Prayer Hacks

By Alvin VanderGriend Sin hinders prayer. A person may pray and pray without receiving an answer, and then conclude that the problem is in God. In reality the problem may be in the person’s heart. David understood that if he cherished sin in his heart, the Lord would not hear him. One of the worst

Having a Life Coach is a popular phenomenon these days. Many people—especially leaders–have someone who can look critically at a person’s effectiveness in their life work, relationships, etc., and offer tips and suggestions on how to improve in their areas of weakness. I don’t knock that practice, but I have never had such a person

My favorite car of all time was a 1993 Nissan Sentra. I bought it brand new at the end of 1993, and had it until 2013. It was extremely dependable, costing me little in repairs. It had roughly 170,000 miles on it when I sold it. I loved that car. But in its later years,

In my life the #1 method of prayer has been praying Scripture or praying God’s Word back to Him. It brings the most power, the most comfort and peace, and the greatest results. It is extremely simple to do. While there are multiple ways to insert verses of Scripture into your prayers, here is the

In Jeremiah 29:7, the prophet challenged people to pray for the city you live in, because if it prospers, you will prosper, too. Praying for God’s blessing on our communities is a powerful topic we all should consider praying for regularly. Here are 7 prayer points with Scriptures that you can use as you pray

My wife and I travel back to her hometown in Lancaster County, PA, once or twice a year. It’s a long, 11-hour drive. When we first come into western Pennsylvania on I-70, there is an interesting stretch of road I like to call “the chute.” It’s a 35-mile or so stretch of road that has

When we pray, most people just pray in their head, silently. There is nothing at all wrong with praying that way. But there are some extremely valuable benefits to praying out loud—even if you are praying by yourself. Here are 3 benefits to consider: Praying out loud stops your mind from wandering! Many of us

I have never been an overly social person. So the idea of connecting with neighbors was never a high priority with me. I like the garage-door culture that is middle America. But a number of years ago, when my wife and I built a home, things changed. Our home was the second one completed in

Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together? Isn’t it awesome when you try something and it actually works? I have little ability when it comes to fixing things—and, unfortunately, all five of the people in my household are gifted at breaking things. Being the dad, I am the first one called upon,

Since we want to grow in our prayer life, maybe a good model for us is Jesus. What did He pray about while He was on earth? If we know what He prayed over, perhaps it would be good to include those areas in our own prayer life as well! Let’s take a quick look.

The BLESS acronym is an easy way to remember five important ways to intercede for others. Use this pattern to pray for family members, friends, neighbors, and coworkers. B Body—(pray for health, protection, strength, fitness) “Seek first [God’s] kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:33).

Join the Army of Intercessors Seeking to Reclaim a Generation! By Cheryl Sacks Perhaps, like me, you are deeply concerned about what you see happening in schools around our nation. You want to make a difference. The truth is that no matter what we see with our natural eyes, we can be confident the Lord

The first area of prayer most of us develop is praying for ourselves—or prayers of petition. Even there we can learn to pray God’s will for our lives. Here is a simple list developed by Alvin VanderGriend that presents 26 scriptural items on which to focus our prayers for ourselves. You can petition God for

3 Simple Insights on How to Do It By Jonathan Graf We know from the Scriptures, that to receive an answer to prayer we are supposed to be praying God’s will. “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we

When my granddaughter Gabrielle was three years old, she lived with us for a time. Many times in the evening she played near me while I sat in my chair working on my computer. She would often interrupt me, wanting attention (which Grampy, of course, gave her). She loved to play a game where she

My six-year-old grandson Jack cracks me up! Recently my daughter (his mom) doodled some plans in pencil for a house they are thinking of building. When she finished, she set the plans and the pencil on the coffee table and walked away to do something else. When she came back later, she was amused to

One of the most important assignments believers have is to pray family and friends to Christ. Jesus interceded for future converts when he said to the Father, “I pray also for those who will believe in me through their (disciples) message” (John 17:20). Paul interceded for the salvation of fellow Jews with heart-felt prayer: “Brothers

Longtime Presbyterian minister, Dr. Wilbur Chapman (early 1900s) was 26 when called to be pastor of Wanamakers Church in Philadelphia. His first Sunday, an old gentleman came up to him and said, “you’re much too young to be the pastor of such a fine church as this.” Chapman thought the guy was a kook. But

When we enter a new year, many believers look for ways to deepen their relationships with Jesus. Taking steps to grow in your prayer life are a key to spiritual growth. One step we can take is to begin practicing the spiritual disciple of fasting. Over the next two Prayer Hacks we will look at

By David Chotka We say it without thinking much about it. In fact, we say the words as a rote memory prayer to close the Wednesday prayer meeting or the small group time. If you are in a liturgical tradition, it is likely that you say it every time you gather for worship. In fact,

Personal revival starts with thirst. God uses the desert to create an unquenchable thirst for Jesus. Nothing this world offers will satisfy. Nothing. Only Jesus. It’s in the crucible of the desert that God brings you to a point of insatiable thirst and holy desperation for Him. It’s here He shows you there is more—much,