By Ann Farabee

I love the sound of that — Part 1.

But I love the sound of this even more — believe for it.

This column begins with an honest Q&A session I had with myself: How often do I pray?

My answer — not often enough.

How long do I pray?

My answer — not long enough.

Why is that?

That is what I am going to attempt to figure out over my next few columns — so join with me. I think we will all be blessed — and hopefully renew and strengthen our prayer lives.

Our lives are busy. I know very few people who get to stay home all day while having the luxury of doing whatever they want to do whenever they want to do it. So, how do we handle our prayer lives in the midst of our busy seasons and daily routines?

As you read my column over the next several weeks, I will be looking into what Jesus said about prayer. I will be sharing about times I “failed” to pray. I will share about times I “fell” to pray — on my knees.

Seeing, hearing, feeling and touching Jesus as He works is perhaps the most amazing thing in the world, except for knowing that Jesus died on the cross, was buried and rose again after three days, so that we could have victory over death and live with God forever in Heaven!

So, if you are looking for great knowledge about prayer, it probably won’t come from my writing, but if you are looking for one who has experienced the power of prayer and the results of prayer, stay tuned, as I will attempt to share some personal insight into the importance of staying committed to a strong prayer life.

How would I know this? It is because I have been on both sides — committed to a strong prayer life — and also committed to a life of barely praying at all.

If we just pray at church, at a meal or at a time that someone expects for us to pray, we are missing out on the power of prayer that God has unleashed in our lives!

I have certainly been in a place and a time where praying was not what I wanted to prioritize. But making prayer my priority is where my heart desires to be and where I know I should be. So join me on this journey as we delve into making our prayer lives greater and stronger than ever! It sounds like something worth pursuing!

Our prayer lives may feel personal and private, but the results are often public. Prayer gives us a way to talk personally with Jesus. That is unfathomable, to say the least. To think that God provided a way for us — you and me — to connect with the creator of the heaven and the earth. To connect with the one who said let there be light and there was light. To connect with the God who made the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night — and the one who made the stars also.

Feel free to share some thoughts on your prayer journey with me at annfarabee@gmail.com, so that I can have more ideas to share with my readers.

As I was completing the writing of this column, I received an email prayer request. Here is part of what it said, “Will you believe for me until I can believe for myself?”

I sure will. I sure will.

I knew immediately that God was putting His stamp of approval on this prayer journey! Believe for it part 2 will be next week!

Ann Farabee is a teacher, writer and speaker. Contact her at annfarabee@gmail.com or annfarabee.com.