40 Days of Prayer (Part 1)

(Some of you have already read this before but I wanted to include it in this blog. My next post will be Part 2 which is new.)



If any of you are like me - praying consistently for others is a hard task to accomplish. It's not that I don't want to do it or that I don't have time to do it. I simply am not disciplined enough. It truly bothers me to know that family and friends need and want prayers lifted to God on their behalf and yet I continually fail them. I believe with all my heart that God wants us to pray for people - to be an intercessor. There are many things (circumstances, people's hearts) that I have no control over. But I know the One who does. I believe strongly that there is definite power in prayer. James 5:16 says: "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." So why is it that I can't seem to get a grip on this incredible avenue of change and blessing God has given us? I don't know the answer to that question and frankly all I can do is move forward and not give up. I have a desire to be the prayer-er I believe God wants me to be.



So I have come up with a new prayer strategy for myself. You may have noticed there is great significance given to the number 40 in the Bible. I am taking that important number and applying it to my prayer life. I have determined to dedicate myself to praying for a specific list of people for 40 days without fail.



1 John 5:14-15 says this: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of Him." This verse has often stumped me. But as I look at it again I go back to the "according to His will" part. What do I really know about God's will? Well - I know He loves people. I know He wants us to bless people. I know that He wants everyone to be with Him in Heaven. I know He wants us to draw closer to Him and I know He wants us to take the fruit of the Spirit and be fruitful. So with that knowledge and understanding, I have begun praying for my list of loved ones with confidence in this way: I pray for God to bless their lives in the manner in which He chooses (not what I think they need but what He knows they need). I pray for their relationship with God to grow (at whatever level of relationship they have with God from non-existent to strong Christian - the relationship can always grow). And I pray for a hedge of protection around them. These are things I truly believe God wants - so therefore - are "according to His will". Then I know that I will have what I have asked of Him.



Maybe you have your own prayer system that works for you. If not, maybe this will be an encouragement for you to try this approach or rededicate yourself in your own prayer life. The more dedicated we are in prayer - the more Godly changes can and will occur through us and around us. I have been doing this now for several months and am on my fourth list of friends and family. It has been a blessing for me to dedicate myself to praying for others. I have no doubt that God is interacting in the lives of the recipients and have even heard of some blessings in their lives. May the blessings continue!