Number 7: Prayer

What is prayer?
Break it down in the simplest form.
Prayer is a conversation with God.

Why is praying so hard? Or why does it
seem so weird? You can chat up your friends all day
long. What’s the deal with hablando (gringo, that
means talking) with God?

What do you think?
Why do you feel it is so difficult to pray?
                    For me, it’s because God doesn’t have skin. I can’t
                    see Him with my eyes.
                    And I can’t hear Him with my ears. It’s hard for me
                    to stay focused on talking with Him.

          

         Is Prayer Important?
    Test:
    When a war begins, what do our forces try to take out first?
    a) the military leaders    b) communication methods    c) missiles, planes, artillery

    Answer:
    b) communications
        If they cannot communicate they
        are defeated

SATAN KNOW THIS. AND THE #1 THING THAT HE WANTS TO DO IS TO
KEEP YOU FROM COMMUNICATING WITH THE FATHER.

                    

                  

                   What are some ways that you think Satan keeps you
                   from praying?

                   The biggies for me are getting too busy and sleeping
                   too late.

                   What about you?

How do you pray? How do you focus on talking to a Father that you cannot see?

          There are lots of “methods” people use. None of them are magic or
          make you super holy. They are just ways to help stay focused.

          Some people use the word ACTS. The letters stand for words that
          give direction for praying:
                   A- ADORATION
                   C- CONFESSION
                   T- THANKSGIVING
                   S- SUPPLICATION

                             I like PARTS better.
                                      P- PRAISE
                                      A- ADMIT
                                      R- REQUEST
                                      T- THANKS
                                      S- SHUT UP

P - Praise is all about God. Showing Him the love and telling Him how wonderful, powerful, and loving He is. It is singing to him, shouting, dancing, just givin’ it up for God. Telling people what we like about them is a good way to start any conversation. If you get stuck, read some of the Psalms. They are all about praisin’ God in good and bad times.
“Praise the Lord!
For it is good to sing praises to our God.
For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful.”
(Psalm 147:1)

A - Admit the sins you have committed. This is where you tell God where you have messed up. If you are stuck on how to start try reading Psalm 139:23-24 first. It says, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Ask God to show you what you need to confess We can be good at hiding or ignoring our sins). If you pray this and mean it, He will show you things – so be ready. Ask for forgiveness and let God clean up your sin.

“If we confess out sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

R - Request stuff. This is where you ask god for things. Ask Him about things you need, want, and desire. Pray for things and ask for things for others. Be bold. He is our loving Father. He is a giver. So whatever it is, ask.
“Yet, you do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:2b).

Thanks. Tell God thanks. Thanks for the cool stuff He has done. Thanks for tress, family, a raise, whatever. This is the time to tell God thanks for doing so much for you that you sure don’t deserve. Gratitude is a beautiful thing.
“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!” (Psalm 126:1)

S - Shut up! This is where you shut up and listen. Most people don’t hear anything from God because they never stop talking. This is what really makes praying a conversation and not just a monologue to God.
“Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10a)

Let’s unwrap a couple of other issues about prayer. First, get a prayer
journal. Yeah this will help with the focus, but it will record what
you and the Father talk about. You can break your journal into five sections.
One for each: Praise, Admit, Request, Thanks, and Shut up. As you pray,
open up to the section and put the words down on paper.

Or you can put everything on the same page and use a different page
every day. Hey, do whatever works for you. Mix it up. Don’t just get into
the same thing over and over. Snooze-fest! Make it fun. Try new things.

P Praise. Listen to music. Sing to the Father. Read Psalms or try to write your own. Focus of what you know God is – powerful, loving, your Father, your strength.

A Admit. Read Psalms 139:23-24. Write down the sins, the stuff that you did, that are not Christ-like. Then look at those things and think about how you got into the situations that allowed you to sin. Ask your Abba, your Dad, to forgive you.

R Request. Ask! Ask for big thing, little things, everything. Write down what you ask and the date. Keep praying for those things until you get an answer. The reason to write it down is to know when it is answered. This way you remember to look for an answer. Then when you get the answer, write it down next to the request and the date it happened.
                   Important: Many people say, “God
                    didn’t answer my prayer,” when what
                    they mean is God didn’t give them what
                    they wanted. God can either say “yes,” “no,”
                    or “wait.” If he says “No,” people get upset
                    because God didn’t answer their prayer.
                    Yes He did. He said NO!

T Thanks. If something cool is happening, write it down and say thanks. Say thanks for the simple things, your parents, your car. Walk around sometimes and look at nature. Throughout the day, look for things to say thanks about.

S Shut Up. This is the hardest part nut the most important. Sit with your pen and paper, turn the music off, and try to clear your mind of distractions. Ask the Holy Spirit to bring things to your mind. Write down what comes. Read over your requests. Ask God what he thinks about each one. Read scripture and write what pops into your mind. The more you do this, and the more you are quiet and listen, the more you will hear. God is talking. You will become more confident that what you are hearing is God. You’ll be able to know what is Him and what is not. 

This isn’t some magical formula that gets you what you want. This is just one way of doing it. You don’t have to do it like this. Find out what works for you. Know that any praying will be clumsy at first. Satan hopes you will get bummed and quit.

THE THING.
Pray. Everyday. Commit to spend some time with God in conversation.
(That means He gets to talk too.) don’t let Satan break the communication.
Get charged. Pray.
                   Rewind:
                   The toughest time will be the first sever days. Hang in
                   there. It will get easier. – Media Fast