...There is much prayerless praying. The attitude and semblance of prayer are in it, but there is no real praying, no projecting of the desires with vigor and in a flame to heaven. The form and show are seen, but the substance and being of prayer are entirely absent. Prayers have been said, the performance gone through, but no real praying has been done. As far as any real benefit is secured, the turning the crank of a praying machine would have done as well. Prayerless prayers are not only a perversion, a waste, a delusion, but they manufacture unbelievers by the score. They get no answers and produce no gracious results. They are vain performances, and others recognize their emptiness and barren results. Men hear of the prodigious benefits secured by prayer, of the matchless good promised in God’s word to prayer, and they mark at once the great gulf between the results promised and results realized… Prayerless praying lacks the essential element of true praying; it is not based on desire and is devoid of earnestness and faith. Desire burdens the chariot of prayer, and faith drives its sense of need; there is no ardency because there is no vision, strength, or glow of faith. There is no mighty pressure to pray, no holding on to God with the relentless, despairing grasp, “I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.” There is no utter self-abandon, lost in the throes of a desperate, pertinacious, and consuming plea, “Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin; and if not, blot me...
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...Does prayer heal? Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with a deity, an object of worship, or a spiritual entity through deliberate communication. Prayer can be a form of religious practice, may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of a hymn, incantation, formal creed, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person. There are different forms of prayer such as petitioner prayer, prayers of supplication, thanksgiving, and worship/praise. Prayer may be directed towards a deity, spirit, deceased person, or lofty idea, for the purpose of worshipping, requesting guidance, requesting assistance, confessing sins or to express one's thoughts and emotions. Thus, people pray for many reasons such as personal benefit or for the sake of others. Yoga is also a common form of prayer. Prayer and Healing is a topic that has featured a lot on the minds of many people across the globe. This has led many researchers to conduct experiments with the purpose of proving or disapproving the idea that prayer contributes to an ill person’s healing. Thus, arguments regarding this topic have abounded with those supporting the idea that prayer contributes to healing advancing that prayer is not restricted by distance, it has a positive effect on life, and in the Bible, many people followed Jesus in order to receive healing. On the other hand, those opposing...
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...What does the Catholic Church say prayer is? Prayer is a formal request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God; an earnest hope or wish. Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part and also a communication process that allows us to speak with God. Adherents, most often than not, come to the Lord with legitimate requests for healing, change and/or needs.This is done more regularly than being in the presence of God, asking for forgiveness or expressing our thanks for another day of our lives, praying for those who do not have that blessing. Just as Mother Theresa quotes; “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.” What are the various forms of praying as practiced by Christians? There are three main forms of praying that are practiced within the Church by Christians. These include; Private prayer Communal prayer Liturgical prayer Private prayer is the most important part of prayer as God wants a personal relationship with each and everyone one of us. Praying in private allows adherents to strengthen their relationship with and become closer to Him. But to achieve this, they must remember not to put on a show for anyone, as this form of prayer is for God, and only Him. Communal prayer is just as important as private prayer, however, it strengthens not only our personal relationship with God, but with each other as a community....
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...O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of Mercy for us, I trust in You. (x3) Jesus, I Trust in You Jesus, I Trust in You Jesus, I Trust in You Prayer for the Sick Father of goodness and love; hear our prayers for the sick members of our community and for all who are in need. LORD HEAR US; LORD HEAR OUR PRAYER. Amid mental and physical suffering may they find consolation in your healing presence. Show your mercy as you close wounds, cure illness, make broken bodies whole and free downcast spirits. May these special people find lasting health and deliverance, and so join us in thanking you for all your gifts. We ask this through the Lord Jesus who healed those who believed. Amen. Prayer for Healing Beloved Padre Pio, Today I come to add my prayer to the thousands of prayers offered to thee every day by those who love and venerate thee. They ask for cures and healings, earthly and spiritual blessings, and peace for body and mind. And because of thy friendship with the Lord, He heals those thou doth ask to be healed, and forgives those thou forgiveth. Through thy visible wounds of the Cross, which thou didst bear for fifty years, thou wert chosen in our time to glorify the crucified Jesus. Because the Cross has been replaced by other symbols, please help us to bring it back in our midst, for we acknowledge it is the only true sign of salvation. As we lovingly recall the wounds that pierced thy hands, feet and side, we not only remember...
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...Praying For The Children Acts 19:20.........I thank you Father that Your Word prevails over our children. Isa 54:13...........That they are taught of the Lord and continue to be Prov 13:1.......... the fruit of godly instruction and correction. Isa 54:13...........Great is their peace and undisturbed composure. Prov 2:6............ Father, give us counsel and wisdom in bringing up our children. 1Pet 1:14.......... I say they are obedient, not conforming to the things of the flesh, 1Pet 1:15.......... but holy, in all conduct. 1Pet 2:2........... desiring the pure milk of the Word that they may grow thereby. Jas 1:19............That they are swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath. Heb 13:5.......... Their conduct is without covetousness, Heb 13:5.......... and they are content with what they have. Heb 13:16......... They do not forget to do what is right and to share. 2Pet 3:18.......... I pray that they grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord, 1Thes 4:1......... and abound more and more in how they should walk and please You. 1Pet 5:5........... That they submit to their elders, and to one another, 1Pet 5:5........... being clothed with humility. 1Pet 5:7........... That they cast their cares upon You, Father, for You care for them. Jas 1:22............I thank You that they are doers of the Word, and not hearers only, Ph'm 1:6...........effectively sharing their faith. 2Tim 1:7 ..........not having a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and...
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...School Prayer The issue of school prayer has invoked great controversy in our society. Some people feel that school prayer should be brought back into schools and practiced as part of the education process. The Supreme Court has continually denied allowing prayer to seep into the public school systems. Through years of controversy, many states started to adopt the “moment of silence” which was an attempt to bring back prayer in our schools. However, the school officials cannot suggest or have the kids pray, even though its true aim is clear, to encourage students to pray. Because of the “moment of silence,” there has finally been a neutral act to encourage prayer. There is a one sided claim that a mandated moment of silence in public classrooms amounts to an unconstitutional attempt to establish religion. The “moment of silence” is Constitutional, and a great way to encourage prayer for our students. Rufus Goodwin stated, “Praying, like poetry, is an activity that activates the human being.” In other words, prayer is a personal experience and intimate connection with our Father. People pray for several reasons such as personal benefit or for the sake of others. Prayers can consist of requesting guidance and assistance, confessing sins, or to express one’s thoughts and emotions (Goodwin R.). Why wouldn’t this intimate act with our Creator be an important part of the student’s day? Moments of silence often last one minute, but other amounts of time may be chosen. Sometimes...
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...Prayer: The Timeless Secret of High-Impact Leaders Book Critique Submitted by: Shannon J. Cockrell Student ID: L23353600 Submitted to: Dr. Jim O'Neill EVAN 670 Liberty Theological Seminary January 19, 2015 INTRODUCTION “Much prayer equals much power”, is a quote I’ve heard most my Christian adult life. Dr. Earley asks a thought-provoking question, “How would you rate your prayers?” (p.111) Truth be told, I wasn’t very powerful. Sure I prayed in the morning and at night, but I wasn’t seeing the results I saw that prayer brought about in the Scriptures. Prayer: The Timeless Secret Of High-Impact Leaders by Dr. Dave Earley is a life-transforming book. Earley has written a treatise on prayer that will be a classic for years to come. In this brief critique/review I will give an overview, summary of the chapters, critique, and application. SUMMARY “Leadership is influence…Prayer influences men by influencing God to influence them.” (Earley, x). Wow. What a powerful summary of his own book that Earlely gives us. This book is about influence and how prayer can better enable and position us to be better influences in the world. To lead better, we must pray better. Earley uses “Nine Prayer Disciplines of High-Impact Spiritual Leaders” to serve as the framework of his book. In chapter 1, entitled Value the Power of Prayer, Earley elaborates on the dynamic power that is found in prayer. Earley says, “If you want to maximize your impact, prioritize your...
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...After doing so, however, what does a Christian look like in their day to day living? What things does a follower of Christ actively do and participate in that reflects who they are and who’s they are? Two things that are important for me to engage in and display as a Christian are prayer and worship. Part One (Prayer) The Bible does not specifically give a definition of prayer. We can only look at what it says about prayer and the references it makes to prayer in order to understand what it is. By doing so, we can conclude that prayer is simply talking to God, either audibly or inaudibly, and expressing our feelings and thoughts to Him. It is how we communicate with God. Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” We can pray on behalf of ourselves or for someone else. “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16 NIV) Through prayer we either tell God things or we ask Him questions. There are numerous examples in the Bible of individuals asking God questions through prayer. For example, David asks God on several different occasions what kind of military...
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...Joseph The Power of Prayer and Meditation Since the beginning of man, there has been prayer and meditation. While that may be common knowledge, most do not know the effects prayer and meditation have on the human mind and body. Many people may regard these practices as useless and archaic, however many also believe they have powerful effects; such as stress relief, and improvement of mental and physical health and even brain growth. Although it may be a controversial subject, there are many studies on the effects of these practices. In the end, the actuality of these affects remains a mystery. Though both claim to produce much of the same effects, prayer and meditation are a little different; Meditation is the art or discipline of slowing one’s thoughts to enter a place of spiritual peace or focus. Prayer is the act of conversing to or with a deity. Despite what you may believe, Prayer is a widely used practice. “One third of Americans use prayer to facilitate physical healing,” (Jeffrey, Kluger, Park, Walsh p.1) States an article on the benefits of prayer on health. Western medicine may attempt to water down the connection between prayer and healing, yet some studies show that there is a connection between meditation, prayer and good emotional and physical health. We often get caught up in our in our fast paced lives with stress not following far behind. There are many avenues to choose when it comes to dealing with stress appropriately; such as exercise...
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...Allowing prayer in school is a widely debated topic amongst American schools. This is because America is the land of the free, we are able to worship who and how we want. This is why a standard Christian prayer should not be allowed in school. If we choose to allow prayer and religion in schools, we would need to be fair to all religions not just Christianity. Not everyone is the same denomination and should not have to be. Prayer was taken out of schools to be fair to all religions. The very foundation of this country allows people to worship the way they would like to. The supporters of no prayer in school feel that prayer is unconstitutional, because it forces religion and beliefs upon their children. What the supporters of no prayer in school fail to realize is that prayer in school provided a guideline for children. A recent poll showed that 80% of Americans believe in some type of religion and 50% of Americans believe that there are too little religious influences in young Americans. When prayer was taken out of school, the number of teenage pregnancies went from 5,000 per year to 27,000 per year. And violence and drug use among children has skyrocketed. We live in a society where God is a bad word and people are embarrassed to publicly worship their religion. But yet, graphic novels and violent movies are placed in schools. Children are able to bring cell phones and MP3 players but not able to describe Jesus as their hero. Since the separation of church...
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...recovery groups with codependence problems, to help couples recover from sexual affairs, in child therapy using Narrative therapy and cognitive therapy using Scripture memory and meditation. In the book of Timothy, Paul says: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”. In the book of Philippians 4:8 say “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praise worthy think about such things.” What are some cautions or possible negative impacts regarding the use of prayer in counseling? Prayer is the weapon of Christians, is the divine resource to reach the unreachable, but in counseling we must be careful when praying during sessions with the clients. According to the lecture in this week counselor have to be caution so that we do not violate the empowerment of the client’s ability to self-direct, or so that...
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...Prayer for the Departed O Lord, in your mercy welcome __________ into your heavenly kingdom. He has gone to her rest. Now, he hopes to rise with you. O Lord, in your encompassing love, bring him into the light of your Divine Presence. We meekly intercede, O Lord, for our faithful departed __________. May he find eternal peace with you. May he inherit your kind forgiveness. May he see you face to face. Yes, you are our hope in this world. You are our resurrection and life. You are our Judge and Savior. O Lord, we humbly beseech you: be merciful in your judgment and grant to __________ the promised salvation. Remember not his faults, but cleanse him of his sins and grant his lasting reward. O Lord, extend to _______ your victory over sin and death. Let his not be separated from you, but grant her a place in your eternal abode. Jesus, Lord of the living and the dead, comfort of the weary and the afflicted, conqueror of death and sin, guide our departed ____________. As he reaches the end of his journey, lead him back to you. As his life comes to an end, let him live with you. As he stands before you in judgment, please speak again these words: “Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you.” May the good Lord grant him a merciful judgment and look kindly upon him. ALL: Lord, help us see death for what it really is: —the end of poverty and the beginning of riches: —the end of frustration and the beginning of fulfillment; —the...
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...PERSONAL PRAYER: TIMELESS SECRET OF HIGH IMPACT LEADERS ________________ A Book Review Presented to Dr. Jon Bishop Liberty Theological Seminary _____________ In partial fulfillment Of the requirements of PLED 520 __________ By John Smith, Jr. January 27, 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 2 Author 2 Book Summary 2 Book Critique and Evaluation 6 Personal Application 9 Resources 10 Introduction One of the most intriguing things about the Christian faith is the lack of participation that each believer exhibits in the spiritual discipline of prayer, all though they are constantly reminded that it is the pathway toward a more intimate relationship with Christ. There are a multiplicity of spiritual disciplines that the believer is expected to practice, however, the one that is most pervasive across the varied spectrum of Christianity is the spiritual discipline of prayer. Most believers are encouraged to spend vast amounts of time participating in prayer, although the average spiritual leader spends less than 15 minutes each day praying. As this writer was growing up he would consistently hear people in his home church state, “much prayer much power, little prayer little power, no prayer no power.” Author Dr. Dave Earley is currently is Chairman of the Department of Pastoral Ministries and Church Expansion at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. He also serves as Director of the Center...
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...How to Pray the Novena Prayer to St. Anthony of Padua X [pic] eHow Culture & Society Editor This article was created by a professional writer and edited by experienced copy editors, both qualified members of the Demand Media Studios community. All articles go through an editorial process that includes subject matter guidelines, plagiarism review, fact-checking, and other steps in an effort to provide reliable information. St. Anthony of Padua was a Catholic priest and preacher during the thirteenth century. Today, he is most often remembered as the patron saint of lost things. Numerous prayers have been composed in his honor, including this beautiful nine-day novena. Instructions 1. o 1 Make the Sign of the Cross, then pray the following prayer, "O wonderful Saint Anthony, glorious on account of the fame of your miracles, and through the condescension of Jesus in coming in the form of a little child to rest in your arms, obtain for me of His bounty the grace which I ardently desire from the depths of my heart. (Chris and I become family and fall deeply in love.) You who were so compassionate toward miserable sinners, regard not the unworthiness of those who pray to you, but the glory of God that it may once again be magnified by the granting of the particular request which I now ask for with persevering earnestness. Amen." Conclude the prayer with one Our Father[pic], one Hail Mary and one Glory Be in honor of St. Anthony. Repeat this...
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...The War Prayer by Mark Twain It was a time of great and exalting excitement. The country was up in arms, the war was on, in every breast burned the holy fire of patriotism; the drums were beating, the bands playing, the toy pistols popping, the bunched firecrackers hissing and spluttering; on every hand and far down the receding and fading spread of roofs and balconies a fulttering wilderness of flags flashed in the sun; daily the young volunteers marched down the wide avenue gay and fine in their new uniforms, the proud fathers and mothers and sisters and sweethearts cheering them with voices choked with happy emotion as they swung by; nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory with stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts, and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause, the tears running down their cheeks the while; in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country, and invoked the God of Battles beseeching His aid in our good cause in outpourings of fervid eloquence which moved every listener. It was indeed a glad and gracious time, and the half dozen rash spirits that ventured to disapprove of the war and cast a doubt upon its righteousness straightway got such a stern and angry warning that for their personal safety’s sake they quickly shrank out of sight and offended no more in that way. Sunday morning came — next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers...
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