Intention: Prayer
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8
The word meditate comes from the Latin word meaning to contemplate or measure. Meditation has been twisted in our culture connoting all types of images. As Christians we are called to meditate on His word, confining our thoughts to His will for us. A healthy prayer life is ever evolving. I’ve learned recently that in some areas, I’ve had reactive prayer instead of proactive prayer. If we want to resist the strategies of the enemy, we need strategic prayer grounded in God’s word found in the Bible. I try every morning to spend some time in God’s word and journal. It’s like making an appointment with God and it helps keep me focused on His will for my life. For each situation, I link my prayers to a Bible verse to stay focused and frame my prayers. If not, due to my short attention span, after a minute I’m left with a grocery list and my own opinion.
A few years ago a dear Women’s Ministry Pastor taught me to pick a day of the week to pray for each of my family members. Over the years, I’ve added different days for my friends, their families, and specific needs in my life. In part, this is what it looks like for me. Mondays are for my love of my life (my husband) since it’s the beginning of the work week. Tuesdays I pray healing miracles for everyone battling cancer, their families, and those who care for them. I include prayers for Compassion That Compels and myself, that I would lead with love and compassion. Wednesdays are for my older daughter, Grace. Thursdays, I pray for my youngest daughter and use the scripture that is her “birthday verse” which I give each of my daughters on their birthday. You can personalize this to what works best for you. I often use two different journals one to record my prayers and another for daily reflection. Think how powerful your prayers would be if you prayed as if God were holding your hands!
I commit to
Review your daily calendar and see how much time and thought goes into each activity. Add it up for the day. Open the settings on your smartphone and look at the time spent on social media apps. Add that together. Then look at your prayer time with God, quantify it. Two minutes? Five minutes? Add it up for the day. Compare your tally against all your other events and contemplate the words of Martin Luther, “I have but two days in my calendar – Today, and the Day I stand before Christ.”