What do you think?
Rate this book
The Prayerful Spirit: Passion for God, Compassion for People
Book Fervent. Focused. Does that describe your prayer life? In The Prayerful Spirit, Dr. James P. Gills tells us how prayer has changed his life, how it has changed the lives of other doctors and their patients, and how it can change your life. “Prayer is, I believe, the most interesting subject in the universe, and one that produces, strangely, a lot of dull books. Dr. Gills’ book is a compelling statement on a compelling subject. As I read it, I kept thinking, This is good, solid, basic, biblical, interesting. The emphasis on physicians and prayer is especially good. Read it!” -Bill Anderson, Senior Minister, Calvary Baptist Church, Clearwater, Florida “Jim Gills is a beloved friend, a magnificent servant of Christ, and a powerful witness.” -Chuck Colson, Chairman of Prison Fellowship Ministries
About the
James P. Gills, M.D. has earned a reputation as the most experienced cataract surgeon in the world. He is the founder and medical director of the renowned St. Luke's Cataract & Laser Institute in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Dr. Gills has dedictaed his life to restoring much more than physical version. His not-for-profit publishing outreach, Love Press, has ditributed well over three million copies of his books on a donation basis through The Honor Innovation.
About the
James P. Gills, M.D. has earned a reputation as the most experienced cataract surgeon in the world. He is the founder and medical director of the renowned St. Luke's Cataract & Laser Institute in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Dr. Gills has dedictaed his life to restoring much more than physical version. His not-for-profit publishing outreach, Love Press, has ditributed well over three million copies of his books on a donation basis through The Honor Innovation.
96 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2003
16 people are currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
James P. Gills
53 books17 followersJames P. Gills, M.D. has earned a reputation as the most experienced cataract surgeon in the world. He is the founder and medical director of the renowned St. Luke's Cataract & Laser Institute in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Dr. Gills has dedicated his life to restoring much more than physical version. His not-for-profit publishing outreach, Love Press, has distributed well over three million copies of his books on a donation basis through LoveLines: The Honor Innovation.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 6, 2021
A great reminder of the accessible power of healing from prayer.
April 22, 2021
I’ve been reading this book off/on for quite sometime, but was determined to finish it and I’m glad I did.
Faithful, fervent and focused? Does that describe your prayer life?
The Prayerful Spirit is a testament to how prayer changed the life of the author, other doctors, their patients; and can change your life too.
Gill writes, “If we neglect our prayer life, we lose sight of our Lord, and we become proud, arrogant people who think we don’t need God. Prayer, therefore, sets us straight and keeps us safe in our Lord.” (Pg.4) He further expounds. “Worship prayer transcends the structure of ingrained behavior and rigid church traditions. In prayer we can experience the holy and compassionate heart of the Lord.” (pg. 5)
In these 147 power-packed pages, Dr. Gill dissects prayer in ways many of us have never considered. There are seventeen chapters consisting of everything from ‘What Prayer Is’ to ‘A Precious Possession’. In between those two topics is a plethora of information about prayer. At the end of the first eleven chapters is a refresher for group discussions or personal reflections.
There are so many nuggets in this book to help get your prayer life back on track—if that is what you need, or to help improve your prayer life if that is what you are looking for. You’ll think you’ve found a gold mine! Dr. Gill writes, “If we put on the label of God and charge out foolishly rather than having Him in our hearts and making Him part of us, we fail.” We cannot make prayer ritualistic—it must be a relationship with God. And it is only through our declared love of God that prayer becomes a relationship. “Without that love our prayers are just empty words.” (pg. 34)
Another point he drove home was prayer cannot be effective if it is self-willed. God’s will must become ours. If we focus on the Holy Spirit without the Word this action results in emotionalism. As focus on the Word without the Holy Spirit can turn into formalism. When you are led by the Holy Spirit you are not driven by emotion. When we combine the Word with the Holy Spirit, then prayer not only changes us, but also changes the world!
We should have a prayer life that evolves into the purest form of prayer. With this reality, we must recognize pride as one of the biggest roadblocks to answered prayer. In all that we do in prayer, we have to stay humble. Here is Dr. Gill’s list of roadblocks to our prayers:
Lack of Faith
Pride and Selfishness
Impatience
Laziness
No Time To Pray
Critical Spirit
Hypocrisy
Wordly Influences
Power
Material Goods
If your prayer is not being answered, perhaps one of these points could be the reason.
As our prayer life evolves we should begin to possess a developing prayer life. First a disciplined life of prayer. Then our prayers become heartfelt. Lastly, our entire being is consumed by our prayerful relationship with God. Intimacy with God comes from knowing His heart.
If you are not happy with your prayer life and need to develop it with the right building blocks, The Prayerful Spirit is the book to get you there. Scripturally backed, is an easy read that fully asserts the writer’s purpose.
You can purchase The Prayerful Spirit on Amazon.com, Discover Books, Ebay, Thriftbooks,
We give The Prayerful Spirit
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Faithful, fervent and focused? Does that describe your prayer life?
The Prayerful Spirit is a testament to how prayer changed the life of the author, other doctors, their patients; and can change your life too.
Gill writes, “If we neglect our prayer life, we lose sight of our Lord, and we become proud, arrogant people who think we don’t need God. Prayer, therefore, sets us straight and keeps us safe in our Lord.” (Pg.4) He further expounds. “Worship prayer transcends the structure of ingrained behavior and rigid church traditions. In prayer we can experience the holy and compassionate heart of the Lord.” (pg. 5)
In these 147 power-packed pages, Dr. Gill dissects prayer in ways many of us have never considered. There are seventeen chapters consisting of everything from ‘What Prayer Is’ to ‘A Precious Possession’. In between those two topics is a plethora of information about prayer. At the end of the first eleven chapters is a refresher for group discussions or personal reflections.
There are so many nuggets in this book to help get your prayer life back on track—if that is what you need, or to help improve your prayer life if that is what you are looking for. You’ll think you’ve found a gold mine! Dr. Gill writes, “If we put on the label of God and charge out foolishly rather than having Him in our hearts and making Him part of us, we fail.” We cannot make prayer ritualistic—it must be a relationship with God. And it is only through our declared love of God that prayer becomes a relationship. “Without that love our prayers are just empty words.” (pg. 34)
Another point he drove home was prayer cannot be effective if it is self-willed. God’s will must become ours. If we focus on the Holy Spirit without the Word this action results in emotionalism. As focus on the Word without the Holy Spirit can turn into formalism. When you are led by the Holy Spirit you are not driven by emotion. When we combine the Word with the Holy Spirit, then prayer not only changes us, but also changes the world!
We should have a prayer life that evolves into the purest form of prayer. With this reality, we must recognize pride as one of the biggest roadblocks to answered prayer. In all that we do in prayer, we have to stay humble. Here is Dr. Gill’s list of roadblocks to our prayers:
Lack of Faith
Pride and Selfishness
Impatience
Laziness
No Time To Pray
Critical Spirit
Hypocrisy
Wordly Influences
Power
Material Goods
If your prayer is not being answered, perhaps one of these points could be the reason.
As our prayer life evolves we should begin to possess a developing prayer life. First a disciplined life of prayer. Then our prayers become heartfelt. Lastly, our entire being is consumed by our prayerful relationship with God. Intimacy with God comes from knowing His heart.
If you are not happy with your prayer life and need to develop it with the right building blocks, The Prayerful Spirit is the book to get you there. Scripturally backed, is an easy read that fully asserts the writer’s purpose.
You can purchase The Prayerful Spirit on Amazon.com, Discover Books, Ebay, Thriftbooks,
We give The Prayerful Spirit
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
April 22, 2025
I have read a better book on prayer. For people who is new to the life of prayer, this may be a good introductory book. I would highly recommend "Prayer" by Richard Foster, "Prayer" by Yancey, and
"PAPA Prayer" by Dr. Crabb. There are so many more I could recommend.
"PAPA Prayer" by Dr. Crabb. There are so many more I could recommend.
December 17, 2023
Powerful book,enjoyed the pace and easily to sit and enjoy
April 17, 2025
great prayer book! It served as a reminder of how we can remain in communion with the Lord and honor Him throughout our days.
October 17, 2025
it is a really good book.
July 17, 2015
This was interesting because it was written by a doctor who believes in Jesus as his Savior, and he believes in prayer. Dr. Gills also tells stories of other doctors who believe the same. It is full of Bible Scripture, which is refreshing.
I lived in Florida for a while where Dr. Gills is based, so the comments struck a pleasant cord.
I lived in Florida for a while where Dr. Gills is based, so the comments struck a pleasant cord.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews