Prayer for Beginners — The H is For…
Written by Heidi @riselovelive
Prayer for Beginners
Praying, at one point or another in our lives, can be an overwhelming thought. However, prayer for beginners might have that much more of that overwhelming feeling and that they need to do it “right”.
And what do I mean by “beginners”? I am merely referring to someone who does not pray regularly and/or someone who simply feels lost and confused about the process. And where to start.
First, the good news — there is no process!
Prayer is simply talking to God like a friend and should be the easiest thing we do each day. ~ Joyce Meyer
That’s it, really, I promise!
In one of my other posts “Prayer another method of Finding Inner Peace,” I walk through a few techniques and methods of prayer, always beginning with a sense of gratitude for the blessings that you already have. We walk through the ease of having a conversation with God and also a simple meditative method “Praying in Color”. But today, I’d like to rewind that conversation and start, well — at the beginning. Someone may ask, “ Why would any sane person want to have a conversation with a “being” that one cannot see?”, that my friends, is faith.
Let me tell you why I pray.
The Bible tells us that the God of the universe wants to have a deep, genuine friendship with us. How do you build a friendship with someone? Simply by getting to know them through conversation and living life together. Prayer is how we do just that, with God.
Prayer and conversation with God are extraordinary acts of faith in our daily lives.
Faith is the belief that there is someone greater than myself, someone, who has given me a purpose in this life; and, personally, I am okay with that. If you are too then I invite you to join me! Each morning, I use prayer to thank Him for my blessings and to communicate my heart’s deepest desires with Him. Aside from asking for something, or giving thanks — one of the main purposes of prayer is to also give your worries to someone who can “handle them” better than you.
For the past 15 years, I have attended church, I sing in our Contemporary Praise Band and recently I was nominated as Hospitality Chair. However, I didn’t grow up going to church and religion certainly wasn’t this big, important aspect of my life and frankly, it still isn’t. Let me explain — yes, I absolutely believe in our church, I find comfort in the familiarities with the order of the service, I enjoy the sermons and I LOVE singing in our Praise Band.
That being said, it isn’t religion, that is such a big part of my life, rather faith and prayer. Finding solace in the words of the sermon, a song we sing or a bible verse and then use that to remove my worry and anxiety and to bring me peace.
Okay, great — I’ve shown you how and I’ve told you why — BUT, where and how do you actually begin? The easy question, where?
Might I suggest that you begin your day in the still and quiet of the early morning. For others, that quiet time might be in a NYC subway late in the evening. The place really doesn’t matter — He hears the words that are on your heart.
The harder question, how to begin?
Please do not stress about the “how” — just start talking. Layout your worries, concerns, your asks, and your thanks. Out loud or in your head — whatever feels good.
If you need a few loose guidelines then:
- Give thanks — I like to begin with it
- Pray for those that you know who are in need
- Give up your worries and anxieties
- Ask for what is on your heart
- Be still and listen
Give yourself some slack and remove the thoughts of what you think is the “right way to pray”. And although I do encourage prayer to include a “thank you”, YOU might be so angry with your situation that you need to begin with yelling “Why?!?” or “How could you?!?”. And that is okay too — God is our Father, our Abba — let go of that anger and give that to him as well, all He wants to do is help you.
I’m not much for “folk music”, but while pondering these words, this song literally popped into my head and I decided to share it with you, enjoy!
Philippians 4:6–7 — Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Until next time, Friends — Peace and Blessings, Heidi
Originally published at https://www.thehisfor.com on November 14, 2019.
