Romans 12:12
Okay, let's face it. Praying is hard. It's not always easy to just turn off everything around you and focus on the voice inside your mind talking to the Big Man. It becomes an even more daunting task when we are asked to pray in front of others. We are consistently worried about how others might judge the way we talk to God.
Here's the thing, God doesn't care. He doesn't care about how many times you say His name. He doesn't care about how loudly you are speaking. He doesn't care about whether your hands are folded waffle style, pancake style or even folded at all. None of that matters to Him. What matters to God is the fact that you are talking to Him.
The Bible tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to "pray continually," or as some have stated, "pray without ceasing." This means there should be an open line of communication with God all day, every day. 24 hours a day. 7 days a week. 52 weeks a year. He isn't concerned about how you come to Him, but the fact that you consistently do.
Let me tell you a little secret about myself. Are you ready?
Here's a little help. Don't focus on perfection or dejection, focus on projection. What do I mean by that? Well every time something comes to mind, pray about it. Not just sometimes. Not just when it's convenient. Every. Single. Time.
Say for instance you are scrolling through your Facebook page and notice someone is sick or hurting or even blatantly asks for prayer, stop what you are doing right then and pray for that person. You might be the only one who notices that little status amongst the presidential candidates and Dog Day posts. What if you're at a restaurant and the waitress mentions her newborn at home keeps her up all night and that's why she took a little longer bringing you your pancake? Ask if you can pray for her. Do it right there. In the restaurant. You have no idea the impact you might have for Christ by doing that.
Let me tell you a story or two about some recent activities that have taken place since I started praying more often.
First story. I worked at a camp this summer and we had a worship service every night for the campers. One night I was in the prayer room during the service and the man speaking had an alter call at the beginning of service instead of the end like normal. I felt an urgent need to start praying for "just one more." I wasn't even in the service but I could hear the uproar as people flooded the stage. I just prayed over and over for "just one more, God." As I stepped outside still praying, the speaker called one last time and almost immediately someone in the back stood up. It was amazing. After that all I could say was "Thank you! You are amazing God! You are so awesome!" Prayer is powerful.
This next story is a little more self involved but it goes to show how truly mighty our God is. How He can do whatever He wants for us. Last week was rough. I was sick and stresses from school have started to attack me and it felt like everything was against me. To top it all off my computer broke and that made life very difficult. Instead of consistently complaining like I usually would, I decided to pray. I posted a request on Facebook for friends to lift me up in prayer and went about my day in continual prayer. I was just asking God for a miracle. "Please give me a miracle God. I just need my computer to magically get fixed." Enter in a text from my dad. It was almost immediate that he asked what was up. After a quick explanation, he told me to mail him my computer and he would get it fixed. "Thank you, God! You truly are a God of miracles! You are so glorious! Thank you thank you thank you!" Prayer is powerful.
These are just small examples. I could tell you about the fire that recently went around a church camp that had been threatened for a week. It literally went around both sides of the camp with no explanation. I know the reason. Prayer is powerful. I could tell you the many stories of people who have been healed or brough to Christ all because someone was on his or her knees. All because someone dialed in to the Big Man. Prayer is powerful.
It's so crazy how He answers our prayers. But don't take this message to mean that if you pray for things on your terms God will answer them. He doesn't work that way. He works on His watch. In prayer we should be thankful first. I keep a prayer journal and the first thing I do is thank Him for His wonderful creation. He deserves so much more than any word we could possibly say. But He loves hearing from us. Even when we don't have the words to say, His name is enough.
Take just a minute now to say a prayer. Pray for whatever God is laying on your heart right now. Don't worry. He's listening.
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