Don't Forget to Pray!

Oh, how praying rests the weary!
Prayer will change the night to day;
So when life seems dark and dreary,
Don’t forget to pray.

I confess!  I do forget to pray, quite often accually.  I don't do it intentionally.  I just get busy, task-driven, and it totally slips my mind.  I do pour out my heart to him almost constantly throughout the day, but its not a "Formal Kneeling Prayer".  
Let me Introduce you to my New Year's Resolution #2. (If you want to know what #1 is go here.)  Can you guess what it is?  Yep, to have daily, meaningful, intentional, take time out, kneeling personal pray daily.
I am going to start out with just one prayer a day, then work my way up to both morning and night prayer.  Now how am I going to remember? 

Use a PRAYER ROCK

Set an ALARM-  When it goes off, I STOP & KNEEL!

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Mark off on a Chart

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Hang signs up all around my house

One in the bathroom mirror, over the sink, on the dishwasher, pantry door, fridge, garage door, etc

Click image to enlarge and Print

To make them more meaningful I will follow what President Hinckley and H. Burke Peterson suggest:

"Many of the good people of the world pray. But the trouble with many of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the telephone and ordering groceries---we place our order and hang up. We need to meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for, and then speak to the Lord as one person speaks to another. . . . Believe in the power of prayer. It is real, it is wonderful, it is tremendous" (Gordon B. Hinckley, Standing for Something, p. 116).

 "As you feel the need to confide in the Lord or to improve the quality of your visits with Him - - to pray, if you please - - may I suggest a process to follow: Go where you can be alone, go where you can think, go where you can kneel, go where you can speak out loud to Him. The bedroom, that bathroom, or the closet will do. Now, picture Him in your mind's eye. Think to whom you are speaking, control your thoughts--don't let them wander, address Him as your Father and friend. Now tell Him things you really feel to tell Him--not trite phrases that have little meaning, but have a sincere, heartfelt conversation with Him. Confide in Him, ask Him for forgiveness, plead with Him, enjoy Him, thank Him, express your love to Him, and then listen for His answers. Listening is an essential part of praying.

-H. Burke Peterson, Conference Report from October 1973