the power of prayer

my faith has always been something very close to me, but with time, and especially in high school, i’ve noticed myself growing more and more into the young daughter of the king I am supposed to be. i’m learning as i go each day, how to incorporate God into my daily lifestyle. by reading books, looking for counsel from friends and family, and just looking into God’s word, i’ve found so much guidance and peace.

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i recently had a short 40 minute bible study with the youth group praise band and felt called to share what i took out of it. we talked all about the importance of prayer in a strong relationship, because without that line of communication with God, our faith will starve. the act of continuously praying is what we must work towards, but the foundation is us simply setting up those basic lines of communication; first starting with a simple prayer at the beginning and end of your day, getting into that habit of talking to God in your own, quiet situations. we must start small.

it’s kind of like those pesky new years resolutions a lot of us create. you can’t start off the year telling yourself you’ll run a full 20 miles a day. that isn’t a reasonable goal if you’re starting off the year as a newly “trained” runner. it’s the same thing with prayer.

so we have to start implementing small prayers … when we find ourselves in those same locations each day, we can make a routine of praying in those places. right when our alarm goes off each morning, before breakfast, once we reach school, at the lunch table, while taking a  calculus test, on the bus ride home, before starting homework, right before dinner, and then before bed; God is omnipresent and will listen to us no matter where we are.

and we don’t have to make up our own prayers each time we pray. maybe on your ride to school you can just pray a few simple words, such as “God, guide me today throughout the hallways and allow you to shine through me as I am with my peers”. It can be a repetitive prayer each day as long as you still mean it. it can be a prewritten prayer, one you find in the Bible or write yourself. it can also just be you rambling to God, giving him all your thoughts and concern, repenting for your sins and asking for guidance. God listens, and he wants to listen - how comforting is that?

we also have to implement 2 mindsets - we must have a positive outlook and be willing to persevere. we have to know that God has our best intentions in mind, and we have to continually pray through both the rejoiceful times and also those sorrowful times.

this leads to the main purpose of this post, and that’s sharing 1 prayer I found and am ready to begin incorporating into my own, daily life.

my morning prayer comes from Ephesians, 3:16-21; it states,

For this reason I kneel before [you], Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of [your] glorious riches [you] may strengthen [me] with power through [your] Spirit in [my] inner being, so that Christ may dwell in [my] heart through faith. And I pray that, being rooted and established in love, [I] may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know [that] this love surpasses [all] knowledge—that [I] may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of [you], God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all [I can] ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within [me], to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

here’s to creating a daily and constant conversation with God, starting with the smallest of steps.

xoxo