Table Prayer

Like a good Christian… Have you ever prayed with a group of people, your husband/wife, your son or daughter, mom or dad before you sit down for a meal?  Have you ever prayed alone for your food before you eat it?

I was sitting down the other day and forgot to pray before I ate my food like a bad Christian!  I sat there thinking to myself how many times I pray before I eat with my wife and how many of those prayers really meant something to me.  I mean really really stuck in my head what I actually prayed before I ate that yummy delicious vegan meal with my beautiful wife.  How many of you can remember the prayer you prayed before your lunch last saturday?  3 days ago?  Yesterday?

Like many of you, I, shamefully am the same way.  I couldn’t tell you what I prayed for yesterday before I ate.  I wonder how many of us get into the tradition of praying before our meals, before we go to sleep and when we wake up to have them all hodgepodged together not really remembering or caring for what we prayed for in the last few days.

I want to stress to you that the problem that I am NOT setting up is that we all need to be in 24/7 intercessory prayer at all times (that has its time and season as Jesus is in intercessory prayer for us at all times while seated at the right hand throne of God.)

I think we need to wake up and put a little more intention into our prayer.  Be intentional about your prayer life and make it count!  Here are a few tips about being intentional and meaningful with your everyday prayer life.

1.  Make sure you ARE in prayer everyday!

I hate to say this but some of us “Christians” are praying on Sundays and leave all that God stuff up to him the rest of the week.  Be intentional about praying before you eat, sleep and when you wake up.  Start there!

2.  Be an Ace of one thing, not a jack of all trades.

What I mean by this is be intentional about what you are praying for.  Be standing on a specific word for your life, or a specific prayer.  The bible says to write scripture upon our walls and to be intentional about getting Gods word in us (Duet 6:5-9).  I would hope that this would mean prayer as well!  Write your specific prayers on everything you are doing that week.  Don’t just throw up a hail mary and hope that someone (God) catches it!

3.  Don’t be a taker!

God isn’t a taker neither should you!  How many times have you gone through prayer asking for a bunch of stuff and then closing quickly with “Amen!?”  Be thankful for what God has already given you!  The fact that you are breathing, or that you are sitting down for a meal!  Life can be short so be Thankful, give back!

“give credit where credit is due…”

Asking God to do something for you only works about half of the time.  I would expect God not to give us everything we ask for.  Although Jesus is very specific on asking for what you want in prayer.

Matthew 18:19  ”Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.”

Matthew 7:7  ”Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

The bible is very specific on Gods ways being higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9) and if it were up to you and me, I would want it to be Gods way!  I know that I am a sinner and don’t know it all and would rather God sort out my scattered thoughts and emotions on what I pray for!

Emotions are fleeting and so can my prayers be!  Lets be more intentional and actually mean what we say in prayer!