The pine trees show off their new growth. Their branches look like they have little Christmas ornaments on their ends. The fact that I was able to notice them? That was grace, I think, and also a prayer. You’ll understand more about what I mean as you read on…

I think that somewhere along the line, I got the idea that prayer had to be difficult. That it was more effective that way.  Better somehow.

I learned growing up in my Baptist church that I should pray every day, that it was something I should plan and work towards. My goal once I hit middle school, then, was to have a quiet time every morning before the rest of my day started. I did my best to get up early so I could spend time reading my Bible and praying. I had a Bible reading plan, one that would take me through the whole thing in a year.

I also had a list at the back of my Bible, full of all the names of people I wanted to remember in prayer. It included people in my church who were hurting, sick, or sad. My friends were on there too, especially the “lost” ones. Also, my family, the church’s missionaries, and even the President, because the Bible said to pray for “those in authority over you,” which included politicians, even the ones my parents didn’t like.

I think I might have learned the ACTS method of prayer in Sunday school, with its helpful acronym to keep me on track. First, I was told to start prayer sessions with the “A,” which was “Adoration,” of God, then move on to “Confession” of my sins, followed by “Thanksgiving,” and then at the very end, “Supplication.” That’s finally when you got to ask for things that you needed. But not before you went through all the other steps first.

Try not to get them out of order, I was told, because that would be doing it a little wrong. God would still listen, probably, but it seemed like He (God was always a “He” back then, and his name should always be capitalized, because that showed proper respect) would be more inclined to help you if you did the adoration thing first. Continue Reading…