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Posts in Category: prayer

How to Pray Like Jesus, Part 1 from John 17 [Episode 43]


 

 
Welcome to the first part in a three part series on “How to Pray Like Jesus” based upon the seventeenth chapter of John. In today’s episode we explore what it means to prayer about our purpose and the daily work of our lives. God created you with particular passions and gifts to serve. Are you taking time to acknowledge God for the gifts and opportunities you have to serve? Are you asking for God’s guidance with your work? And, are you committing what you do to God’s glory even if it seems trivial to you?

If you answered “No to any of these questions,

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A Great Morning Prayer to Start Your Day [Episode 42]

“Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of Thee, let my first impulse be to worship Thee, let my first speech be to Thy name, let my first action be to kneel before Thee in prayer.” –John Baillie from A Diary of Private Prayer.

Consider how you start your day…

When your alarm goes off in the morning what is your first thought? Do you rollover and grab your phone and check Facebook or email messages? Do you groan because you didn’t get enough sleep? Or, do you start worrying about what’s coming up in the day?

If any of these are true then this post is perfect for you. This morning I started my day

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Prayer Tips: What Does “Pray Without Ceasing” Mean and How Can You Do it?


 

Paul urged the Thessalonians to “pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) But what in the world does that mean? Are we to be constantly walking about with head’s bowed and reverently lifting up praise to God? That would be awesome in some ways but not very practical in other ways. We might have to assume a near monk-like existence to do that and it’s hard for me to believe that God wants us all to withdraw from the world into a ministry of non-stop prayer.
 
I have two takes on this mysterious snippet, “pray without ceasing.” The first is that in some ways perhaps, yes, Paul

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The Wrestling Match in My Prayer Closet [Episode 39]


 

 

THE UGLY TRUTH

There is a wrestling match going on in my prayer closet that would rival any bout of the World Wide Wrestling Federation. I really want to be writing a post about how my prayer closet catapulted me into deeper intimacy with God, wonderful epiphanies, and a touch of that peace that surpasses all understanding. No such luck. Unfortunately, my prayer closet has mostly been a gruesome clash of forces.

If you could watch the spiritual reality of what goes on in my prayer closet I think you would find yourself ringside watching me wrestle

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Thin Places–Three Easy Places to Find God [Episode 37]


 

Thin Places

Celtic Christians have a wonderful expression for places where we more readily seem to experience God. They refer to these places as “thin places.” Thin places are those places where for some inexplicable reason God seems more present.
 
I have experienced a number of thin places. The sanctuary at our church is a place where I almost immediately feel peace and proximity to God. I don’t frequently slip in there to pray during the day, but when I do it is almost always a time of profound intimacy with God. Other significant place for me have been: a pond near my home in Hot Springs, a hospital chapel, and labyrinths I have walked

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Three Surefire Methods To Remember A Prayer Commitment [Episode 35]


 
Do you ever tell someone you will prayer for them and then forget until the next time you see them? That use to happen to me, but now I have three surefire methods that have proven effective in helping me remember.
 

1) Catch it

During Lent I carried a notebook that readily fit in my pocket to “catch” names of people for whom I wanted to pray. I got the idea after reading an article telling bloggers that they should carry a small notebook to record ideas that come to them throughout the day. The author referred to it as an idea catch.
 
The only

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