I love to delve into the topic of prayer. Being in a prayer group has helped me grow more in love with God. I have asked Jesus to teach me to pray and I have taught others about prayer. But actually praying on my own takes discipline.
I know that prayer is talking with God, but it helps me to have a pattern to follow, kind of like the ACTS format, I shared last Saturday.
Recently, I found a classic book on the topic of prayer: The Hour That Changes the World by Dick Eastman. He recommends twelve areas to pray over…5 minutes for each type of prayer, which adds up to an hour of prayer.
He starts and ends his hour with Praise. Then in between, he Waits on God, just letting God’s love sink into his soul. Which leads to Confession, admitting his faults and sins to God. He prays through a Scripture. He Watches for the Spirit’s next initiative in the prayer time.
Following this preparatory time, he then feels ready to tackle Intercession (requests for others) and Petition (requests for yourself).
Before returning to Praise, he enters God’s gates with Thanksgiving and Singing. In the last minutes, he quietly enters into Meditation and Listening, which leads him back to praising God.
It seems like a huge assignment, but I have found it helpful to write, draw and color, while I move from each segment. Of course, sometimes I land on one topic more than another.
Or if an hour seems like too huge of a place to begin, try focusing on each category for a minute.
I usually have my Bible open and look for a Scripture to guide the conversation. Psalms are great poems for praising God and getting to know Him better.
souldare 
I love a dialogue. Be the first to start a discussion!