Prayer

I have a real issue with the word prayer lately. I feel as though the social media world has made the word a lot less powerful than it should be. Simply put, I think the word prayer is overused.

How often do you see comments on facebook that say, “I’ll pray for you.” I always end up thinking, but are you really? Are you really having a conversation with God and asking him to help/protect/guide/speak to the person you’re thinking about? I feel as though it’s just kind of become what people say, “Oh, I’ll pray for you,” and yet they never think about it again except maybe to gossip to their friends the next weekend. That is NOT what I grew up believing what prayer was. I grew up singing songs like “I believe in the power of prayer, cause I’ve seen it first hand and I know He’s there.”  I grew up believing when things get too tough and I don't know what to do to get on my knees. I used to cry when I'd hear the song "I get on my knees" because I knew what an influential and emotional moment that could be. The words "bow your head" do not just mean to close your eyes. Prayer is a verb; its an action. I think today's society has made it more of a noun, just a thing. To how many people is prayer just a thing? When someone tells me they’re praying for me, I expect them to literally be praying for me. I don’t believe that’s a selfish request; I think it’s what we, as Christians, do for each other.

 If I tell someone I will pray for them, I will be praying for them. Last summer I started a physical prayer request list. It sits in my drawer beside my bed. I add things to the list and cross things off the way I see fit. There are some things still on there from last summer, but they are things that I am still praying about. I find that the actual list helps me to keep up with my requests better. If I put someone’s name on the list, I see it every night. It’s impossible to forget about someone when you’re looking straight at their name. I attempted to start this in my phone, but I find that I get too distracted by other things. So a physical piece of paper in front of me works the best for me.

This is definitely not some “holier than thou” issue where I think my way is the best and only way that works. I think as long as you find a way that works for you, that’s great! And if everyone who ever says they are praying for someone is remembering to pray for them, than this blog can be a moot point.

I think there are a lot of words we overuse in today’s society; but prayer should not be one of them. Its purpose and influence is too significant.