This may seem an odd question, but please bear with me. I grew up in a non-going-to-church home. God was mentioned occasionally, but never consistently. We never said a prayer as a family and I never heard or saw anyone in my family pray. I was wondering how you all pray. By yourself and with your family, do you pray out loud? What do you say? Do you sit there and just tell God about what's going on in your life - He knows it already. What kind of questions do you ask Him? What do you tell Him? I know prayer is something a lot of people struggle with, but I was just curious as to how you ladies to it. I am determined to raise my children with the Lord. I am determined to come to know the Lord better everyday for myself. Thanks for reading! Jen
Wow! What an interesting question. I'm excited at the fact that you recognize the importance of having God in your childrens' lives (and yours, too!). Being raised in a Christian family, I can't imagine the position you're in, now. Praying together was as common as eating in our house growing up. I'll try not to ramble, but I could go on forever..... Simply put, prayer is our communication with God. He communicates to us through His word (the Bible), and we communicate to Him through prayer. There's no 'absolute' way to pray, but we're given an example in the book of Matthew, Chapter 6: Mt 6:5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. Mt 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Mt 6:7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Mt 6:8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This passage tells us that prayer is a personal conversation between you and God. It's not for show for others to see, but don't be ashamed of it. You can pray out loud, silently....whatever you're comfortable doing. While you're trying to teach your children, it will be wonderful for them to see you as an example when they hear you praying. Also, there's nothing on your heart or in your mind that God doesn't already know - he knows us better than we know ourselves. Mt 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, Mt 6:10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Mt 6:11 Give us today our daily bread. Mt 6:12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Mt 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ This isn't to say that you have to say this exact prayer each time. It gives us a pattern to use while praying: 1) glorify the Father, 2) thank Him for the blessings he gives us, 3) ask his guidance to do his will, 4) ask for forgiveness of sins. Also open your heart and talk to God about your concerns, cares, joy, etc.... It's better than a conversation with your best friend. He KNOWS you. I know I could go on forever on this, but it's such a joy when you can learn to "tap into" the power or prayer. I would recommend contacting your local church and they would be happy to help you, as well. Our prayers are with you as you find your way!!
OKmom, you took the verses right outa my mouth. I grew up in a home with professing Christians but no adults praying...alone or with us kids. I prayed from the time I was 4 the only way a child can....I just spilled my guts and asked for my stuffed dog to become a real dog when I woke up in the morning :lol:. I remember praying that for a looooong time. (and I still love dogs and always have more than one ). Even the disciples weren't sure how to pray. That's why Jesus gave them the model (The Lord's Prayer), not to be recited but as a model, like OKmom said. I'm glad you are wanting to get your family started praying. That is the single most important factor in a Christian's life. That's what changes our belief into a relationship.
I like this question! It's interesting you asked this because my husband and I have recently taken bigger steps together in talking about things like this. We say prayers out loud as a family before each meal (my daycare kids have a prayer they say every day before meals as well). We say a repetetive prayer before dinner just so my son has something to memorize and say along. We will slowly work into saying non-repetetive things soon, prayers from the 'heart' (he is 3). We say a prayer with our son before he goes to bed as well. I pray about things throughout the day, depending on things. If something awesome happens I send a "thank you Lord" his way. If I am having a terrible day I just say something like "please give me the strength and patience" to myself while I am working. At night I say prayers to myself, usually not out loud because I'm just not that type of person. I get nervous even saying a prayer out loud before a meal if it's not something memorized. I'm slowly getting better at that. My hubby and I don't nec. pray together, but we talk about prayer and what we should pray about.
Hubby had a Baptist pastor for a dad so he is a bold prayer warrior, aloud in corporate prayer or alone. I, however, was used to prayer being completely private--or nonexhistant--so I had a hard time praying aloud when it was just me and hubby. We got some advice (during a short separation) from a video series we did by Dr. Gary Chapman (also author of The Five Love Languages). He suggests that couples pray together daily. And if all you do is hold hands and say silent prayers that's okay. So that is what we started doing--holding hands and praying silently and each saying "amen" when finished. I cannot tell you what a difference it makes in our relationship when we pray together like that. During my very deep valley lately, hubby approached me and asked if we needed to start praying together every night again...so we did and I am now getting back on track. Hope this helps.
Thanks for the reply's ladies :-D I've always been a silent pray-er but was curious as to how others prayed. I really want my children to have a great relationship with the Lord, so I want to pray out loud throughout the day so they will hear me. . . monkey see, monkey do. Growing up in a non-praying home, I feel a little self-concious praying out loud. I'll be praying for the courage and will to say prayers in front of other people, especially my children! Jen
