10 Bible Verses of Encouragement about PRAYER - plus Free Printable

We all need encouragement and the best place to go is to the Bible.

In this blog Post I have tried to gather some Bible passages or Bible verses which will encourage us all around the topic of Prayer

I do believe that we should not just grab a verse and read it on its own but we should always lift our bibles and read a passage of scripture to make sure that we know the real meaning and context of each of the verses we are putting our trust in. 

I pray that you will do the same and only use this list to guide you as to where you may find help.

So here are 10 Bible verses or short passages for us to turn to in times when we need to be encouraged about 

PRAYER

1.   Matthew 7 v 7     

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."

Persevere in prayer.

 

2.   Luke 6 v 27-28

Do not simply pray for loved ones, family and friends but also pray for those whom you find hard to love.

"But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you." 

3.   John 16 v 24

"Until now you have asked nothing in my name.  Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."

We are privileged that we have the Lord to pray to for all things. 

4.   Acts 2 v 42 

"And they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and prayers." 

Encouragement here for us to continue in prayer as we also continue to observe good teaching, fellowship with other Christians and partake together in the Lord's Supper just as the first believers did.

5.   Romans 12 v 12

"rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer"

In every situation we must be resolute and firm in our prayer life.

6.   Psalm 34 v 17

"When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles." 

What a statement to hold on to! 

 

The Lord hears us and delivers us when we cry out to Him - this is a personal relationship

 

7.   Philippians 4 v 6-7

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

We do not have to worry just bring it all to God in prayer. 

8.   1 Thessalonians 5 v 16-18

Be in an attitude of prayer, always ready to speak to God when we are rejoicing and when we are in need and always giving thanks. 

"Rejoice evermore,

Pray without ceasing.

 In everything give thanks:

for this is the will of God

 in Christ Jesus concerning you"

9.   1 Timothy 2 v 1

"Therefore I exhort first of all

that supplications, prayers, intercessions,

 and giving of thanks

be made for all men"

Prayer must not show partiality toward anyone because God has commanded us to portray His love

10.   Philemon 1 v 4

 Let us follow Paul's example and never forget to not only pray for the needs of others but to be thankful for the contributions others make in our lives and to thank God for them all.

 

"I thank my God

making mention of you always,

 in my prayers"

You can download this FREE copy of the Bible Verse Graphics I made for this blog post 

from my

 

RESOURCE LIBRARY HERE AT Sandra's Ark

You can also find all my other blog posts around Prayer at

 

My PRAYER Page

How to Keep & Share A Thankful Heart - A Dose of Encouragement

Who or what are you thankful for & happy about today?

So many times we are drawn to think on the more unpleasant things in life which lead to unhappiness and they can keep us from being thankful for anything when we are in that frame of mind.  


What can we do to keep the right frame of mind and not get into that attitude that can get worse and worse as we dwell on the hurts and unpleasantness caused by others?

We can remember that we are blessed.

There is a little song that we used to sing years ago in church and maybe we should revive it to remind us that we are blessed.

I am blessed, I am blessed,

Every day I walk with Jesus I am blessed.

When I wake up in the morning,

When I lay my head to rest,

I am blessed, I am blessed.

If we are God's child, saved by the grace of Jesus and living by the power of the Holy Spirit then we are blessed more than be could be in any other way.

Being Blessed is not having all the money you want, having great possessions or having a great life which never sees sadness.

Being Blessed is described in Numbers 6 v 24-26 which I learnt as a song in the Presbyterian Church I grew up in as we sang it each time a baby was christened.

We are blessed as Christians because we know:

We are kept in the hand of God 

We are favoured by God 

We are in the Grace of God

We know we have the peace of God

So every day we know we are blessed and we should remember to thank God for His blessings to us.

As we thank God repeatedly we will build up a thankful heart.

As we become more thankful we will also love God more.

As we love God more we will build up a loving heart.

As we love God more we will also become more loving towards others.

As we love others more we will build up a more caring and giving heart.

I'm sure we know people who are very generous and do think often of helping and giving to others but we as Christians have the greatest thing to offer others and that is the Love of God, through the Gospel.

We can't go around saying - Oh I'm better at showing God's Love to others by giving to people rather than telling them about God's Love.

Because of God's love to us we should have a thankful and loving and giving heart which should mean give people out of the abundance of love in our hearts but that should always include the best thing we have and that is telling them about God's Salvation.

Amy Carmichael put it very simply and clearly in this quote below

because 

she knew that we cannot truly love God without giving this gift to others.

 John Wesley entreated us as believers to speak as we truly believe 

because 

he wanted us to act as the bible has also told us.

How to Keep a Thankful Heart?

Recognised how God loves & blesses us each day and remember to thank God each day.

How to Share a Thankful Heart?

React out of the Thankfulness we have which makes us more loving towards others and then we will share the Love of God. 

I Love Butterflies - A Dose of Encouragement

Where do I begin?


I cannot remember when I was not interested in something which had a butterfly on it.

Most people who know me well will be able to tell you that

 I love Butterflies.

I have Butterfly 

     necklaces,    rings,    scarves     &    brooches

 - not sure how many I have but because of these items many people know I love butterflies 


Over the years my family have bought me scarves, vases, bags and necklaces at Christmas time all decorated with butterflies.


Even the Ladies who came to the International Christian Club of Brussels knew I loved them as I was often found with a butterfly brooch pinned to my jacket.
When I was leaving Belgium to return to live in Northern Ireland I was given a lovely white lace Butterfly brooch from one of these ladies as leaving gift.

Isn't it beautiful?

My daughter even had a mug specially printed for me with butterflies on it for my Birthday one year and I featured it in a humorous blog post called 3 More Coffee Mugs

I have bought myself bags with butterfly designs, clothes with butterflies & room decorations with butterflies.

Then there was the time Fred and I spent a lovely afternoon in our home in Belgium taking pictures of the butterflies that were on a bush just outside our lounge window -  I was going to miss the Butterflies

It just makes me smile to see butterflies around the house and in our garden with our Buddleia (butterfly) bush here in Northern Ireland too and we manage to get some nice pictures of the bush in full bloom

 with butterflies around it each summer.

Why do I love Butterflies?

Because they are beautiful, intricately patterned, delicate creatures.

They are also a great reminder of new birth in that they start as caterpillars and turn into beautiful butterflies.

Just like I was once a person marred by my sin and through God's Love and the Grace of Jesus I was able to experience a new birth and share Christ's beauty.

I love to share about the butterfly in Kids Work that I would do to explain to the children that God offers them a new life in Jesus through His blood because of His Love for them.

Children hear that Jesus died on the cross but they need to know that He did this for them individually and that His beauty can become their beauty.  They need to know that he didn't stay dead but rose again and is still alive today so that they can know He talks to God about them and shares in all their feelings.

Children need to feel loved and secure above all else and Jesus wants them to accept His love and assurance that He will never leave them.

But you and I need to know exactly the same thing.

There is something very important that we all need to know.

You and I need to know we are loved and that we are safe and that there is a God planned future for us.

You and I need to experience this new birth and know that we can be beautiful in the eyes of our creator because of His Son.


There is one last Butterfly I would like to share with you today

This Butterfly sits on the Vanity Unit in our ensuite and I see it every day at the start of my day and the end of my day.


I believe in miracles.

Do you?


The Butterfly is an example of a miracle in that it changes from an ugly creature to a beautiful one.

Can you believe in Jesus and experience Him work this miracle in your life too?

I Love the Colour Blue - Coffee & Conversation

Anyone who is around me for any length of time,

      anyone who just even looks at my blog,

           anyone who sees round our home

                can take a good guess

                     that one of the

                          "Things I Love"

just has to be

                    the colour  BLUE.

There is just something about the colour blue that I feel almost everything looks better in blue.

Blue and white together just make everything look so clean & fresh.

My Dining Room is Blue, White and silver with my dinner set of white with blue matching it 

My Living room has accent colours in blue

as well as curtains and cushions with a blue flower.

Our Sun Room's main colour is blue

My outdoor plant pots are blue

Our Patio Furniture is blue and white

My study (where I spend a lot of time) is decorated with pale blue walls and darker blue curtains.


A lot of my clothes are in shades of Blue.



Blue is a refreshing colour.

Blue is a relaxing colour.

Blue is a beautiful colour.

Blue is also an alive colour.

As long as things are made in blue there will be a happy contentment in my life.


People say Blue is a cold colour but not for me.

Blue never makes me blue, it always makes me brighten up.



The family tease me about the colour blue but then most of them have a favourite colour too - a colour they just feel contented with the one their eyes are drawn to when they go to buy clothes or decor for the home.

We are all different with different favourite colours, styles of clothes, jobs, home decor, cars, etc.

God has given us a variety of everything including colours.

If we were not different and unique we would never understand how we could be unique to God but we are and he knows more about us than we do ourselves.

He has given me a great sense of pleasure, contentment and peace in a simple thing like the colour Blue.

Can you stop and reflect on the uniqueness of what God has given you pleasure, contentment & peace in?