Prayer Cards

You can tell what subjects people are passionate about by looking at their books. If you come over and look at my shelf, you will see book after book on prayer. You would think after reading all those books on prayer, I'd be an expert. But unfortunately, it's just the opposite. I read all those books on prayer because I feel so inadequate. But thanks to A Praying Life by Paul A. Miller (reviewed last week), I have learned how to be more disciplined in my prayer life, and grow deeper in my relationship with God.

Miller suggests using prayer cards as a way to focus. He has a list of the types of cards he uses; here are my categories- family, church, missionaries, adopting families, repentance cards, and hope cards. On the card I list important requests, verses I want to pray over the life or situation, and sometimes the date of an answer.

For example, on my "adopting families" card I wrote out Heb. 10:36, "For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what is promised." Then I list families I know who are adopting. Last week I emailed the couples I hadn't gotten an update from lately to see how I could specifically pray. I don't always know the couples. @ThePipers had a Twitter prayer request for a family adopting from Haiti. I added the family to my card and days later Molly updated that the family had gotten their child from Haiti! So I put the date on the card.

During my prayer time (at night!) I go through my cards, praying for each one. Not every prayer is going to get an "answer date." On my repentance card labeled "pride," I will continue to pray "...apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5) every day of my life!

I'm a methodological person, so having a routine works for me. It helps me feel like I'm joining in God's plan for each person and situation I pray for.