Powerful Prayers

Please, someone comment and tell me you are also having a crazy first few weeks of school?  I'm trying to remember I'm not the only one, but all the people around me seem to have it all together, plus none of them are making the jump from homeschooling to private/mission schooling in 10th grade!  Oh, and I have a 'crazy' work ethic, compared to the rest of the kids in my grade!*
Ok, I'm done complaining, sorry.  I'm tired and trying to focus and not die doing inequalities in Algebra 2 and electricity in Science.  (grades don't lie, I don't understand this stuff!)

What I was going to talk about, *cough, cough* is that I was reminded last weekend about the power of prayer.  It kinda woke me back up to the realities and I'm being more vigilant again.

Truth: Prayer is Powerful!  God listens, so pray!

Lie: Prayer does nothing, you don't need to pray!

I just got the chance to be involved in a very cool ministry that I'm super excited about some of my teachers run at school.  It is an evangelism ministry, and both teachers emphasized prayer heavily.  Cause our prayers have power.  

True Story: My allergies were killing me all weekend, even after I took medicine for them.  I really didn't want to take Benadryl to handle it.  I hate the way it makes me feel, and I pretty much become a zombie and not coherent and I really needed to not be a zombie.   So at the end of the evening, I told the group, and we all prayed about it.  I took a Benadryl and went to bed.  The next morning, no allergies.  At all.  I've actually been fine all week, too.  

Prayer is so important!

No way am I going to tell you how to pray.  But I generally do a couple of things when I pray.

1. I send up "text message" prayers.  Basically, prayers that are phrases, or short sentences.  Like, "God, help this person"  "God, I need help on this test."  "God, thanks for this person's kindness." etc.
2.  I make a list.  Name of the person, date, and request.  Then if someone asks me to pray, I have a record of it, so I can check back and pray for them, and then when it's answered I check it off.  Which is a really good reminder that God listens, actually.
3. I get on my knees, or sit on my bed and just chat with God or Jesus.  I tell them what happened today, what I'm frustrated about, what I need help with, my worries about my friends, what I'm thankful for, (namely chocolate, good grades, good books, a good writing day) which boys are bugging me or I'm crushing on . . . 😋  

My last approach is work.  I'd recommend shutting your bedroom door, or hiding in your closet, or maybe even your bathroom, if that's the only place you can be alone with no one listening, and just spilling your guts.  Which is pretty hard to do verbally.  Sometimes I write out my prayers, because writing comes easily to me.  But set yourself a timer, even, maybe just for five minutes, and ya, talk about whatever you want.  

Some ideas for those who don't know where to get started:

• Tell God about the things you are passionate about.  
• Sports, writing, taht really good book your reading right now!, that video game your into, the song you are trying to master
• Tell Him about the things that bug you
• Those pesky younger siblings who don't give you space, (haha!) not making a team, the unfair teacher, the homework you cannot possibly understand
• Tell Him about how great He is
• God is worthy of our praise.  He just is.  He's our Father, he's the Lord of Lords, King of Kings, (both of which are above Presidents and Prime Ministers, btw) Creator, and the list goes on.  God has some many descriptors in the bible, it's insane.  
• Open the Psalms.  
• David was so honest about his feelings.  And I mean all of them.  He dumped his guts, and God heard him.  Take the Psalms, and reword them so they fit your situation.  Or write your own!  Psalms are pretty much gut-spills of the Psalmist.  It's awesome.

Jesus tells us to pray so many times.  Look it up, I dare you.  It's all over the New Testament.  It's a command, a weapon, a communication device, and it's better than the newest iPhone, because the other side is always open, never busy, the communication never dies.   Plus, prayer is two ways.  

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people.

-Ephesians 6:18

*For any who pay attention, myself not included, I am a person who does the homework as I get it, regardless of the due date.  Not everyone in my grade has this same opinion of homework, I am sorry to say!  We're a class of procrastinators!  :P

-Ali