry, but The Reality of Prayer represents his most direct assault on the casual, theoretical approach to prayer that he witnessed in American Protestant churches of the early twentieth century. Published posthumously in 1924, the work emerged from Bounds' conviction that prayer had been reduced to a religious formality rather than recognized as the fundamental spiritual reality that sustains both individual believers and the church itself.

Bounds argues that prayer is not merely a devotional practice or a means of obtaining divine favor, but the essential spiritual activity through which God's power enters the world. He insists that prayer must be understood as work—demanding, disciplined, and costly—rather than as casual conversation or wishful thinking. The book systematically dismantles popular misconceptions about prayer while constructing a vision of intercession as the church's primary calling. Bounds emphasizes that effective prayer requires both deep personal holiness and sustained commitment, arguing that God seeks not eloquent petitions but transformed hearts that align with divine purposes. Throughout, he draws heavily on biblical examples and historical accounts of prayer warriors to demonstrate that extraordinary spiritual results flow only from extraordinary dedication to prayer.

The Reality of Prayer has remained influential within evangelical and Pentecostal circles for its uncompromising vision of prayer as spiritual warfare and its challenge to comfortable Christianity. Bounds' emphasis on prayer as the church's neglected power source has inspired multiple generations of prayer movements and continues to convict readers who sense the gap between their prayer lives and their spiritual aspirations.

Who should read this: Christians seeking to move beyond perfunctory prayer habits toward a more rigorous and expectant prayer life will find Bounds both challenging and instructive. Those satisfied with prayer as occasional comfort rather than life-transforming discipline may find his demands excessive.