Post about Prayer

ACTS is such a simple, almost cliche prayer outline, but it is actually an amazingly well-suited structure. It is a simple enough frame to hang flesh on. If you are unfamiliar with it, ACTS stands for Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.

When I come to God, I must firstly realise who He Is. He Is I AM. Be still and know that He is God. Bask in that realisation of Who He Is. I must Adore Him. Our Father who art in Heaven... I start by realising who He Is.

Next, I realise who I am. I confess that I am a sinner. Yes, I am a victim of others sinning against me, but first and last I am an agent: I am responsible for what I have done in the past, and I am responsible for what I will do in the future, therefore I am responsible for the choices I make in the present. I confess that I am a sinner, but in the process of realsing who I am, I also realise that I have been, am being, and will be redeemed. I have been Justified. I am being Sanctified, and I will be Glorified. I am a Son of God, a Servant of God, and a Soldier of God. And because of this, I can be grateful.

See, an attitude of gratitude (cheesy cliche, I know...) brings me to the third letter in the outline: T. I am not just thankful for things that have happened to me that I enjoy. I am grateful for Who God Is, who I am because of His intervention, and all He is doing in and through me, whether it is pleasurable or painful. As Paul explains in Philippians, joy comes from the humility of gratitude: once I realise Who God Is and who I am, I have a humbled perspective of gratitude towards Him.

Only after all this can I come to God with petitions. If I come asking things first, I will come in an arrogant, self-centered way. In gratitude, prayer will be tuning my heart to God's instead of demanding candy from a vending machine.