Thought of the Day !!

Never stop praying.
             1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NLT)
Let me ask you something.  Do you wish your prayer life would be more fruitful?  Do you wish you were more consistent or that you enjoyed praying more?

If asked, I think many Christians would say that they feel like they don’t pray enough or struggle with a prayer life for one reason or another.  To be quite honest, it's something we must choose to work at.  As with anything worth doing it doesn’t just happen by itself.  There has to be effort put forth.  But when that effort is put forth, it becomes not only something we can be good at, but also something we will enjoy.

Today I offer some practical tips for perseverance in prayer.

1. Find a prayer partner.  Seek someone who will hold you accountable as well as pray with you.

2. Find a proper balance between routine and variety.  By this I mean to make your prayer life a part of your routine.  This might mean a certain time of the day or a certain kind of prayer.  Then prayer becomes habit.  But then also add a variety of other times or types of prayer.  This will keep your prayer life from becoming just routine, which can be as bad as not praying at all.

3. Keep yourself motivated.  You can do this in a variety of ways.  First of all, remember why you're praying.  Keep in mind how much you want to get closer to God.  You can also keep motivated by learning more about prayer.  This can be done by reading through the many passages in the bible about prayer, reading books on prayer and doing studies about prayer.  Another way to stay motivated is by making your prayer life more meaningful or enjoying through aids such as music, prayer journals, prayer walks, or other such things. 

4.Don't allow feelings or interruptions to dictate your prayer life.  If you decide to only pray when you feel like it, the devil will soon have you convinced to put it off over and over again.  And if you allow interruptions to divert you from your commitment, you'll soon find out that you aren't praying anymore.

5. Celebrate answers to prayer.  People will praise God and thank you for your prayers when a healing or some other miracle has occurred.  But celebrate the little things as well.  Pray each morning for God to guide you and keep you safe and celebrate the answers to these and other such prayers daily.  Thank God for listening.

These are but a few helpful hints.  The key is to keep seeking God through prayer.  When we do this, the bible says that we will find Him.  Have a happy prayer life.

In the love of Christ,
greg