Nothing sweeter than a praying friend!

It was a year ago that I received a text message from a friend asking me how she could pray for me that day. I can remember receiving that text as if it were yesterday. I thought "really, did she just ask me that" and "maybe she sent this to the wrong person". I have to admit I thought it was a little strange and then wondered how in the world to respond. I had never had a friend ask me how they could pray for me before. Not and really mean it. Sure, I've had people say "I'll be praying for you" and I believe those people did pray for me but I had never had a friend seriously ask me how they could pray for me, for my struggles, for my life. Why was this so weird?

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them....This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.

1 Timothy 2:1 & 3-4

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. 

Ephesians 6:18

I believe this seemed so strange to me because I wasn't praying like I was supposed to... I was praying for the things "I" wanted and the things that would make "ME" happy. My prayer sounded something like this "God, please fix all the problems in my life; make the difficult relationships easy; give me the best job; bless us with the things we desire; help us to make a lot of fun friends and so on..." Get the picture? After my friend texted me that day I looked to Scripture to see how the Bible tells us to pray and I found the verses above in 1 Timothy and in Ephesians. I also found the verses that told me how to pray (see below) and my prayer life over the last year has completely turned around. And a few days ago, I reciprocated to a few of my friends the offer to pray for them and for their needs. If you've never asked your friends how you can pray for them, I would encourage you to do that... It's truly a humbling experience to see what their needs are. Honestly, it made me much more grateful for the things and blessings I do have.

Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples. Jesus said, "This is how you should pray." "Father, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. Give us each day the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don't let us yield to temptation." ...."And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And everyone who knocks, the door will be opened."

Luke 11:1-10

...Pray for those who hurt you.

Luke 6:28

Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray...

James 5:13

There are many, MANY more verses on prayer found in Scripture, but these are a few of my favorites! I'm not saying I've mastered prayer (because I'm far from it) but my prayer has changed so much. Today I'm praying for my friends and their requests, for their kids that have gone off to college, for the house that is quiet without them there, for my friends who have moved and are longing for friendships, for my friends to grow closer to God, for those that need jobs, for those that are struggling with raising their children, and many more. It has made my needs seem much smaller in the grand scheme of things and I count it a true honor to pray for others!