On Prayer: Taking off the Training Wheels and Riding the Bike (Part 2)

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Wake-Up Call

Episode Title: On Prayer: Taking off the Training Wheels and Riding the Bike (Part 2)
Host: John David Walt (J.D. Walt), with David Walt
Date: May 22, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode continues a three-part miniseries on prayer titled "Taking off the Training Wheels and Riding the Bike." Host J.D. Walt guides listeners through a deeper biblical understanding of prayer, likening spiritual growth in prayer to the exhilarating yet sometimes daunting experience of riding a bike for the first time without training wheels. Drawing from Ephesians 6:18–20 and 1 Corinthians 2, the episode encourages listeners to move beyond rote or surface-level prayers into a Spirit-led exchange with God, where human desires are exchanged for divine ideas through faith. The episode combines practical reflection, scriptural meditation, and worship.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The “Training Wheels” Metaphor for Prayer

• Personal Story: J.D. recalls learning to ride a bike as a child—his father guiding, supporting, and eventually letting go. The first attempt ended in a crash, but eventual success was liberating and joyful.
• Prayer Parallel: Many Christians experience prayer with “training wheels”—prayer as asking God to help or intervene in tough situations, which is good but isn’t the fullness of biblical prayer.
  • "I think prayer is like this, especially in the sense that we mostly understand prayer for the longest time as riding the bike with training wheels." (02:26)
• Encouragement: The goal is to move into “real” prayer—Spirit-powered communion—where training wheels are eventually set aside.

2. The Biblical Meaning of Prayer: "Prashu Komahi"

• Word Study: The Greek term for prayer, prashu komahi, means "to interact with God by exchanging human wishes for divine ideas through an impartation of faith."
  • "It means to interact with God by exchanging human wishes for divine ideas through an impartation of faith." (08:18)
• Returning to Beginner’s Mind: J.D. suggests that reframing prayer in this original context helps us shed assumptions and approach God with freshness and humility.

3. Praying in the Spirit

• Citing Scripture:
  • From Ephesians: "Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." (01:35)
  • 1 Corinthians 2: "What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived... these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. [...] This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words." (06:10–08:18)
• Insight: Praying in the Spirit is “riding the bike”—moving beyond human wisdom into spiritual realities by God’s revelation.

4. Making Camp in 1 Corinthians 2: A Bible-Centered Life of Prayer

• Invitation: J.D. invites listeners to "pitch a tent" in 1 Corinthians 2—to linger, meditate, and let the scripture shape one’s understanding and practice of prayer.
  • "Let's make camp here... I think this is what it looks like when the training wheels come off." (09:00)
• Practical Application: The Spirit enables believers to receive and appropriate the mind of Christ, growing beyond basic prayer into deeper spiritual maturity.

5. Prayerful Response and Reflection

• Guided Prayers:
  • "Come, Holy Spirit, and open the eyes of our hearts. Illuminate our minds with the mind of Christ." (10:16)
  • "We're longing to enter this way in the next place. Teach us now. We want to exchange our wishes, our thoughts for your ideas and your mind." (10:27)
• Journal Prompts (11:41):
  • Reflect on your own "learning to ride a bike" story and how it relates to spiritual growth.
  • Meditate on 1 Corinthians 2:9–13 in light of what prayer truly is.
  • Does the “training wheels” and “real bike” analogy fit your experience?
  • What does it mean to pray “with, into, and out of the mind of Christ”?

6. Community Worship and Encouragement

• Singing Together:
  • The episode transitions into hymn singing with J.D. and his father, David Walt, performing “Come, Christians, Join to Sing” and briefly “Trust and Obey.” (15:31–19:20)
• Celebrating Daily Worship:
  • "I think we're not the first to do this. We won't be the last. But I don't know that there are many people doing this, leading people to sing hymns every day right at home." (14:01)
  • David Walt’s wry humor: "A lot of churches quit singing hymns and I'd quit going there." (14:27)
• Living Each Day with Openness:
  • "We just got to live each day to the full." (13:37)
  • "God has a plan for each of us, so we just need to listen for what that plan is and ask him, God, what's the plan for me?" (17:44)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On spiritual growth:
  • "Once you've ridden the bike with no training wheels for many reasons, you just can't imagine ever going back to training wheels again." (03:34)
• On the purpose of prayer:
  • "Prashu komahi—It means to interact with God by exchanging human wishes for divine ideas through an impartation of faith." (08:37)
• On lingering in scripture:
  • "I want to invite you to pitch a tent with me around this second chapter of first Corinthians. Let's make camp here." (09:00)
• On communal encouragement:
  • "We want to go into this day open to what God wants to do in it." (17:27)

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Important Timestamps

• 00:05 – Opening prayer of consecration; introduction to today's focus.
• 01:35 – Reading Ephesians 6:18 and the bike metaphor story begins.
• 03:15–05:30 – "Training wheels" analogy; redefining what prayer is and isn’t.
• 08:18 – Literal meaning of "prashu komahi" and biblical foundation for prayer.
• 10:16–11:19 – Prayers for open hearts, minds, and deeper growth in prayer.
• 11:41 – Reflection prompts for listeners.
• 13:02–15:30 – Hymn singing with David Walt; conversation about worship at home vs. church.
• 15:31–17:24 – Singing "Come, Christians, Join to Sing" and reflection on community worship.
• 17:44–19:20 – Closing encouragements on openness to God’s plan; singing "Trust and Obey."

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Tone and Language

• The episode is warm, inviting, and reflective, blending scriptural depth with stories, humor, and practical prayer. Both John David Walt and his father create a familial, congregational feel—even across the podcast medium.

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Conclusion

This episode of The Wake-Up Call invites listeners to a transformative view of prayer—not as routine requests but as an exchange with God that shapes the mind and heart. Using the memorable and relatable analogy of “taking off the training wheels,” J.D. Walt encourages believers to embrace the adventure and occasional uncertainty of Spirit-filled prayer, dwelling deeply in scripture and sung worship along the way.

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Recommended for:
Anyone seeking a deeper, more dynamic practice of prayer, especially those feeling “stuck” or longing for fresh spiritual growth. The practical steps and community warmth make it accessible regardless of background.

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For further reflection:

• Meditate on 1 Corinthians 2:9–13.
• Consider journaling your own prayer journey—where are your “training wheels” still on, and where might God be inviting you to ride unassisted?
• Try incorporating hymn singing into your daily prayer life.

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Transcript

[David Walt]

Foreign.

[John David Walt]

Sower Nation It's Friday. It's going to be a good day today. Who's ready for it? This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad. In is May 22nd in the year of our Lord 2026. I'm John David Walt and this is your wake up call. We're going to begin to stay in consecration, laying ourselves out before the Lord, saying, here am I, Jesus, send me. Let's begin our meeting as we always do. Wake up sleeper. Rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you. Jesus, I belong to you. I lift up my heart to you. I set my mind on you. I fix my eyes on you. I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice. Jesus, we belong to you. And we're praying in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Well, today's entry, this is part two of three. We got a three part miniseries on prayer. I'm calling the whole series Taking off the Training Wheels and Riding the Bike in our text, Ephesians chapter 6, verses 18 through 20. I'm just going to go with the very first sentence. Hear now the word of the Lord and pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. Yes, the word of the Lord. Now consider this. Okay. Do you remember the day when the training wheels came off and you had to ride the real bike without them? I remember it both in my own experience as a kid and also with my own kids. Dad took me to the dead end street just across the street from our house. He put one hand on the back of the seat and the other on my hand holding to the handlebar grip. He then began to walk and then slowly run, pushing the bike with me pedaling. And then with a slight shove forward, he let go of the bike. And for a brief second I felt like I was flying. And then I woke up and realized I was riding the bike unassisted. Next I panicked and the handlebars wobbled and I crashed to the pavement. Dad dusted me off and we walked over to the empty lot by the street. And two runs later I was a bonafide bike rider. It was totally exhilarating, liberating and joyful. One of the great miracles of childhood when the training wheels come off and you're riding the real bike. I think prayer is like this, especially in the sense that we mostly understand prayer for the longest time as riding the bike with training wheels. It still works like a bike. And yet after a while, not really. I Mean, we are still pedaling and going places. But once you've ridden the bike with no training wheels for many reasons, you just can't imagine ever going back to training wheels again. And by prayer as riding the bike with training wheels, what I mean is prayer as the notion of just saying or thinking prayers. It's asking God to do things or to help or intervene because it is a difficult or impossible situation we're facing. And this is. Okay, it's just not exactly what the Bible means when it talks about prayer. When Jesus talks about prayer, he uses the same term as Paul. Prashuko mahi. Prashuko mahi. You're learning that one, right? And sometimes, you know, it's. It's good to, to kind of get past the sort of word that we think we know what it means because we said it so much.

[J.D.]

Prayer, prayer, prayer, prayer.

[John David Walt]

And say, well, what if the word is not actually prayer? What if it's prashu kamahi? It's kind of like, oh, well, I don't really know anything about that. Prashu kamahi. What does that mean? That's what the Bible says when it says prayer. And it kind of can shake us out of our sense of like, what we think we know and take us back to this place of like maybe beginner's mind again. I want you to remember the literal meaning of that word prashu kamahi. It means to exchange. It means something like to interact with God by exchanging human wishes for divine ideas through an impartation of faith. I believe this is why in our text yesterday and today and tomorrow again, we're going to do it again. Paul says pray in the Spirit. He is talking about riding the bike without the training wheels in what he calls his first. In what we call his first letter to the Corinthians, we get a deeper glimpse of what I find, think Paul means when he calls us to pray in the Spirit. He says this. Second Corinthians 1, verse 9. However, as it is written, what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived, the things God has prepared for those who love him, these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person's thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is. Is not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God. So that we may Understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit. Explaining spiritual realities with spiritual taught words. That's 1 Corinthians 2, verse 9.

[J.D.]

13.

[John David Walt]

Now hear this. Hear this little biblical definition of prayer. In that light. It means to interact with God by exchanging human wishes for divine ideas through

[Prayer Leader]

an impartation of faith.

[John David Walt]

Prashu Komahi I think the Holy Spirit's giving us a revelation through Paul of what prayer really is. I want to invite you to pitch a tent with me around this second chapter of first Corinthians. Let's make camp here. Why? Because I think this is what it looks like when the training wheels come off and we start riding the real bike. Training wheels are what they are. They are good, but many of us need to get past them. Riding the bike is the point. And you know what they say about riding a bike? They say it's like riding a bike. Let's pray. God our Father, we thank you for your son Jesus and Lord Jesus. We keep leaning in further and asking you to teach us to pray. As you pray in the Spirit and on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests, would you bring us back into a kind of beginner's mind in such a way that we could

[Prayer Leader]

begin to grow deeper in receiving and

[John David Walt]

appropriating your mind, the very mind of Christ. We pray it in your name, Jesus.

[Prayer Leader]

Amen. Yeah, just continue with me.

[John David Walt]

Come, Holy Spirit, and open the eyes of our hearts. Illuminate our minds with the mind of Christ.

[Prayer Leader]

Lead us into the next place of learning to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers. We're listening, we're leaning in, we're following. We're longing to enter this way in the next place. Teach us now. We want to exchange our wishes, our thoughts for your ideas in your mind. This dynamic process of abiding, of communion, of. Of listening and speaking and listening and listening more and beginning to learn to

[John David Walt]

speak words like you speak words.

[Prayer Leader]

We're just agreeing in this prayer right here. You and me together today.

[John David Walt]

We just want to ride the bike,

[Prayer Leader]

Lord, to new places and watch you do new things with us, in us and through us and each other. In Jesus name again. Amen.

[John David Walt]

Journal prompts today. So what's your learning to ride a bike story? You remember it and what stands out to you in the First Corinthians 2, 9, 13 text as you see it in the light of prayer? And then does this training wheels versus riding the Real bike example make sense to you? Does it ring true to your experience? And what might it mean and be like to pray with into and out of the mind of Christ? Well, Dad's with me today and we're going to sing.

[J.D.]

Before we do, I just want to

[John David Walt]

point you to the PS today in the.

[Prayer Leader]

In the email.

[John David Walt]

I'm just inviting anybody who's not been able to join our spring sewing campaign just to consider that $10 gift.

[Prayer Leader]

It will do a world of work in the wake up call.

[John David Walt]

So check that out for me. And let's go over to dad now. Okay, everybody, we got another day with

[J.D.]

dad here in the seed house studio

[John David Walt]

on the wake up call.

[David Walt]

Amen.

[John David Walt]

And you know these days are numbered.

[J.D.]

All our days are numbered. You may outlast me, I may outlast you. We don't even know because all the

[David Walt]

days we're not keeping score.

[John David Walt]

The Bible says all the days ordained for me were written in your book

[J.D.]

before one of them came to pass.

[David Walt]

Amen to that.

[J.D.]

Isn't that something?

[David Walt]

It is.

[J.D.]

So we don't even got to worry about it.

[John David Walt]

We just got to live each day to the full.

[J.D.]

And that's why we're here singing today, dad.

[David Walt]

That's right.

[J.D.]

I agree. Do you know there's thousands and thousands of people out there who are singing with us every day?

[David Walt]

I know it. And it's an honor to be a part of that.

[John David Walt]

We.

[J.D.]

I agree.

[John David Walt]

We.

[J.D.]

I think we're not the first to do this. We won't be the last. But I don't know that there are many people doing this, leading people to

[John David Walt]

sing hymns every day right at home.

[J.D.]

I mean, you mostly think of singing hymns at church.

[David Walt]

Yeah, once a week, which is good.

[J.D.]

But a lot of churches quit singing

[David Walt]

hymns and I'd quit going there.

[John David Walt]

There you have it. He has voted. Anyway. You don't really sing hymns during the week until now on the wake up call.

[David Walt]

Yeah.

[John David Walt]

So tell them what we're singing today.

[David Walt]

All right. We're going to sing. Come Christians. Join to sing.

[J.D.]

Come Christians. What's the number?

[David Walt]

Well, in this book I'm looking at is page 36.

[J.D.]

Number 36.

[Prayer Leader]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

What's the name of the book?

[David Walt]

This is the Great Redeemer's Praise.

[J.D.]

Our Great Redeemer's Praise.

[David Walt]

I mean, it doesn't get any better than that.

[John David Walt]

There you go. You know where you can get a copy, too?

[J.D.]

But you can. If you don't, you know, you can just look it up on the Internet and get the words to this one. It's this is a classic old hymn. It's three verses. We'll sing them all.

[John David Walt]

You ready?

[David Walt]

I'm ready.

[Singer]

Some Christians chose to sing Alleluia Amen Lord Praise to Christ the King Alleluia Let all with heart and voice before his throne rejoice Praise to his gracious cherish Alleluia Amen Come lift your hearts on high Alleluia Amen Let praises give the sky Hallelujah, Amen he is our God and friend to us he'll partake sin his love shall never end Hallelujah, Amen Last verse. Praise ye Christ again. Hallelujah, Amen Life shall not entertain Hallelujah, Amen on heaven's blessed shore his goodness will adore Singing forevermore Hallelujah Amen yeah. You hit that high note.

[David Walt]

You almost got it.

[J.D.]

Well, gang, is Friday, and it's going to be a day where we want to have our ears open and our eyes open and our hearts open and our hands open. We want to go into this day open to what God wants to do in it.

[David Walt]

That's right. And you know, God has a plan for each of us, so we just need to listen for what that plan is and ask him, God, what's the plan for me? I'm David Walt from Dumas, Arkansas. What is my plan? And you know what? It'll come to me.

[John David Walt]

Yeah.

[J.D.]

And what a day is, is a day. A day is when his plan for you and his plan for me and

[John David Walt]

his plan for other people begin to intersect.

[David Walt]

Right. They come together.

[J.D.]

They come together and God is painting a picture out there.

[David Walt]

That's right.

[J.D.]

We don't know exactly what it'll be.

[John David Walt]

We just need to do our part.

[David Walt]

We just need to trust God,

[J.D.]

Lead us, obey.

[David Walt]

That's right.

[J.D.]

Trust in no other way.

[David Walt]

That's a great song. I'll be singing that one.

[J.D.]

Maybe we can sing that one tomorrow. When we walk with the Lord in the light of his word what a glory he sheds on our way.

[David Walt]

Amen.

[J.D.]

When we do his goodwill he abides with us still and to all who will trust and obey. Let's just close it.

[Singer]

Trust and obey for there's no other way to be happy in joy Jesus but to trust that

[John David Walt]

he didn't even

[J.D.]

need the book for that.

[David Walt]

No. Amen.

[J.D.]

Well, it's time to let these good folks go. And we got stuff to do. We got work to do.

[John David Walt]

We got seeds to sew.

[J.D.]

So for The Awakening, I'm J.D.

[John David Walt]

walt.

[David Walt]

And I'm David Walt.

[John David Walt]

We'll see you on the field today,

[David Walt]

Sa.