Prayer can feel mysteriously difficult, boringly perfunctory and frustratingly out of our control. Often prayer brings us comfort, but sometimes, especially when there aren t easy resolutions or prayers go unanswered, it intensifies and focuses our sense of longing, pain and care. And often God uses our times of darkness and desperation to awaken our hearts to the ache within us--and the cries of those suffering around us. Prayer is all about coming before God to face life head-on, with all its jagged edges of mystery, joy, longing and agony. In fact, says pastor Matt Woodley, prayer is actually a real encounter with the untamable God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore our experience of it should reflect the power, mystery and even risk of entering into relationship with the Lord of the universe. In this book Woodley strips away all the religious-speak and presuppositions we have about prayer, distilling it to the essence of wholehearted engagement with the living God. Exploring an earthy, unadorned, jargon-free approach to prayer, Woodley unpacks a host of fresh synonyms for God-encounters, including prayer as desperation, invocation, mystery, astonishment, groaning and even absence. These marginal ways of praying compel us to engage marginal people--the desperate, the groaning, the victimized and the ignored. As we pray God will open our eyes to the pain of the world around us. With stories from his own experience and biblical and historical examples, Woodley gives fresh language to describe a life grounded in prayer that leads to compassion and service.

In the tradition of the bestselling God's Promises series, this collection is a spiritual resource of 101 read-aloud prayers that offer encouragement and support as believers face the common challenges of lifeNfrom work and finances to marriage and family.

Praying Your Prodigal Home - A moving testimony to God's power and faithfulness. Franklin Graham writes, "Praying Your Prodigal Home is a book of hope and encouragement." This gripping book gives you sound biblical principles on how to pray effectively for your lost friend or loved one. It includes focused prayers that can be used as models in praying for unbelievers. Richard has been a prodigal and "has experienced the pain of loving and pursuing a prodigal." In this book, Burr reveals how the God of all mercies listens to the cries of hurting parents and intercessors. Unleash God s power to set your loved ones free!

What I have compiled in this extraordinary treasury are the very private thoughts of American philosophers, farmers, athletes, statesmen, mothers, laborers, scientists, industrialists, and others in their relationship with God. Some are simple, straightforward entreaties; others are elaborate invocations. All of them, however, provide indelible imprints and keys to understanding the inner sanctum of the individuals who made America what it is today. The prayers of these Americans are intimate snapshots of how they dealt with the gamut of human emotions, conditions, and events they experienced. They found comfort, hope, and the ability simply to endure by turning to God in their often unpredictable lives. While the language of these prayers may vary from era to era, the essence remains the same. Americans from all walks of life and faiths have found their existences incomplete without being able to reach out to a higher power. It is through the words of their prayers that they find purpose in a larger context and from a greater perspective. —James P. Moore Jr. Since its inception, America has remained a deeply religious and spiritual nation, fostering a prayer culture that has thrived among its diverse population and its wide-ranging faith traditions. The Treasury of American Prayers brings together hundreds of prayers composed largely by Americans from all walks of life to create an unparalleled and comprehensive collection of “home-grown” expressions of spirituality and religious conviction. These prayers form an inspiring portrait of the country’s rich and profound faith and provide access to the innermost thoughts of such individuals as Benjamin Franklin, Elvis Presley, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Conrad Hilton. They have helped sustain Americans in times of war and recession as well as in periods of change and even prosperity. Jim Moore has compiled an extraordinary anthology in The Treasury of American Prayers, arranged by such topics as patience, thanksgiving, despair, love, and other timeless themes. He provides context, historical perspective, and a personal insight for each prayer. While this collection reflects the great history of the American experience, these prayers also hold great resonance for Americans today.

There is an appetite for God. And it can be awakened. I invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry, and to say with some simple fast: "This much, O God, I want you." Our appetites dictate the direction of our lives - whether it be the cravings of our stomachs, the passionate desire for possessions or power, or the longings of our spirits for God. But for the Christian, the hunger for anything besides God can be an arch-enemy. While our hunger for God - and Him alone - is the only thing that will bring victory. Do you have that hunger for Him? As John Piper puts it: "If we don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because we have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Our soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great." If we are full of what the world offers, then perhaps a fast might express, or even increase, our soul's appetite for God. Between the dangers of self-denial and self-indulgence is this path of pleasant pain called fasting. It is the path John Piper invites you to travel in this book. For when God is the supreme hunger of your heart, He will be supreme in everything. And when you are most satisfied in Him, He will be most glorified in you.

Looking at both historical and contemporary contexts, the author argues that religion has played a major role in suppressing scientific pursuit.