Free Essays on Prayer

. God wants us to have an abundant and fulfilling life, but we must have a relationship with him. Communication with God, must be learned, it takes discipline, patience, and persistence. â€Å"I shall not rush. The Lord is my pacesetter,. He makes me stop and rest for quiet intervals; He provides me with images of stillness, which restore my serenity. He leads me in ways of efficiency through calmness of mind. And His guidance is peace. Even though I have a great many things to accomplish each day, I will not fret, for His presence is here His timelessness, His all-impor... Free Essays on Prayer Free Essays on Prayer PRAYER â€Å"Now I lay me down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep. See me safely through the night and wake me with the morning light. Amen.† That was the first prayer I ever learned to recite. I can remember as a child reciting it on my knees by my bed before I was allowed to go to sleep. As I grew older I began to question prayer as I still do. What is prayer? Does God really listen to my prayers? And what does prayer mean to me. I’m still not sure I know the answers to any these questions, but I think I have a better understanding of what prayer is for me and what it means to me. To me prayer is talking to God one on one, about anything that should happen to be on my heart at the time. In my opinion prayer is a vital necessity in building a relationship with Christ. Okay so now that I’ve gotten the standard ideas of prayer out of the way, I think God does listen to our prayers, but I don’t think he takes all of them seriously. Okay that’s a bold statement to make but here is where I’m coming from. Sometimes at a worship service or at a table grace or even praying before bed, I’m not really into praying, but I do it anyway just because I think I should or it’s expected. I was always taught that I need to say my prayers everyday no matter, but some days I just don’t feel like it. In those prayers I’m not really praying with my heart. I’m just kind of going through the motions. Those prayers aren’t sincere. So I don’t think God really listens to prayers that aren’t from the hear t. I think those prayers are just words directed at heaven for looks. Think about it, when you do something totally for looks you are being vain or even false, and I really don’t think God is down with that. So when I pray without my heart I’m taking something so pure and untainted and making it dirty and sinful. See this is how I think God judges what to listen to and what is just a bunch of smack being directe... Free Essays on Prayer According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, prayer is â€Å"an address (as a petition) to God or a god in word or thought.† Although the world we live in today is sometimes very hectic, there are always moments in which almost everyone takes time for prayer. An article provided by WholeHealthMD Reference Library presents an emphasis on prayer and its importance in our lives. It refers to several statistics, which I, myself, was fairly amazed and interested by. The article also explains several different cases in which a simple prayer has changed the life a person. For instance it explains that a group of medical patients who had been prayed for had improved significantly, whereas another group who did not receive the prayers of others had not been so fortunate. However, not only does prayer help us physically but it also aids us emotionally. Prayer is a way to find meaning in life and serve a purpose. It is a spiritual way in which we can express all our pain, heartache, happiness, or even gratitude from God. Thus may possibly be the reason for which prayer has been said to have helped reduce the rate of depression and suicide. Another theory explains that prayer may also provide help in dealing with stress an other overwhelming emotion s. After reading this article, I became more aware of the importance of prayer. The statistics and cases contained in the article caught my eye and brought to my attention the many ways in which prayer could improve our society as a whole. It helped remind me of the fact that not only can it help me, but others as well, and that alone is enough reason to perform this act of God, which we have practiced over and over again and will continue to do so.... Free Essays on Prayer Prayer Changes Things, where have you heard this statement before? I’ve heard it from the Pastor, My Mother, Grandmother, Strangers, and anyone else I’ve come in contact with who believes in God. Well, let me be the first to testify that Prayer really does change things! First of all Prayer is sacred. When you go into meditation for the purpose of praying, clear your mind and be at peace. Prayer takes divine and sincere communication with God. Pray in secret, this removes the temptation to impress. In order to have your prayers answered you must be dedicated and have faith. I like to learn about prayer (you never can learn too much about it). In the process of learning how to pray, we are taught to be specific. If there is something you need or want, don’t be hesitant about going to God in prayer with that specific request. Through Jesus, and only through Jesus, are we able to petition for our wants, our needs and our desires. Remember Jesus said, â€Å"If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you† (NIV, 1996, 1103). Prayer must reflect pure motive, humble action, and an unhypocritical attitude. Also, be direct and to the point. Your prayer does not carry more weight because you fill it with empty words or pray a long time. God only wants to hear from the heart of you, not how well you form words. God wants us to have an abundant and fulfilling life, but we must have a relationship with him. Communication with God, must be learned, it takes discipline, patience, and persistence. â€Å"I shall not rush. The Lord is my pacesetter,. He makes me stop and rest for quiet intervals; He provides me with images of stillness, which restore my serenity. He leads me in ways of efficiency through calmness of mind. And His guidance is peace. Even though I have a great many things to accomplish each day, I will not fret, for His presence is here His timelessness, His all-impor...