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I now wonder if total emptiness still has a drop of something left. God makes it so we can heal. How do we get to Him without something in us to do so? Anyone who has healed or gotten "better" has to have something left to fuel that journey. And so, this prayer is not 100% empty. This prayer pours out with the very last of what is left of the hurt, the desire, the life, the ache, the broken separation, and the pride in us. And He pours into us renewal. How empty is 'empty?' Is it just an idea that Satan, still in his last desperate attempt of trying to keep us in chains of death and nothingness, is employing? God, please just listen to me. I don’t feel anymore. I cannot feel You. I cannot feel hope. I cannot feel love. I can’t even feel pain now. God, I am just so empty. I’m tired of it. I’m dead. I’m nothing. I give up... I ran and fell. I want to live once more. Hear me, God. I’m begging… I’m desperate. I wanna live. I wanna feel. I want joy! I want life! Even pain is better than this. Jesus, come into me… Fill me again. Breath in life. Give emotion. Give hope. Make me… Do You hear me, God? I’m ready to listen, because I’m ready to once again live.

"Pray without ceasing." 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse 17. How do we live our entire lives praying? You could do it by living your life for God every day, all day. Whenever something could be prayed on, for praise to Him or a request, say a little prayer in your head. I pray small prayers throughout the day, driving, at school, where I volunteer, or in the woods. I thank God throughout the day, too. It's good for a relationship with Him to be in constant contact, rather than just a time or two daily-- if you even pray daily. "Call to me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known." Jeremiah chapter 33, verse 3. Note: God spoke this to Jeremiah, but I think it rings true for most of us. Ask God. He rarely answers when you want or how you want or in a way that makes sense (at least in my experience,) but if you'll listen to Him He will listen to you. He answers because He wants you to know He's there. Of course, we often do not like His answer. It could be a ''yes,'' a ''no,'' or a ''not yet.'' He may seem inconvenient in every way, but He comes through like He says. So don't lose hope, and be open to seeing answers come from most unlikely places-- but watch out: The Devil will try to deceive you. Test it all as to according to His Word, not your wants or likes or that which some man or woman had said or written. The Bible is the truth. Anyone who disagrees should go re-read, or read, the Bible in its entirety and listen as all Scripture is God-breathed, and therefore of God who is truth. Are you praying constantly, or even at all? Read more on praying, its importance, and myths on it here: http://fursforchrist.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1598

This was inspired last night. I won't do a daily prayer like the Bible Reading, but occasionally to make this forum come alive will I do prayers that can indeed be prayed. You don't gotta say this or close your eyes or clasp your hands. But if you're broken too, pray to the One who mends. God, I cannot do this alone. I hurt, so badly. I really need You, because I've made a mess of things and don't know how to fix them. Can they even be fixed? Please, God, what do I do? I'm crying out to You now just as the Bible says, but what now? I just want to cry and breakdown. I want to sleep and not wake. Do you even hear me? You say You do, but do I hear You anymore? I don't know.... You seem so far away and... I just need you now.... Please, Lord.... I know You love me, and You know I love you even when I'm angry and feeling hurt, but.... I just... I don't know, God. You say You want me, but why? Why do you even care about me? Look what I've done. Look what I've thrown away. Look at how far I've run and how I always push You away. Look! I didn't listen. I did as I wanted and got myself here, but now I can't get myself back. Is this where I'm stuck to die? Or is this like they say: It's where I begin. What do You want me to do? I am pretty sure my friends hate me, my family doesn't want me, and everyone will leave me because I'm so messed up. I'm trying not to breakdown, God. I need strength. I need encouragement. I need love. I.... I need You and want You back but don't wanna run again. Will you take me back, God? You say You always forgive, but can You forgive me? Can You still use me for good? You actually still.... love... me? I love You, God. I want to be okay, now. I want to stop messing things up and finally get it right. Can you fix these broken pieces and make beauty? I trust You, Lord. But will You trust me now? Can You... please... answer....

Prayer is a very important part of spiritual growth. Why is this subforum, all on prayer, dead? What could that say about us, our prayer lives, our Spirits? ------------- Here is a piece on prayer that I wrote for Furs For Christ: As a Christian, I've prayed for years. And over the years, I've begun to realise certain things. And from others, I've learned even more. I was shocked when I had been in Sunday School one day and the pastor asked, "Do you all pray at least once a week?" to which the answer, for many, was "No." I pray every morning and night my "proper prayer" as well as many throughout the day. But later I began to think back to what I had learned in my life. What is a "proper" way to pray? Do we have to have "standard" prayers that are the same every time we pray, or go through a cycle? No, for that lets the Spirit die. The Spirit dies because it falls into a cycle or falls into just a repetition. The Spirit will perish because there is no aliveness in the prayer. The meaningfulness is lost. It becomes nothing but words that we don't even have to think about. Do we have to pray in a specific way? No, for the intent and intensity of the prayer is what counts. It does not matter if we're on our hands and knees, facing a Cross or another man-made symbol relating to God. It does not matter if you clasp your hands or put them together. Your eyes do not have to be closed, nor do you have to say it aloud or in silence. You do not have to do it in a dark place, under a shroud, or even in private-- those are preferences, or things taught to us. Do we have to pray regularly, often? I'd say "yes." Why? Well, prayer is a form of worship. For me, prayer gives me rest that sleep never does. Prayer for other people revitalizes them, gives them energy or life or happiness. Praying regularly keeps your Spiritual flame burning. If the flame goes out, Jesus will spit you out. Most Christians are "luke-warm." Jesus loves us all, understands the cold, and admires the hot-- but what of us who have a decaying Spiritual life? He will spit us out. I'm in danger of that regularly. Not only does prayer keep you connected to God, but it is a way to tell God your fears, your desires. Any relationship you get into needs you to talk to your partner-- if we are the bride of Christ, how can we expect a fulfilling, successful life with Him if we never speak to Him? Or if we rarely speak to Him? Why should He speak to us if we don't speak to Him? Does the amount of time we devote to praying really matter? My belief is that it is your intensity, your willingness, your intent and meaningfulness that matter. The most Spiritually alive people I know pray for, in some cases, hours every day. In my hay-day of a Spiritual fire, before I began to slip away yet again, I'd give an hour on my knees to God every day-- one half in the morning, one half in the night, and much "non-proper" prayer through the day. Even now do I not give as much as I feel called to give, but in our modern culture we think we have better things to do-- but what is better than to invest ourselves in the One who has fully invested Himself in us? And so, what do I say about praying? I say just let it all flood out-- this is God you're speaking to! And what is God? God is our father, our friend. He wants you to talk to Him. So speak-- speak whatever you want, whenever you want, but do it regularly to keep yourself close. He loves you! He'll gladly listen, regardless of how petty you think an issue or thought or feeling is-- if it is on your mind or heart or soul, it is important. So talk to Him. Ask Him. Praise Him-- oh, please praise Him. If you're reading this, praise Him. If you're happy, praise Him. If you hurt, praise Him. Whatever goes right or wrong, praise Him-- it's all an investment in you, one He wishes to see thrive because of what He promises you in Jeremiah 29:11: The hope, prosperity, future! Pray-- pray regularly. Pray with intensity-- a passion full of love, full of emotion, full of life. Do not let your Spirit wither and die, for it will without something to keep it active. Your Spiritual life, like all life, must grow and develop-- and prayer will see that happen if you hold onto Him and pour it all out. And oh how God will smile. His heart beats for you. He just wants to be with you, so pray however you feel you must-- just don't let it become a "standard" prayer you can recite easily. All good things thrive with work. Now go and pray that your Spirit may thrive and not just survive; for without a good health, when the tests of fire come, will it survive?