Book Review - Prayer, Does It Make Any Difference by Philip Yancey

The titles of Philip Yancey's books captivate me because he's asking the questions that are in my head. While in the library, I saw PRAYER in big, bold print on the spine of this book which immediately grabbed my attention; when I saw that it was by Philip Yancey (one of my favorite Christian authors), I knew I would be borrowing it.

If we're honest, I think many Christians struggle with prayer. We pray because it's how we communicate with God, but we know it goes deeper than this yet many of us don't grasp the more profound meaning. We struggle with why, how, where, what. Why are we praying? How do we pray? Where do we pray? What do we say? We wonder, are my prayers heard? Is my prayer making a difference?

What I appreciate about this book is the author's honesty. Despite his pedigree, he too struggles. Writing as a fellow pilgrim about that mysterious intersection where God and humanity meet and relate, Philip Yancey pushes beyond conventional treatments to

Increasing Your Effectiveness in Prayer

Prayer. Pray. When we pray we talk to God and that talking, that communion is what we call prayer. Praying is one of those things that you can always improve upon, like communication in a relationship. Even with excellent communication, as you learn another facet of the person you're communicating with, your constant interactions will reveal your new knowledge. There's always room for growth in our relationships and our relationship with God is no different. My church recently completed a weekly Bible study on prayer, and I was tremendously blessed. Here are some thoughts from The Battle Plan for Prayer that can increase your effectiveness as you communicate with God.

Ten Ways to Pray for Your Adult Children

You've raised them, and the hard work is over. It's 'me time.' You now get to relax and live your life. Variations of these themes exist for parents who have raised children, but this is never the reality. While the early years may be labor intensive, the latter years are emotionally taxing and take an equal toll on you. As adults, our control decreases but we have a more significant opportunity for positive influence. With the backdrop of prayer, we can navigate the seasons of our lives with success.

When You're Bold In Prayer, You Can Rest

I decided to be bold in my prayers; I would pray about every situation especially the ones that troubled me or that appeared to be insignificant.

Then my laptop fell which distorted images that were displayed. The laptop that contains all my files and all my writings. The laptop that is central to my livelihood. As my laptop hit the floor, two things happened: my spirit sank, and then I remembered my pray declaration.

After spending a significant time worrying and beating myself up for this mishap, I stopped and I prayed something along these lines, "Lord I bring this laptop before you. You said we can come boldly to

What If Praying is Like Breathing?

What if praying is like breathing? With every breath we take, we are engaging in a life-sustaining activity.

We unconsciously breathe every second of every day to propel us through. When you breathe in, or inhale, your diaphragm contracts (tightens) and moves downward. This increases the space in your chest cavity, into which your lungs expand. When you breathe out or exhale, your diaphragm relaxes and moves upward into the chest cavity. The intercostal muscles between the ribs

Time for a New Start

All of a sudden, August 14th seems to be the date when most schools resume all over these United States (did you catch the irony in the name of this country? I digress). The Little One started high school on Monday and I am still trying to wrap my brain around it. She is my late in life child, the child of my old age, our surprise blessing. Prior to discovering I was pregnant with her, I was seeing my way across the finish line and looking forward to a respite from childrearing. This time, I'm much closer, and there will be no surprises.

She started High School with all of its promises of new beginnings, experiences, and excitement. As an older parent, I'm there for her but I'm also nudging her to embrace the good that High School has to offer. As I've prayed for all of my children, I'm more cognizant of how to intercede for her in light of what's happening around us.

I pray for peace; I pray that she has a peaceful disposition and that she is a peacemaker.
I pray that she has no anxiety and that when she becomes uneasy, she is reassured that she need not be anxious about anything.
I pray for favor with her teachers, guidance counselors, administration and any position of authority that she interacts with.
I pray that she is surrounded by good friends and that she is a bright light to all; that her light will shine.
I pray for protection from people and things that mean her harm.
I pray for bravery to combat injustice and to speak up as needed.
I pray for wisdom and discernment.
I pray for determination and strength as there will be things that she will just have to persevere through - whether it's dealing with a tough project, making a team or short-sightedness on her part.
I pray for memory to recall God's word that is hidden in her heart; to recall what she has studied.
I pray that she will be a friend to the friendless.I pray that she exudes joy.

I have prayed a variation of these prayers for my children daily as they navigated the halls of learning and will continue to do so. I found these scripture bracelets on Groupon and got her one with her favorite verse on it so she could have a visual reminder of God's promises.

We're all in need of fresh starts. This country is in need of a fresh start, just as the thousands of students who start school annually. In the midst of transition let's not forget the importance of prayer. At the beginning of this school year, let's take a moment to pray for our children, their teachers, their schools, their communities, their homes, their countries. Perhaps the Little Ones, empowered by love from praying parents, can truly initiate the fresh start we all need.

Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone.

See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people.

Always be joyful. 

Never stop praying. 

1 Thessalonians 5:14-17

It's time for a new start; start with prayer.

--Nylse

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Your Faith Can Eliminate Worry

Don't worry! We hear it all the time yet it's the first thing we do when faced with any daunting
circumstance. In spite of ourselves, we worry more than we should because it's almost second nature.

We worry about our children in myriad ways - are they OK? will they be damaged? are we raising them right?
We worry about our jobs and our careers - Will I ever get promoted? Did I follow the procedure correctly?
We worry about money - How am I going to pay for this? Where am I going to find the money to pay for this part, this piece, this project?
We worry about other people - Do they like me? Will I like them? Did I say something to upset them?
We worry about our relationships - I wonder what he's thinking? Why didn't she return my call?

Do you notice how our worries seem to take the form of questions? Who are we asking these questions of and who will provide the answers? If we were asking ourselves, we might have the answers.

We worry incessantly and it drives us crazy but we are told not to worry. Not only are we told not to worry we are told we don't need to worry because worrying doesn't solve a problem but creates more anxiety (Matthew 6:25-34). We are told to discard the worry and instead practice and exercise faith (Matthew 11:28-30). Not worrying is the first step of faith because as soon as you realize the futility of worrying you also simultaneously begin to realize the beauty of trusting. It's at this point you make a choice to either continue to worry or to exercise faith

I am not immune to worrying, as a matter of fact, the longer I live the more things they are to potentially consume my thoughts. Among other things, we are in the middle of planning a wedding. But I have learned and am learning that the more faith I exhibit the greater peace which eliminates the need to worry.  When I'm tempted to worry I pray (just like I learned in Sunday School). I pick up my Bible and read any part of it for I remember that faith comes through the Word of God (Romans 10:17). I remember to praise Him with a greater frequency and exhibit a grateful heart (Psalms 119).  I tell myself to stop worrying. All of this happens between my ears sometimes in a split second and sometimes over a longer period of time but I make the choice not to worry.

God knew that worrying is part of human nature, but he also knew that He was the antidote to worry. Wouldn't it be great if exercising our faith was second nature instead of worrying? We can then know a calm regardless of our circumstances - "The peace of God, which transcends all understanding” which He has promised will “guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7)

When I am afraid, I will trust in you. Psalms 56:3

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6

"Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength."- Corrie Ten Boom

--Nylse

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See You at the Pole

I hate gimmicks. When I initially heard about See You at the Pole I thought it was a gimmick to get students to pray at their (public) schools. Over the years, on this day I would sometimes encourage my children to participate by dropping them off extra early and waiting around to see what would happen. Usually, it was nothing.

I've been in this weird place recently and I'm sure a lot of it has to do with my mother's death. I feel irritable and really have no patience for nonsense; if this was the case before, it's worse now. Life is precious and it's too short to waste on foolishness. I'm irritable because I think they are things that I need to say but struggle with how to say them; how to make them palatable for the hearer. In all of my rantings and ravings (if you wish to call them that) I want to be heard. Perhaps I've been feeling this way with God also, as my prayer time has taken a nosedive. If I do pray these days, it's simply because I'm disciplined. Sometimes discipline carries you when your heart can't. But I also know He's a loving God and understands everything about me. Ironically, it would seem that I should be praying more now, but I'm not.

The Little One said she wanted to participate in Pray at the Pole at her school. So we woke up extra early and got her there. As I was about to drive off, this thought ran through my brain, "I want to pray too!" This thought was in stark contrast to how I've felt recently. So I parked and joined the other students, teachers and parents at the pole.

I needed that time of prayer. My soul was refreshed by hearing the prayers of others, by seeing students of all ages participating, and by simply praying. We prayed in small groups and then ended in a communal prayer. It might have been 10 or 15 minutes but it felt longer based on the refreshment it provided.

So while this still seems gimmicky to me, any opportunity for prayer is one that we should all grab and use often. Pray at the pole, pray at your bedside, pray in your car, pray on the train, pray on your bike, pray anywhere. Don't wait for a day or an event, just pray. Pray by yourself or with others, but pray. Pray for your country, your job, your school, your relationships, your children and their (future spouses), tasks you need to accomplish, for opportunities. Pray for wisdom, understanding, discernment, discretion. Pray when you're happy or sad and anything in between. Just pray.

Never stop praying. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 [NLT]

Did you pray today, at the pole or anywhere?

Pray Requests

Source

The Psalmist in Psalms 5 says,
"O Lord, hear me as I pray; pay attention to my groaning. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for I pray to no one but you. Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly." Psalms 5:1-3

It's early on my side of the world. As I read these words today I was struck by the rawness of the writer's heart - David. In his groaning, God is still God and he prays expectantly, knowing that God will hear and answer. In this Psalm, it is also clear that David chose to speak with God in the morning at the beginning of the day.

As I read this, I was encouraged in the following ways:

• Continue waking up early to pray
• To pray expectantly
• Burdens may make us groan, but pray anyway
• God is still in control

Do you start your day prayerfully?

Pray - That was Easy!

If you've read this blog for any length of time, you know that prayer is foundational to my life.

Today is the National Day of Prayer and I just wanted to remind you to take a moment today and pray.

What can you pray for?  Everything, nothing is too inconsequential.  Nothing - no requests just praise God because He is.  Is anything too difficult for God?  No, nothing absolutely nothing, nothing is too difficult for thee - that's an excerpt from a favorite chorus that I could sing all day long.

Verse:

Ah Lord God, Thou hast made the heavens

And the earth by Thy great power;

Ah Lord God, Thou hast made the heavens

And the earth by Thine outstretched arm.

Refrain

Nothing is too difficult for Thee,

Nothing is too difficult for Thee;

O, great and mighty God,

Great in power and mighty in deed,

Nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing,

Nothing is too difficult for Thee.

As believers, we are told to pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17  Without ceasing means continuously, non-stop, all the time.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:18

Daniel continued to pray even in times of trouble. Pray was second nature to him. Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. Daniel 6:10

Additional encouragement to pray can be found on this blog post.

Today is a great reminder that we should be praying always.  Pray.

I Can Pray

I started to think about my day and all that I had to accomplish and it occurred to me - I can pray.

I was thinking about a co-worker who is in a bit of a pickle because of his current job situation - I prayed for him and his situation.

Another co-worker has a bit of an ornery personality - I prayed for him and also prayed that I respond in a pleasing manner toward to him.

I was at a conference this week doing booth duty which is quite tiring - I prayed for strength to complete the job and to do it well.

My company is trying to figure out how to grow and move to the next level - I prayed for the company.

I was travelling this week, but still keeping in touch with happenings on the home front - I prayed for my family.

Sometimes I don't know what or how to pray, but that's not a problem for God - I bring it all before Him and let Him handle it.  I groan because sometimes I just don't have the words - but He knows.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16

The next time you feel overwhelmed, remember, you can pray. Then pray.