Intentional Prayer

 

Ever wondered how to keep praying intentionally for all the people you know in your life who need Jesus? I must admit that I’ve been guilty of a certain randomness when it comes to praying for others.

However, I’ve recently devised the following idea. I created a simple spreadsheet in Excel, my computing skills being limited. The same idea could easily be done on a sheet of paper. I created columns, with the headings – Family, Extended Family, Neighbours, Work Colleagues, Friends and Other. I then filled up each column with the names of people who fit into those categories, grouping parents with their children.

Having completed the exercise, I found that there were 105 names on the lists, not including my immediate family of 5 in the Family column, whom I pray for every day. In order to not make the process too onerous, I decided I would pray Monday- Friday, five days per week for people on the list, leaving weekends free. Over a month there are usually 4 weeks, so twenty prayer sessions- so my list of 105 is roughly 5 people per session.

I’ve printed out the list and have it in the area where I pray. It’s a work in progress, so I might highlight every fifth person to denote who to pray for each day, and there will probably be new names to add as time progresses.

Another idea I’ve used for several years is to have a prayer calendar in the area where I pray so I can write down particular needs e.g., if someone is having surgery on a particular date.

Seriously

 

For the past few weeks I’ve been privileged to attend a series of study lectures on various topics, collectively termed under the title of “Seriously”. These were designed to enable the attendee to consider how various aspects of the physical, cultural and metaphysical world give evidence to the reality of God and reflect His greatness.  The series was hosted by author Jonathan Clerke and some of the presentations from this and previous years may be viewed through YouTube by searching on Jonathan Clerke Official.

 The various topics presented provided much food for thought and I hope I can share a few of my impressions over time in this blog, with the disclaimer that I am not a trained scientist or university trained professional, as were the presenters of the series, but rather someone who has loved and attempted to follow Jesus for a long while and learned through personal study and life experiences. As Christians, when we learn, it is not merely for our own edification. The great commission of Christ is to share what we have with others, in order for God to be known, received and glorified.

One of the great privileges of being human is the ability to ask deep and serious questions about the nature of our being. How did the world around us form? How did humans get to be on this earth? What is the purpose of our being? Are we more than a brain in a body? What is the soul? Could artificial intelligence evolve to the point of independent thought/ reasoning/ selfhood and ultimately overtake humans? How do features of the natural world indicate intelligent design?

As we question and learn, we unfold further questions, we seek more answers. Our place in the universe and our relationship to the world and its peoples around us is the basis for all science, culture, law and religion. As Christians, by both professional research and by faith, we believe that the Bible can be trusted completely to reveal the triune God – God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son and the Holy Spirit as the One who created this world and made mankind in His image. 

Some would say a Christian approach is mere naïve supposition. Others would say it is the result of logical conclusion. No matter:

 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8