A Proper Prayer

It's late at night. I walked through the dark hallway of my house leading up to my room. I brushed my teeth and took off my contacts. I blindly made my way to my bed and jumped in. I felt every muscle in my body relax. I looked up at the white ceiling. I wanted to sleep but I had one last thing to do. I sat up, closed my eyes,  and slapped my hands together. It was time to pray.

There are three steps to saying a proper prayer. In no particular order:

Step 1: Asking for forgiveness. Name all, or most, of the bad things you did. If you forget about some then you can just say "...and I'm sorry about the ones i forgot too." It's not as easy as it sounds. You have to actually mean it. This isn't just to make yourself feel better, though. You can find out a lot about yourself at this step. This is a good time to just step back and observe yourself. Just start listing all the things that you do that would disappoint God. I guarantee you, they're the same things that make you feel bad inside. Whether it's something you need to get off your chest or a part of your life that you want to fix, this step will reveal what it is. But, no cheating! No making excuses, no skipping the small stuff. List everything and be truthful to yourself.

Step 2: Expressing gratitude. Name all, or most, of the things you are grateful for. If you forget about some then you can just say "...and I'm thankful for the ones i forgot too." This is a great time to appreciate everything. List everything that makes you happy. Everything that makes you YOU. Even the bad stuff because, hey, it COULD be worse. I start by saying how thankful I am to be alive. I continue to my warm bed, the food I eat, the water I drink, my family, etc. Think about everything. When you get right down to it, we should be thankful for almost everything. Your health, your happiness, your family, your friends. Believe it or not, we're all blessed to have what we have.

Step 3: The Core. This is probably the most important part of the prayer to understand. The above two are straightforward which is why I saved this for last. What exactly do you want? Many people have the wrong idea about this. They ask for things they can't be given. Money, fame, happiness. God doesn't give these things. You have to earn them. People have the power to accomplish anything they want. I bet 90% of all the things you ask for can be earned with a bit of hard work. Now, what you CAN ask for is help. God won't give you an A+ on that test tomorrow, but he CAN give you the energy to study. He won't make the girl you like love you, but he CAN create the opportunity for you to talk to her. But, you have to be open to everything. Don't waste opportunities with the mindset that "God will do it for me". Do everything you have the opportunity to do. Be open to your surroundings. Don't isolate yourself. If you really want something, then you will receive help. It's just a matter of taking advantage of the help that's presented to you.

"People want me to do everything for them. What they don't realize is they have the power. You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle. " -Bruce Almighty