SO LET’S TRY THIS. ALLOW ME TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH A FEW MINUTES OF PRAYER. BELOW ARE FIVE SIMPLE STEPS THAT YOU CAN USE TO HAVE A PRAYER TIME FOR YOURSELF.

01 Be Still

Take a moment and pause. As you breathe out, let the thoughts of the day leave you. As you breathe in, bring your focus onto God. Recognize His presence with you now.

02 Praise

Here’s a way you can praise God, pick three letters of the alphabet and then think of as many of God’s qualities as you can with each letter. For example, A: Awesome, able, adorable, amazing… B: Beautiful, bountiful, bold… etc. If you’ve got the time, use pencil and paper, go through the alphabet.

03 Repent

Be mindful of where you’ve fallen short today. If you’re comfortable, speak it out. Say, “Lord, I’ve been impatient,” or “Forgive me for my judgmental attitude”. We all have fallen short, and we all are invited to confess so that we may be healed.

04 Ask

This is when you can make your requests known to God. I mean he already knows, of course, but he invites us to name it. He invites us to ask. He cares for us in every dimension. Do you need money to pay for gas? Ask him. Do you need help in order to lovingly relate to a coworker? Ask him. Do you need direction for what’s next in your life? Ask. Say short, simple prayers out loud like, “Lord I need…” and “Lord, I want…”

05 Yield

This means submit; this means me aligning with God. Even Jesus said, “Not my will be done, but yours…” (Matthew 26:42). Yield means listening to God. The best kind of communication is back and forth. So far we’ve been the one doing the talking. Let’s take a few minutes and quiet our minds in the presence of God. This is that space where we become more like Him. Let’s listen for what He might say to us. Grab a pencil and write down your impressions of what God is saying.

1. God’s voice is described as a “still, small voice”, (1 Kings 19:11-12). Jesus says his sheep learn his voice, (John 10:27).

2. You might think that God speaking is a rare thing. Did you know that the most common phrase in the Bible is God spoke or God said? More than 3,000 times in the scriptures it describes God speaking.

3. It doesn’t have to be mystical; God can simply cause thoughts in your head. People use their lips, tongue, teeth and some air to cause thoughts in your head. God can skip the lips.

4. When God speaks there is often a sense of overwhelming peace.

5. When God speaks there is often a sense of authority.

6. God often speaks through the Bible. Sometimes God speaks in words, other times in pictures, or even a mini-mental-movie.

7. If you want to hear God more, read the Bible every day and yield to him.

Close your prayer time by thanking God for making it possible to be with Him.