Prayer Journal

For an 8 year period, Melinda and I were part of a prayer ministry that took place from 6 to 7 AM, Monday through Friday. We used the Lord's Prayer as a guide...and never ran out of things to seek God in prayer for...and - more often than not - did not have enough time in that hour to cover everything we wanted or needed to petition God for!

How does one pray without ceasing? It is called relationship. We talk with Father God and He talks to us. Reality is, whether we like to admit it or not, that we often run out of things to pray within a few minutes of setting aside time to pray! We often wonder why we do not get what we want in life when the utter reality is that most of the time we do not get what we want or need because we do not ask specifically! Add to that the fact that we tend to make time for what is important to us. Is spending time with Father in prayer important to you? Then make time!

Following are some things to help you build and grow your prayer life. When I am clueless as to what to pray for, I default to the Lord's prayer. I begin with worship (worship and praise IS prayer!). I then ask God to bring His kingdom to pass in my life, my family's life, my church family's life, etc. Next, I seek God for provision for myself and others. From there, I move into asking God to reveal any un-forgiveness in my heart and I repent and ask Father to cleanse me. I then ask Him to reveal to me any lies I am believing and to give me wisdom to replace them with the Truth of His Word, while also seeking Him for protection for my life and loved ones. Then I close my prayer with more worship and praise! You can always practice such prayer regardless of where you are and in spite of circumstances. Read through the Lord's Prayer and remind yourself of its patterns...then apply them to your life.

Lord's Prayer
“Pray, then, in this way:
Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Matthew 6:9-13 NASB

What is your Jericho?
We tend to get what we ask for. When we ask in generalities, we receive in generalities. Learn to approach the throne of God boldly by virtue of the access the blood of Jesus has afforded you! Want to know the attitude of God toward prayer? Read on...

As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. And two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd sternly told them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”  And Jesus stopped and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” They *said to Him, “Lord, we want our eyes to be opened.” Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.
Matthew 20:29-34 NASB

• We don't get what we want because we don't know what we want
• Define success - be specific

Honi and the Prayer Circle
I visited a local church recently. The pastor shared the following story from Jewish history:

Honi was a Jewish scholar who lived during the 1st century B.C. It is reported that, on one occasion, when God did not send rain well into the winter (in the geographic regions of Israel, it rains mainly in the winter), Honi drew a circle in the dust, stood inside it, and informed God that he would not move until it rained. When it began to drizzle, Honi told God that he was not satisfied and expected more rain; it then began to pour. He explained that he wanted a calm rain, at which point the rain calmed to a normal rain.

• Honi was very specific with Father God                                                                                                                                                                                   • Draw circles rather than blanks...tell Father what you want or need and be specific
• Define a dream desire or promise and match it with God's Word
• Pray for that circle promise every day

Daily Prayer Guide and Journal

Nothing builds up faith like an answer to prayer...so why not document what you are praying for and then document when it is answered? Following are daily suggestions for what to fill your prayer times with:


Sunday - fellowship/communion with Father God
Monday - family
Tuesday - local, state, national, and international leadership
Wednesday - All in All Church and the body of Christ; people you know who need Jesus/ministry/salvation
Thursday - creativity and wisdom
Friday - marriages
Saturday - whatever the Spirit brings to mind

Devote Yourself to Prayer
First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
1 Timothy 2:1-4

God Is For Us
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
Romans 8:31 NASB

You Have Not…
…You do not have because you do not ask.
James 4:2b NASB