It is like quietly opening a door
And slipping into the very presence of God,
There in the stillness
To listen to His voice,
Perhaps to petition
Or only to listen,
It matters not;
Just to be there
In His presence
Is prayer!
* * *
If we had more prayers we would have fewer cares.

* * *
Prayer digs the channel from the reservoir of God’s boundless resources to the tiny pools of our lives.

* * *
The one concern of the Devil is to keep the saints from prayer. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.

* * *
Prayer is something you can be doing all the time, no matter what else you’re doing. It’s like thinking on your feet.

* * *
As long as you’re calling, you can expect God to answer; as long as you’re empty, you can be filled.

* * *
Beyond Our Asking

More than hearts can imagine
or minds comprehend,
God’s bountiful gifts
are ours without end.

We ask for a cupful
when the vast sea is ours.
We pick a small rosebud
from a garden of flowers.

We reach for a sunbeam,
but the sun still abides;
We draw one short breath
but there’s air on all sides.

Whatever we ask for
falls short of God’s giving;
For His greatness exceeds
every facet of living.

And always God’s ready
and eager and willing
To pour out His mercy,
completely fulfilling

All of man’s needs
for peace, joy, and rest;
For God gives His children
whatever is best.

Just give Him a chance
to open His treasures,
And He’ll fill your life
with unfathomable pleasures

-Pleasures that never
grow worn out and faded,
And leave us depleted,
disillusioned and jaded.

For God has a storehouse
just filled to the brim,
With all that man needs,
if we’ll only ask Him.

- Helen Steiner Rice

* * *
I don’t remember the days when sermons were timed by an hour glass on the pulpit, but I do recall thinking, as a small boy, that what we called the “long prayer” seemed to go on for hours!

The late Dr. W.E. Sangster, the well-known Methodist preacher, used to speak of what he called “minute prayers”-brief prayers “shot ou,t” as he put it, at any moment of the day, in a way that can keep us in constant touch with the sense of God’s presence. There could be a lot of prayer in a few words, he suggested.

FAMOUS MEN COMMENT ON PRAYER

I can take my telescope and look millions and millions of miles into space; but I can lay my telescope aside, go into my room and shut the door, get down on my knees in earnest prayer, and I see more of Heaven and get closer to God than I can when assisted by all the telescopes and material agencies on Earth.

- Sir Isaac Newton

* * *
Speak to Him, thou, for He hears,
And Spirit with spirit can meet-
Closer is He than breathing,
And nearer than hands and feet.

- Lord Alfred Tennyson

* * *
Let the Divine Mind flow through your own mind, and you will be happier. I have found the greatest power in the world is the power of prayer. There is no shadow of doubt of that. I speak from my own experience.

- Cecil B. DeMille

* * *
Your Peace

Lord, I notice how close You come to me.
You step up to me
with Your peace,
You show me
what is really important.
I relax
and forget all the unimportant details
which always loom too large in my life
in Your absence.
The experience of this hour
in the midst of all that is so transitory
is precious beyond words.
You are close to me,
in my feelings,
in my mind,
in my spirit.
You are everywhere with Your gentleness.
You are hesitant
because You respect our freedom
and won’t force Yourself on us.
You are more than words,
more than any possible expression:
Your closeness,
Your hands,
Your eyes which guide us.

-Ulrich Schaffer

MORE THOUGHTS ON PRAYER

By David Brandt Berg

Desperate prayer that is full of faith is the most powerful weapon that we have, and can radically alter any situation or heart.

* * *
Prayer and meditation and getting alone with the Lord and quiet and really dealing directly with the Lord is very necessary, because it’s kind of hard for Him to get through to you when your mind is filled with the events of the day.

* * *
It’s not how long you pray or how much you pray, it’s how much you believe.

* * *
Prayer is powerful! When we pray, things will happen and things will be different! God will answer prayer!

* * *
Demand and expect an answer! He has promised it! I know He’ll not fail, He cannot deny Himself! He is bound by His Word. Remind Him of it, cling to His promises, memorize and quote them continually and never doubt for a moment that God is going to answer-and He will! He has to! He wants to! Trust Him and thank Him for the answer, even if you don’t see it immediately. For behold, the trying of your faith is much more precious than gold!

* * *
Maybe sometimes the Lord just lets us have a problem so that He can give us the answer! He likes to have us pray and find out we can’t always solve all our problems and that we need His help! After all, if we could figure it all out and solve all our problems, we wouldn’t need Him! So the Lord lets us have a little problem now and then to show us we need Him and we have to pray. He likes to give us answers to remind us that we’re dependent on Him and we need Him. He likes us to appreciate His help and to love Him for it-like a father!

* * *
Thank You Lord, for answering prayer! You like to hear us pray! You like to hear and see us manifest our love and faith and dependency on Thee, and then You answer.

Prayer Is So Simple, Copyright © 1998-2012, The Family International