Do you know why I love to blog? Because I believe that God will lift the words off the page and into your heart in a way that encourages or blesses you at your point of need. I started this blog five years ago to create another avenue of ministry to promote spiritual growth. I write to share something meaningful that will strengthen you as we travel on this spiritual journey together. To that end, I always pray that the Lord will give me what HE wants me to share to support you, and He answered! He planted this thought: “Since you find joy in praying for others, why don’t you not only pray over your readers, but help them grow their own prayer life?” The moment I “heard” that idea, I immediately saw a vision for it. Who doesn’t have room to grow in the spiritual discipline of prayer?! We never arrive, right?

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Before I advance this vision, let me be clear: I do not have the corner of the market on prayer! I do not believe I am above anyone. I don’t think I am more spiritual than anyone else. I have plenty of room to grow in this area. Consider me as one who comes along beside you to give ideas on how to strengthen your prayer life. I want to risk with God on this vision. I want to help you unleash the power of prayer in your own life. Moreover, I believe YOU have much to offer. I hope the Spirit prompts you to share things about your prayer life through the “Comments” section. I want everyone to enjoy YOUR wisdom and insights. The only credential I have is my personal experience, but I trust the Lord can use it for His glory.

I envision helping you develop your own prayer guide. You may read some prayers that resonate with you, so you adapt it to fit your prayer life. I want you to feel freedom to change anything you see. The goal is to strengthen YOU in prayer, and the Lord will show you how. Some posts on prayer will be topical. For example, what are some good Scripture passages to pray when we need protection? How can we pray effectively when someone is fighting an illness? What are ways that we can praise God through prayer? When hard decisions are in front of us, what are some Bible passages we can pray back to Him and then discern His answer? Again, I don’t have all the answers, but together we can gather many of them!

But where to begin? When I was little, my parents taught me popular prayers that I memorized. My bedtime prayer was, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray to God my soul to take.” When it was time to bless the food at the table, I learned, “God is great. God is good. Let us thank Him for our food. Amen.” But then I got older, so it was time to branch out from canned prayers.

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I learned to pray by listening to others. I listened to my parents pray. I paid attention to how my Sunday School teachers prayed, or how my pastor prayed in the pulpit. My youth pastor encouraged our small group to pray “sentence prayers” to help us overcome any fears of praying out loud. During my college years and in my twenties, I learned about quiet times. I had mentors in the church setting who taught me that I could read a devotional and then apply it through prayer. In my thirties and forties, I discovered prayer journaling. I stumbled upon a prayer notebook by E.M. Bounds called Memos to God. Each pre-printed sheet contained a set outline for prayer. The acronym was ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication). I prayed to God daily by filling in the blank sheets after reading the devotional for the day. I kept a prayer journal for years. As God answered prayers, I used a yellow highlighter to reinforce that He hears our prayers. Now I’m in my fifties. I am discovering the power of using Scripture as a way to pray to God. Please know that I was never alone in this journey.

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God placed mature believers throughout my life who helped me grow my prayer life. My Dad prayed over me for many years. I experienced his strong love for me as he prayed to the Lord on my behalf. Norma Branson, my dear sister in Christ in Kansas, prayed with me every week for several years. My dear friend Bonnie Mikes has spent Thursday evenings with me for over four years here in Austin, and we’re going strong. Because their walk with the Lord is so deep, their prayer life is rich. I bet you have your own list of those who have helped you along. We not only need to thank God for these strong prayer warriors, but we need to embrace the vision that we can become prayer warriors too. Are you ready?!

Today I want to share a section of my prayer guide that is a daily staple for me. A beautiful choral arrangement called “God Be in My Head” by John Rutter inspired it. Please listen to it. It’s only 1.5 minutes long: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U3mHgedrsQ

Here are the lyrics:

“God be in my head and in my understanding;

God be in my eyes and in my looking;

God be in my mouth and in my speaking;

God be in my heart and in my thinking;

God be at my end and in my departing.”

Mr. Rutter describes beautifully how pervasive God should be in our lives. We want to ask God to permeate every area of our lives. As you read the prayer below, I encourage you to roll your cursor over each Scripture reference. You will see the complete verse that supports the prayer request:

God, be in our head and understanding:

• May you give us generous portions of wisdom without finding fault [James 1:5]
• May you give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that we may know you better. May this same Spirit give us keen spiritual insight into all of our circumstances [Eph 1:17]
• As we live out each day, help us to “trust in the Lord always and lean not on our own understanding, but in all our ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make our paths straight.” [Prov 3:5-6]

God, be in our eyes and in our looking:

• May we see everyone through the spiritual lens of Christ [I Sam 16:7; Rom 2:11; Jam 2:1]
• May we look upon one another with Christ’s compassion and mercy [Matt 9:36]
• When we interact with others, may the smile of Jesus be evident in our eyes. May they experience our genuine care and concern for them [Prov 15:30a]
• When situations become complex, may your Spirit bring the hidden things to light that we may see and understand them from your vantage point. [Job 12:22, Job 28:11, Dan 2:22]

God, be in our mouth and in our speaking:

• May you give us words of life that are comforting, encouragement, edifying, hopeful and healing [Prov 15:4, Prov 15:30b]
• May you lead us by your Spirit to choose our words wisely so that we minister to those around us. [Prov 25:11]

God, be in our heart and in our thinking:

• May you give us a fresh indwelling of your Holy Spirit. [Eph 5:18b]
• May the fruit of the Spirit be evident to others. [Gal 5:22-23]
• May the eyes of our heart be enlightened in order that we may know the hope to which you have called us. [Eph 1:18]
• May we give the Holy Spirit free reign to control our mind that will result in “life and peace.” [Rom 8:6b]   

This is my foundational prayer. Do you have a foundational prayer in which you’re inviting God to be involved in every part of your being? Did other Scripture passages come to mind that we can use to strengthen the above prayer guide? If so, please click “Share Your Comments” below for everyone’s benefit.

As my subscribers, I am now praying for you. I can’t wait to see how God strengthens us in our prayer life. Until we meet again, “May the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” (Num 6:24-26)

Blessings,

Lee Ann