A Guide to Daily Prayer
Over a year ago we (Thryve Church) made a commitment to praying together daily as a church. Since then we've experienced an overwhelming amount of breakthrough, healing, clarity and growth in the lives of our members and friends that have joined us on this journey. It's our desire to share the story of how prayer has changed our lives and help others experience the same transformative power of prayer. However, one thing I've realized even within myself is when it comes to prayer, we often don't know where to start. Below I've shared an explanation of what prayer is and how to make it a part of our everyday lives. My hope is that this tool will help you grow in your relationship with the Father.
What is prayer? Prayer, at its core, is how communicate with God. It is the official communication method for reaching heaven from earth. There’s no pressure to be perfect in language, but an invitation to be honest in heart. Prayer is essential to the life of the believer; it’s as vital to our spirit as oxygen is to our bodies.
How should I pray? Jesus modeled what prayer looks like for us in what we call the Lord’s Prayer as well as in other recorded prayers He lifted publicly (read Matthew 6:9-13; John 11:41). From His example, we can identify four elements that we should always use to build our prayers. These elements create the acronym, ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication.
Prayer Strategy/Schedule: A friend of mine named Ron Simmons (Senior Pastor pastor of Designer’s Way Church) shared his personal prayer strategy/schedule with me a couple of years ago and when I implemented this strategy/schedule, it changed my life. I have since updated it and tailored for the scope of my life and I want to share it with you. In the chart below you will find my personal prayer strategy, listing a specific focus for each day.
This strategy ensures that you consistently pray for key areas in life. I encourage you to view it as a template to build your strategy with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This prayer tool has proven to be effective in my prayer life and I hope it proves to be effective in yours.
The acronym ACTS gives us a method to prayer, but the word acts calls us to action. Upon praying, we should act on that which we pray for.
How often should I pray? Because prayer is essential to the life of the believer, I believe we should pray daily. Paul expresses this when he says to “Never stop praying.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NLT). This is a clarion call to consistent communion with God. This is shown practically in praying daily.
When should I pray? I’m this modern age, the world is constantly moving and schedules vary which makes it hard to specify a time that works for everyone. However, my recommendation is to pray at the time of day that you are at your best. Proverbs 3:9 says to honor the Lord with the first fruits of all of our increase. The first denotes the best.
I’ll show you what this looks like: I remember deciding that I would pray before go to bed. So after walking up at 6am, working 8 hours, traveling for two, and working on various things at home, I decided to read and pray around 10pm. Just as you’d suspect, I was worn out and often fell asleep. This was clearly not my best. Instead, I was giving God my leftovers.
So after failing miserably I changed this and began waking up at 5am. This seemed promising at first but I was still groggy and often fell asleep because I’d stay up beyond a reasonable hour. I eventually learned that I must stick to my scheduled bed time even added a 20 min workout to get my blood flowing so that I can offer God my best. This is what works for me, you will have to discover what works for you. I encourage you to not give up at the first sign of failure, just learn from it and make the necessary adjustments.
Friend, I wish you well on your journey to living the lifestyle of prayer. May your faith deepen and strengthen as you experience the Father in an intimate way. Your commitment to prayer will create a momentous shift that will alter every area of your life because it's at the altar that our lives are altered. I believe transformation is waiting for you that will affect not only you but your family, friends, business and workplace.
People often say that prayer changes things. I believe I’m one of those things because prayer changes me.
In His Grace,
Pastor Enrique Brooks
What is prayer? Prayer, at its core, is how communicate with God. It is the official communication method for reaching heaven from earth. There’s no pressure to be perfect in language, but an invitation to be honest in heart. Prayer is essential to the life of the believer; it’s as vital to our spirit as oxygen is to our bodies.
How should I pray? Jesus modeled what prayer looks like for us in what we call the Lord’s Prayer as well as in other recorded prayers He lifted publicly (read Matthew 6:9-13; John 11:41). From His example, we can identify four elements that we should always use to build our prayers. These elements create the acronym, ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication.
Adoration: Acknowledging and praising God for who He is. This is no reminder to God, as He knows Himself, but it’s a reminder to ourselves as sometimes we forget. Example words of adoration: Father, Faithful, Forgiving, Great, Mighty, Just, Loving, Patient, Provider, Prince of Peace, & Healer. As you get to know Him I’m every way, you are able to add new words of adoration to your prayers.
Confession: The regular confession of sins is a healthy habit of the believer. It keeps us in constant awareness of our imperfections and limitations and the needs of God’s grace. So be real, be specific, and be honest. With a healthy perspective of who God is, through adoration, we are empowered to confess our sins, knowing that He’s faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
Thanksgiving: The forgiveness of sins and the grace of God triggers a response of gratitude which leads us to thanksgiving. It’s in thanksgiving that we lift up thanks to God for the things He’s done and, like confession, it’s good to be specific. Paul urges us not “...worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” (Philippians 4:6 NLT)
Supplication: This is the “ask” of prayer. This is where we pray for needs of others and ourselves. If we’ve prayed in the order of ACTS, by the time we get to the ask, our request is made with a heart that’s forgiven, full of adoration and thanksgiving. Perhaps you’re wondering, “What do I pray for?” The simple answer is everything! Nothing in your life is off limits in prayer (nor should it be). However, it is a good practice to have a prayer strategy to invite God into every area of your life and the world around you. While there’s no limit to what we can ask, we must be mindful that all prayers are answered according to the perfect will of God.
Prayer Strategy/Schedule: A friend of mine named Ron Simmons (Senior Pastor pastor of Designer’s Way Church) shared his personal prayer strategy/schedule with me a couple of years ago and when I implemented this strategy/schedule, it changed my life. I have since updated it and tailored for the scope of my life and I want to share it with you. In the chart below you will find my personal prayer strategy, listing a specific focus for each day.
Monday: Pray for my personal restoration and vision: personal, family, church. Pray for focus, creativity and effectiveness in our home and the ministry. Pray for business owners/leaders, entrepreneurs, employees, and students of our congregation.
Tuesday: Pray for the Church and its leaders - those present and those we need. Pray for the understanding of the church - against the enemy's influence.
Wednesday: Pray for the men of our church - those there and those to come. For husbands and for single men. Pray for myself & my family
Thursday: Pray for the women of our church - those there and those to come. For wives and single women. Pray for other church leaders, churches, God’s people and the proliferation of the Gospel globally.
Friday: Pray for the children of our church - those there and those to come. Pray for the parents. Pray for the nation, its leaders and the world.
Saturday: Prayer at the Altar: intercede on the behalf of those who are on my personal prayer list and those who have submitted prayer requests to the church.
Sunday: Pray for the service, the message and the people who will be in service.
This strategy ensures that you consistently pray for key areas in life. I encourage you to view it as a template to build your strategy with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This prayer tool has proven to be effective in my prayer life and I hope it proves to be effective in yours.
The acronym ACTS gives us a method to prayer, but the word acts calls us to action. Upon praying, we should act on that which we pray for.
How often should I pray? Because prayer is essential to the life of the believer, I believe we should pray daily. Paul expresses this when he says to “Never stop praying.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NLT). This is a clarion call to consistent communion with God. This is shown practically in praying daily.
When should I pray? I’m this modern age, the world is constantly moving and schedules vary which makes it hard to specify a time that works for everyone. However, my recommendation is to pray at the time of day that you are at your best. Proverbs 3:9 says to honor the Lord with the first fruits of all of our increase. The first denotes the best.
I’ll show you what this looks like: I remember deciding that I would pray before go to bed. So after walking up at 6am, working 8 hours, traveling for two, and working on various things at home, I decided to read and pray around 10pm. Just as you’d suspect, I was worn out and often fell asleep. This was clearly not my best. Instead, I was giving God my leftovers.
So after failing miserably I changed this and began waking up at 5am. This seemed promising at first but I was still groggy and often fell asleep because I’d stay up beyond a reasonable hour. I eventually learned that I must stick to my scheduled bed time even added a 20 min workout to get my blood flowing so that I can offer God my best. This is what works for me, you will have to discover what works for you. I encourage you to not give up at the first sign of failure, just learn from it and make the necessary adjustments.
Friend, I wish you well on your journey to living the lifestyle of prayer. May your faith deepen and strengthen as you experience the Father in an intimate way. Your commitment to prayer will create a momentous shift that will alter every area of your life because it's at the altar that our lives are altered. I believe transformation is waiting for you that will affect not only you but your family, friends, business and workplace.
People often say that prayer changes things. I believe I’m one of those things because prayer changes me.
In His Grace,
Pastor Enrique Brooks
Posted in Prayer Tools