Much has been said about the importance of prayer and the difference it makes in the lives of others. Gather your family together for the following prayer activities:
• Have each family member pick a person at random and pray for him or her all week. This person can be a family member, friend, teacher, coworker, or a person from church. Or pray for someone who isn’t as directly related to you—someone you heard through the media or by word-of-mouth has just been in a car accident or has been ill. You don’t have to know the person to pray for him or her. God knows who the person is and his or her immediate needs.
• Encourage your family to take a moment to pray anytime you hear the sound of an ambulance siren. This has become a habit in our family, as is praying for the helicopter pilots who fly patients to larger hospitals. Our prayers sound something like this: Father, we ask for your healing hand upon whoever is being transported at this time. We also pray that you would guide the paramedics and work through the doctors’ hands so the patient may be healed according to your will. We also pray, Lord, that if the patient doesn’t know you, he or she will come to know you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
• Schedule a prayer vigil.
• Start a prayer chain. Prepare a list of names and phone numbers of relatives and friends who are willing to be part of a prayer chain. Notify the people on the list, and ask them to pray when there is a prayer concern. Also ask them to call or e-mail the next person on the list. Does your child have a friend who is struggling in school? Does your friend have a son who recently broke his arm at football practice? Is someone’s grandparent facing a health crisis? Are there travelers or unbelievers or soldiers in your midst? All these people will greatly benefit from prayer, as can anyone who is struggling spiritually, physically, mentally, or emotionally.
• Keep a family prayer journal. This is simple to make and fun to use. Decorate a notebook cover with photos or caricatures of your family. Purchase letter stickers for the cover, spelling out the words “Prayer Journal for the [your last name] Family” and the words of 1 Thess. 5:17. (See the templates section for an example of a family prayer journal cover.) Be sure to keep several pages in the back of your journal for a section titled “Answered Prayers.” Once God has answered a prayer request, list that request in this section. Watch in amazement as God answers prayer in His time and according to His will. Be sure to praise Him for the wonderful way He hears and responds to prayer.
Up for Discussion
Discuss the importance of prayer. Who did your family pray for during this past week? How can you be sure your prayers made a difference? Why is it important to praise God for the prayers He has answered?
After a month or so has passed, look back at your prayer journal under the “Answered Prayers” section. Which answered prayer was the most surprising? Remember: God doesn’t always answer prayers in the way we would assume. Which prayer was answered most quickly? How can you praise God for the answered prayers? Locate the areas in the Bible where Jesus prayed. How does the fact that He prayed encourage your own faith in prayer?
Read 1 Thess. 5:16-18. Why should we be thankful, even during the difficult times we experience?
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
—1 Thess. 5:16-18