There are a lot of different ways to pray. There are a lot of books written on the subject and, of course, Jesus taught the disciples to pray in Matthew 6:5-15. But today, the week of Thanksgiving, I wanted to share the simple way that I often structure my prayers and how they end up with a posture of gratitude.

It’s important to strike a balance between being open and real in our communication with God while still maintaining a sense of reverence and awe as we approach a holy God. The ACTS model is a great way to do that. It starts with Adoration (taking time to simply offer words of worship and praise), goes into Confession (a time to confess sin and receive forgiveness), and moves to Thanksgiving (telling God how grateful I am for anything and everything as it comes to mind). These three things always come before Supplication (bringing my requests), and I'm glad for this pattern because it repositions the posture of my heart.

Walking through these steps builds a solid foundation of gratitude and changes my attitude to align with kingdom values. Not only that, but intentionally walking a path like this when I pray helps me to wrestle down the distractions and busyness in my mind and find my way to being able to be still and listen for the voice of the Spirit.

I encourage you to give this a try if you’re looking for a new rhythm for your prayer life.

Grateful for you and with you,
Pastor Tracy

Life in the Spirit