Bridget A. Thomas
Every day is a gift!
Thankful for Prayer
Yesterday Matt over at Jesusluvsall posted about how he was Thankful Prayer Is Not Like Internet Connection.
The title of Matt’s post immediately grabbed my attention because I just happened to have connectivity issues while on an important meeting yesterday. It was frustrating and embarrassing. Thankfully the other participants on the call were understanding.
So the brilliant title of Matt’s post really struck me. And I appreciated the excellent points about prayer within the post as well.
(Before I continue on the topic of prayer, I want to mention that Matt just published a book called Jesus Understands Trauma. You can find it on Amazon here.)
Matt’s post yesterday got me thinking about prayer. I wonder if we take it for granted sometimes that God is always available to us. But if we stop and ponder we will see what a gift we have in prayer. God is always there, ready to listen. How incredible that the Creator of the universe actually wants to hear from us!
In the past I used to wish I could become a prayer warrior, but I thought this was only for certain people. It took me time, but I realized we all can become prayer warriors. It just means we have to put in the effort. Daily we have to show up.
(Side note: If you have never seen the movie War Room, I highly recommend it! It’s about prayer and very inspiring.)
Once we make prayer a priority, we will be amazed at how much prayer can impact us, how much God truly hears us, how much He changes us through our prayer life, and how much He works things out for the best.
In Luke 18:1-8, Jesus reminds us to “always pray and not give up.” I have to wonder if there are situations in our lives that would have gone differently merely if we kept praying. We may never know the answer.
And is it possible that not praying is actually a sin? I heard a sermon by Pastor Jentezen Franklin a few months ago in which he mentioned a Bible verse that really struck me: “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right.” – 1 Samuel 12:23
Please note I am not trying to make anyone feel guilty. Trust me, I am the last person to point fingers. In the past I used to avoid prayer, because I didn’t want to think about the things that were worrying me.
Over time, though, I have made changes to pursue a better prayer life. And I have to say that I have seen how prayer has drawn me closer to the Lord. And I can see how He has used prayer to mold me.
If you feel your prayer life is stale, get creative. Prayer isn’t just asking God for things. It’s a conversation with the One who loves you like no other. So try talking to Him about your day and the things you are walking through, good and not-so-good.
You could also try writing out your prayer on paper. This helps me to focus. The devil will try to distract you, and steer your mind in different directions.
You might consider getting outdoors to pray. There’s something special about that. I always feel closer to God when I have only the sky above.
You could also write out a poem to God.
Or you could even write your own Psalm, as Rainer over at The Devotional Guy™ has been doing. Check out this post where he talks about this and shares one of his Psalms as well – Kicking Off 2023 Writing My Own Psalms [Modern Psalm 7].
You could also read from the book of Psalms in the Bible and use them as prayers.
There are also many outstanding books out there that help us with our prayer lives. I’m currently reading On Our Knees by Phil Wickham and I highly recommend it. (And in case that name sounds familiar, Phil is actually a musician, singer, and songwriter. You may have heard his powerful song about prayer – Battle Belongs.)
When we make a commitment to pray daily, our hearts are changed. But don’t take my word for it. Find out for yourself! ☺️
With all this talk about prayer, I also want to say that I will be forming my June prayer list soon. So if you have any special prayer requests, please let me know. Or if you want me to continue praying for something that you already shared with me, let me know that as well.
Thank you for reading. I hope you have a blessed weekend.
© 2018-2023 Bridget A. Thomas
Bridget A. Thomas 
Prayer is such a crucial component of our walk with the Lord. “Prayer isn’t just asking God for things. It’s a conversation with the One who loves you like no other.” You’re SO right on this—what a beautiful line capturing the essence of WHY we should want to talk to God. As the song goes—He loves us, He really loves us. Thank you for this encouraging reminder about praying. Also, thanks for the shoutouts to the different blogs. I’m going to go check them out!
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Amen! “He loves us, He really loves us.” If we could remember that, I think it would change so much in our walk. And I agree – prayer is our lifeline. Thank you for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, Rainer! And you’re welcome for the shares! 🤗
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Love the post Bridget, when I read Matt’s post yesterday it really impacted me too. I never want to take the opportunity of being able to connect to God anytime and anywhere for granted. Writing down prayers help me focus too. And I find praying scripture very powerful. May we keep pressing on when it comes to praying and yes we can all be prayer warriors (I loved war room).
Blessings my friend 💙💐
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You may not know this, but you actually have been an encouragement to me when it comes to writing out prayers! So thank you for that. 🤍 Good point about praying Scripture also. That is very powerful! Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, my friend! I hope you have a lovely weekend! 🦋
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Aww thank you my friend. The habit of writing out my prayers started after I did the gratitude challenge with you 😊.
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As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17 ♥️🤗♥️
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Little sister thank you for the shout out 🙂
I love what you said about praying the Psalms. I have done that at times when in a deep valley. I remember Billy Graham’s answer to what the keys to the success of his ministry were. He said there are three- prayer, prayer, and prayer.
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You’re welcome, big brother 🤗 I love that – prayer, prayer, and prayer. A great point that prayer is vital to anything we face. 🙏🙌
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Prayer is such a wonderful blessing and privilege we have. I pray we never underestimate the power of prayer or grow weary with it. So thankful that we can have a conversation with God anywhere at anytime. Thanks Bridget. 🙏🏿💕
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Yes and amen! What an amazing Father we have, who loves to hear from His children, and He is always there! He deserves all our love and praise! 🙌 Thank you, Dawn, for stopping by and sharing on this beautiful Saturday morning. I hope you have a restful weekend. 🤍
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War Room is amazing. Adding books to my Wish List. 🙂 I’m so grateful for God’s grace and patience with how easily I’m distracted.
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I agree! God never gives up on us! He patiently waits and is always ready to listen. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! How is your book coming along? I am still praying! 🙏🤍
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I am once again on the “final” read through. I’ve lost count how many times I’ve done this. It is going faster the previous ones. There is always hope. 🙂
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Hopefully this is the final one, for real 😁🙌
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I just purchased a copy of Matt’s book. I’m reading the Kindle version right now! Thank you for the reminder, Bridget.
Please put me on your June prayer list, sister. I’m serving as a site administrator for elementary school summer camp and will then start a new job as assistant principal in training in mid July. Thank you, and God Bless.
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Yes I will absolutely be praying! Thank you so much for sharing that with me. It sounds like a busy summer. But a fulfilling one as well! God bless you too, brother!
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