Guide to Prayer

This guide is offered to those who are seeking a way to begin a life of prayers. This is the way

I have tried to order my daily prayers and I offer it to you as a place to start. Feel free to add,

subtract or modify it in any way that makes prayer more meaningful to you.

 

I have found my prayers grow repetitious when I try to say everything every day. Therefore I have

made it a habit to focus on one area of life each day of the week. While the focus changes each

day, the basic outline remains the same. There are four steps:

 

1. Begin by praising and thanking God for his activity in this area of life (Monday your family,

Tuesday neighbors, etc.)

 

2. Confess your sins and shortcomings in this area.

 

3. Ask God for specific blessings and help in this area.

 

4. Seek God's guidance for your action in this area, and when you receive it, put it into practice

as soon as possible.

 

The more specific you can be in your prayers, the more meaningful they will become. Rather than

thanking God for his "many blessings", list them. Instead of saying "I'm sorry for my sins",

deliberately spell out what you did wrong.

 

There will be times when this pattern changes. If someone is having surgery on Monday, you wouldn't

wait untilThursday to pray for them. But with such exceptions, I have found that these different

areas of focus keep myprayers fresh and makes me pray for a wider range of concerns that might

otherwise be the case.

 

As with learning to play golf or the piano, we do not learn to pray overnight. Be patient with yourself

but also be persistent. And God bless you.

         

                               Prayer Focus for the Day

Monday          pray for members of your own family

                         Lord have mercy on my son.

                         

Tuesday          pray for neighbors and co-workers

                           Beloved, pray for us.

 

Wednesday     pray for your pastor and church

                           Pray for us that the word may spread rapidly.

 

Thursday        pray for the sick and grieving

                           Pray for one another that you might be healed.

 

Friday             pray for those you know who do not believe

                           My prayer is that they might be saved.

 

Saturday         pray for those in positions of authority

                          Pray for all in high positions.

 

Sunday            pray for missionaries and churches overseas

                           Pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers

                           into his harvest.   Luke 10:2