Pray First

Chris Hodges’ Pray First is a deeply practical and spiritually grounded guide to building a life shaped by daily dependence on God. The central message is simple yet radical: prayer should not be the emergency exit we grab when life falls apart, but the starting point of everything—decisions, actions, challenges, victories, work, relationships, and personal growth. Hodges urges readers to move away from prayer as a pressured ritual or last-minute cry for rescue and instead embrace it as the continuous conversation and loving connection God intended. Rather than presenting prayer as complex, formal, or reserved for spiritually expert Christians, the book dismantles the idea that prayer requires perfect diction or flawless theology. At its heart, Pray First describes prayer as a living relationship, an ongoing exchange that grows stronger through time, humility, honesty, and commitment.

Rediscovering Prayer as a Relationship, Not a Religious Chore

One of the foundational ideas in the book is the reframing of prayer as a personal interaction with God rather than a ceremonial performance. Hodges emphasizes that many people struggle with prayer because they feel unqualified or intimidated, believing they must speak flawless theological language, demonstrate perfect behavior, or craft poetic expressions in order for God to listen. He explains that this misconception distances people from God, leaving them feeling like prayer is an obligation rather than a gift. Instead, God invites His children to speak to Him as freely and vulnerably as they would to a parent who loves them unconditionally. Prayer is meant to be raw, honest, emotional, imperfect, and deeply human. God never asked for polished rehearsed speeches—He asked for hearts willing to trust Him.

By removing the pressure to sound spiritual, Hodges encourages believers to talk to God in their natural voice, expressing fear, confusion, joy, gratitude, or even silence without fear of judgment. The act of listening becomes just as essential as speaking. The more believers slow down long enough to allow God to speak, the more they learn to recognize the subtle ways He communicates—through Scripture, through peace, through conviction, and through the wisdom that rises quietly inside the spirit. Prayer becomes an exchange of love, not a monologue of demands.

Choosing Prayer as a First Response Instead of a Final Attempt

A consistent theme is the call to shift prayer from a backup option to the primary step in every matter. Hodges argues that modern culture trains individuals to rely on personal intelligence, self-sufficiency, and human resources first, and only turn to God when everything else fails. He challenges this approach by asserting that relying solely on human wisdom limits what is possible. Turning to God before striving on our own acknowledges His sovereignty and opens access to power beyond human capacity. The difference between relying on personal ability and relying on God’s strength is the difference between ordinary effort and supernatural possibility.

Hodges describes how praying first changes the internal environment of a person before it changes external conditions. Fear is replaced with courage, worry with peace, and confusion with clarity. Many people try ...