Spiritual Disciplines: Prayer

My husband and I were talking about spiritual disciplines as we prepared for a middle school Sunday School lesson this morning. There were really 4 areas that we focused on - church attendance, prayer, Bible reading/study, and service to others. I would love to talk about all of those things, because they are important, but today I'm just going to focus on prayer. I've always loved to write and because of that, I have lots of journals filled with my thoughts and prayers. I'm grateful that I've chronicled a record of prayers for my kids to see one day. I want them to know that God is faithful and He is able and He hears us. It's fun to go back and see the ways in which God has answered my prayers. While I love to journal and still write down my prayers, this is an area in which I hope to grow. I've noticed that as life gets busier, my prayer life suffers. Social media is becoming more of a constant distraction (for me) and it has ruined my ability to focus and be still. I'm so used to the constant entertainment that it's difficult for me to just be. I have a friend at church who I consider a prayer warrior. She truly pours her heart and soul into her prayers (those of you who know me, may know who I'm referring to, I often say she calls down the angels when she prays!). She believes in prayer and her first instinct when faced with something is to go to the Lord with it. I was thinking the other day that I wanted my prayer life to look like hers, so I started examining what I admired about her. She is a great example of someone who regularly intercedes for others, she prays big prayers and has faith that God will answer them, and she's intentional about praying. Intentional. I know that is the key, so I'll come back to that. I am learning a lot from her and I doubt she realizes it. The Bible tells us to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Pray without ceasing- not scroll without ceasing. I tend to do the latter. Being a prayer warrior means going to God first in all situations, it means setting aside intentional time alone with Him to talk and listen, it means turning your thoughts into prayers. I am famous for thinking about stuff all day long (or worrying about it) and not praying about it at all. God has been bringing this to light for me- gentle conviction. In order to establish a habit, you have to have self discipline. So how can we do that? How can we become prayer warriors? I am not an expert so what I am about to suggest, I am going to do too! If you need an accountability partner, so do I. Message me. I would be grateful for the help! Okay, on to some practical tips- start by scheduling a time to meet with the Lord daily, even if it's just for 5 or 10 minutes. If we are too busy to do this, we are too busy and something needs to go! Be sure there are no distractions, leave your phone in the other room, go in a closet or a room with no computer/TV. Start a prayer journal if you need to write prayers down to keep yourself focused. Don't know what to say? There are so many methods you can use! Do a little research and choose something that will be comfortable for you. Val Marie Paper has some great prayer journals and she has some great resources and blog posts on different ways to pray. I have lots of other resources I can share if you are interested. Reach out to me- I'm not an expert but I love to read, do research, and share what I've learned. Show up. That's the most important part. Show up every single day and God will meet you there. It might be awkward at first or feel unnatural. It will get easier and it will become more natural. Keep doing it. You will notice a difference in your life as this scheduled meeting becomes a habit. You will desire more time with the Lord and will find joy in praying. I am trying this right along side you this week! Let's do this. Let's meet the Lord in intentional prayer daily and watch Him change our lives and the lives of those around us. Follow me on Instagram this week to be reminded and encouraged (@thebyway) as we build a better fellowship with our Lord.