5 Things For Prayer

I think one of the things I hear the most for both new and seasoned believers is, “I want to pray, but how?”

I certainly am no expert in this whole faith thing, and I never will be. I hope I never falsely believe I DO have it down. I am constantly being refined, broken down to be put back together, and it’s a beautiful process. To be honest, I have been in a really trying season of life. To be even more vulnerable, I have a hard time reading my Bible and being disciplined in my routine, but for some reason prayer has always been second nature to me. Ever since I was a little girl I have prayed long extravagant prayers, and if I fell asleep before (or, let’s be real, during my prayer time), I would wake up and immediately feel prompted to finish my prayer I had started. I truly believe that it is my prayer time as a child and into my teenage years that shaped me and showed me how real God is. The crazy things I just listed off and prayed and saw come to fruition later in life, things so specific, showed me God is real and he hears and he cares to show his children how real he is.

Prayer is a beautiful invitation to be in relationship with God of the universe- that’s pretty sweet. How you approach him in prayer will also reveal your heart’s view of how you can relate to him. Allow me to explain. When you pray, do you feel fearful or the need to come in low and ashamed? Or, do you approach a conversation with God, like a mentor or parent? I encourage you to seek the latter. When I was in high school, I would roll the windows down on the way to dance in the wee early hours of the morning, pitch black outside, and pray out loud. I would start off with “Hey God” or “Good morning, God!” It was such an incredibly intimate time, and I will never forget those crisp morning drives. I can quite literally still smell them. The more you see the Lord as a relationship, the greater your trust will grow and your prayer life will flourish. So what do I pray for? How do I start this? I have 5 tips and things I pray for daily that I hope will help you spark your own personal prayer life. Make it your own! This isn’t “the format” and it certainly isn’t the only way, I just hope sharing this will encourage you to pray big, constant, and personal prayers.

1. Make me more like you

Every morning as I roll out of bed, I have gotten into the habit of praying, “God make me more like you today. Help me to love more like you, speak more like you, and see things more like you.” This is simple, but is asking for the heart of God. With the heart of God comes the eyes and compassion of God.

2. God, give me creativity today

I ask God for creativity in my work and for a good work ethic. About two years ago, a creative told me that she prayed for creativity in her work every day, and I loved that. I know that ultimately, all good things come from above, and that all great ideas are really God’s grace and love for me coming out of me. I am working on lots of fun things right now, and I ask daily for the Lord to be in them, the process, and the outcome.

3. Pray the CRAZY prayers

Listen, when I say pray the crazy prayers… I mean the CRAZY ones. I have done this my whole life, and I promise God cares. He loves hearing you pray big. I pray lots of crazy prayers right now, but #1 on my list is a farm in McKinney that I wrote a letter to a couple months back and left in their gate. I  pray for it every single day and that it would one day be mine. A photo of it is on my refrigerator with the verse “Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24. When I pass by it I say, “God please bring me the farm.” That’s all. So simple. Or I will recite Mark 11:24 to remind me how much he loves my crazy prayers.

4. God, heal

I won’t go into detail of this, because I want to protect people. But I ask for healing in relationships daily. I pray for a situation like the prodigal son that one day there will be a return with celebration. It’s a beautiful picture, and I love resting in that. I can’t wait to throw an extravagant party for these friends of mine at their return.

5. Speak What Is True

My current jam is ‘Here’s My Heart’ Lord by Lauren Daigle. I love how real and simple it is, it’s honestly a lot like my prayer time. “Here’s my heart lord, speak what is true.” It goes on to say all the characteristics of God, a reminder that he is so good. I am my own worst critic and enemy, and I can be in my head a lot. I hear the words “you’re mediocre at everything” a lot, and I ask for God to speak what is true. “I am found, I am yours, I am loved, I’m made pure.” When we ask for the Lord to speak what is true to us, we will find confidence and assurance. It’s asking to be reminded of who we truly are, not want the enemy wants us to believe we are.

I hope this helps you with your prayer time. Don’t be afraid to approach prayer. It’s an easy place to start a deep love and relationship with Jesus. You don’t have to wait to be a “good believer” (newsflash- there’s no such thing) before you can pray. PRAY- especially if you’re unsure if you even believe in this crazy God thing.

Happy Friday. I love y’all!

xoxo- Han