Start Circling!

Are our prayers like an awkward conversation? 

Like a list of wants needs and desires?

Using the Bible, and our hopes & dreams for the future should help to create great dialogue with God!

I often use creation as part of my morning dialogue with God.  When I walk my puppies in the morning it is hard not to acknowledge the majesty of his creation!  

What an amazing home God created for us!

We are so fortunate to have a personal savior that we can and should 

have personal conversations with.

He loves us and wants a personal relationship with us!

I need to spend more time in my Bible not only to circle his promises 

but to know and understand him on a more personal level.

Persistence Quotient

Persistence Quotient

Does your prayer life reflect persistence?

I know for me it does not always reflect persistence.  

My prayer life is strongly affected by my impatience.

I grow tired of waiting and I want the issue resolved. . . . NOW.

So I sometimes stop praying about the issue and go into my fix-it mode.  

This usually backfires on me.  I need to practice persistence in my prayer life.

Do you grow impatient or are you persistent in your prayer life?

Pray with persistence!  Remember it is never to late for God to answer your prayer.  Just remember the answer may not be exactly what you were hoping for or what you expect!

Pray Hard!

Pray Hard

Do we sometimes not pray for for certain things because we know that God already knows our struggles and we do not want to always be asking/pleading?

Sometimes I gloss over things in prayer because I know God knows my needs and I do not want to always be asking for the same thing. . . . over and over and over again.

If we were living in biblical times and we could literally take our problems to Jesus would we

Crash a party - like the prostitute?

Climb a tree - like Zacchaeus?

Cut an hole in someones ceiling like the men who were seeking healing for their loved one?

Why do we not view Jesus as approachable as during Biblical times?  Prayer can be the equivalent of climbing the tree, crashing a party or cutting a hole is someones ceiling.  We just need to Pray hard.  Pray with passion!  Pray like your life or the life of a loved one depends on it.

A Letter to God

A Letter to God

"Sometimes the power of prayer is the power to carry on.  

It doesn't always change your circumstances, but it gives you the strength to walk through them."

It seems like God has carried me so many times.  I definitely need his strength.

There have been times that I have been on my knees in the shower crying literally and pleading with God to help me with my burden.

He has always lifted me, maybe not always giving me the result I was hoping for but he is always there for me emotionally.  Turning my problems over to God has always brought me peace and the strength to move forward.  

The other thing I thought about while reading the section titled "A letter to God" is that sometimes when I am struggling to talk to someone about a difficult situation, I will write a letter to make my thoughts more clear, instead of talking and putting my foot in my mouth.

I loved the idea of writing a letter to God with our hopes and dreams, then praising God daily.

Sizing up God

Sizing up God

God asks "Is there a limit to my power?"

Are our problems bigger than God?  

We should be praying with the knowledge that God has no limit to his power.

He can part the sea

Feed 5000 with 5 loaves and 2 fish

Provided quail for 600,000 Isrealites 

Fell the walls of Jericho

Raised Lazarus

Turned water to wine

Healing of the blind

Birth of Jesus

and lets not forget the Resurrection!

His power has no limits!  

He can answer all of our prayers.  

The question is will he, and if so when will he.

I love the idea of praying with holy confidence!

Many Prayer Circles

Prayer Circles

I am going to backtrack to earlier in these chapters.

Page 59 had a paragraph that made me think about how many prayer circles that each of us may have.

What are your prayer circles?

• Children
• Parents
• Health
• Provisions
• Reconciliation
• Salvation
• Friends Needs
• Long Term Plans

Are we praying for each of the above

• Boldly?
• Specifically?
• Through?
• Consistently?
• with Praise?
• with Faith?
• with Patience?
• Regularly?
• with Praise?

My prayer life is definitely changing based on what I am learning.  I am trying more consistently to discern Gods desires for me from my own personal desires.    Our God is such an amazing God!  I am so thankful for each of you who is participating in this study and I hope that this study is helping each of you grow in your prayer life!

Praystorm

Praystorm

I am sure that most of us have done a plan for the future at some point.  I know that I did one while I was in high school.  I wish that I had saved a copy of it.  I am also sure that at this point in my life I would be very amused by what my teenage self thought was a good plan!

"If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans."

As an adult I most likely would look at the plans I had as a teenager and see how small my plans were.

As an adult I have more wisdom and understanding then I did as a teenager.  

What would God think of our long term plans?

Do our plans have God at the forefront or ourselves?

  

God is so much wiser and has foresight that we do not possess.  

We can not even begin to imagine the amazing plans he has in store for us!

Keep planning, but pray like your plan depends on God, because it does!