ROLODEX PRAYERS
Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.
Colossians 4:2-4 (NLT)
After moving into a new home, I still had some organizing to do. I invited a group of women to help tackle my garage and a few rooms. Digging through boxes, we found an old Rolodex I’d kept for years. I didn’t think they were popular anymore—until I checked Amazon. They’re still sold! For those unfamiliar, a Rolodex organized names, addresses, and business cards for quick contact. I was about to donate it when one woman suggested a creative idea: list names or topics under each letter, then flip to a different one each day to pray for that person, a country, an organization or something meaningful.
If you love sticky notes, you could do something similar, writing on each page of a block, or use cards, envelopes or whatever works best. It can be a fun, creative project with the Lord, asking Him what to fill your Rolodex with. Of course, it wouldn’t replace daily prayers, but it can help jumpstart them.
Tools like this help us focus on prayer amid life’s many distractions. Many of us want to make our prayer life richer and seek the Lord intentionally. Colossians 4:2–4 reminds us to be devoted to prayer, staying alert and thankful. These requests focus on sharing Christ—the Gospel—so that it takes a place at the forefront of our prayer list.
Here’s an example:
A – Answered Prayers, Adoration, America, Aunt Mary, Amber, Artie…
B – Bravery to share the Gospel, Belief in God’s Promises, Brookwood Pastors, Breakthroughs, Better Habits, Bill, Becky, Barbara…
C – Compassion, Consistency, Christlikeness, Calmness, Comfort, China, Canada, California, Cal, Carol, Casey…
APPLICATION: What can you do to build your prayer life and faith? Will you pray for yourself and others for boldness and passion to speak about Jesus? Sometimes we just need a little nudge.
PRAYER: Father, help me focus on You and pray with a thankful heart. Help me seek You daily. Amen.
"… Our Father in heaven…" Matthew 6:9b (NLT)
• What do You want to say to me today as my Father?
"… may your name be kept holy." Matthew 6:9c (NLT)
• What do You want to reveal to me about Your power today?
"May your Kingdom come soon." Matthew 6:10a (NLT)
• Help me make Your priorities my priorities today.
"Give us today the food we need," Matthew 6:11 (NLT)
• Is there anything specific You want me to do with my time or the people I'm around today?
"and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us" Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
• Reveal to me anyone I need to forgive or ask for forgiveness.
"And don't let us yield to temptation…" Matthew 6:13a (NLT)
• Is there anywhere I'm vulnerable to temptation?