Prayer

For the last several weeks, prayer seems to have been emphasized in my life, so I have started to study it. Since the reason I started this blog was to share the story of my faith journey and share thoughts I have from my studies, I have decided to share what I learn about prayer in a series of blog posts. I have more free time this semester, so I should be able to keep up with making posts regularly.

Today, I want to look at Paul’s command in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing.” How is this possible? There may be a better answer, but I like to think that a solution can be found in the chorus of Marc Shelske’s song “Just for Today,” which is also known as “Father God.” It says “May my steps be worship, may my thoughts be praise, may my words bring honor to your name.”

Prayers almost always start with “Dear God” or a similar greeting, and ends with “Amen.” They start and end the same way all the time, but we get to choose what is said and felt in the middle. Our lives are a prayer to God. The prayer starts with him when he created us and it will end when Jesus returns as the Amen. That’s how it has always been. However, we have choices to make for what is done before the Amen. We get to choose to live in a way that is pleasing to God or live in sin. God’s response is dependent on the prayer itself. As you can see, prayer is an important part of the Christian life, which is why I plan to study it and share my findings.

As I study prayer, I also want to study prayer habits, so I need your help. I have set up a survey at the following address: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SY5NPG5. All responses are anonymous. There are two questions, each on a separate page, so be sure you click “next” to reach the second question. I provided a few choices, but you can make up your own choice as well. I also have created an email address at mywalkwithhimblog@gmail.com so that you can provide feedback for the blog.

“By day the Lord directs his love,     at night his song is with me—     a prayer to the God of my life.” Psalm 42:8