I have always been a part of a christian home. Both of my parents were already proclaimed Christians since before I was born. We weren't always in church as a family, but I knew who God was. At the age of seven, I decided to ask Jesus Christ to come into my heart and to save me. From that day forward, I started my life as a Christian, although my commitment to ,my faith wasn't always as strong as it is now...
I didn't always pray.
At least, not like I do now. I've almost always said a nightly prayer, or a prayer at meals, but after a while, these prayers lost their depth and meaning. It didn't feel like I was talking to God. In truth, it felt more like a ritual, something I had to do. This was really discouraging to me, so eventually, I backed off from praying. It wasn't until my sophomore year of high school that I began to realize how much I was suffering from lack of a relationship with Christ,
When I realized prayer was important
When I was in 10th grade, my family and I moved to a new church called Corinth Baptist Church. It was here that I met an exceptional couple that forever changed my perspective on the importance of prayer. Chad and Sara Luke are the best spiritual mentors I've ever had. They were my youth group leaders when I joined the church, and they have instilled in me the importance of building a relationship with God through prayer.
What they taught me
The main lesson I got from the both of them was that prayer is much more than a set of words. In fact, it's not about the words you say it all. God already knows our hearts. Prayer is there to give you a communication link to God. When we pray, it gives us a chance to talk to God as if we were talking to a friend. It's awkward when you first begin to really pray, but after a while, conversation flows so easily. By praying often my connection to Christ has deepened and my understanding of His love and grace has become much clearer.
The impact of daily prayer is real.
I don't know how to explain the feeling, there isn't a perfect set of words that could be put together to describe it. All I know is, that when I'm praying (talking) to God, I can feel His presence right there. It's like I can feel His arms physically around me. It gives me a certain peace that I can't get from anywhere else.
I often find that when I am praying daily, my stress levels are dramatically decreased. I'm able to give all my struggles and heartaches to God, and he picks up my burdens. It gives me the opportunity to vent without worrying about feeling judged, because, as it says in Psalms 36:5, God has a "steadfast love" for His children. He already knows your heart and your every thought, and yet His love for you is never ending.
My relationship with Jesus Christ is growing constantly thanks to prayer
The more often I pray, the more steady I become in my faith. It has started to become a natural thing for to start off praying like normal, then talking to Christ out loud as if He were sitting next to me. I feel more content now than I ever have thanks to my time spent in prayer.
Mark 11:24
"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
