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#1 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Utah
Posts: 1,148
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In our culture we are often asked to "keep (insert name) in your prayers". This has always seemed like an odd request to me. Are we to believe that God in withholding blessing from someone in need until he receives a pre-determined number of prayers on their behalf? Or is it more of a request to be mindful of the person in need so we can respond if said person needs assistance. I know I've had a few times where people have told me I am in their prayers. It made me feel good to know they cared for me, but I wasn't expecting God to do anything extra just because they asked.
Thoughts? |
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#2 |
Board Pinhead
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: In the basement of my house, Murray, Utah.
Posts: 15,941
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I just think it's a way to demonstrate that one cares about the well being of another.
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"The beauty of baseball is not having to explain it." - Chuck Shriver "This is now the joke that stupid people laugh at." - Christopher Hitchens on IQ jokes about GWB. |
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#3 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Your mom's house
Posts: 588
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I'd like to think that keeping someone in your prayers is a way of mourning with those who mourn, bearing one another's burdens, and comforting those who stand in need of comfort. In a community, when one person has a problem, we all have a problem -- at least to a degree. It's also become shorthand for 'I hope everything works out.'
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#4 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Orange County, California
Posts: 3,059
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I had a friend in law school who is Catholic. Over one weekend, there were some big fires that destroyed a bunch of homes in an area near where my family lived. After the weekend, my friend, who knew where my family lived, told me he heard about the fires, and he said a prayer for my family.
All I know is that it was a very touching gesture for me. I guess it worked, too, because my family wasn't affected by the fires. ![]() Since then, though, knowing how much I appreciated it, I've made it a point to try to remember people in my prayers. If we truly believe in prayer, it should mean something, right?
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#5 |
AKA SeattleNewt
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 7,055
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I have found that as I pray for others I open myself up to inspiration as to how I can best serve that particular individual. I often find myself growing in appreciation and love for the individual as I name them in prayers. I'm not sure how my prayers for others influence our Heavenly Father, only how they affect me.
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#6 |
Assistant to the Regional Manager
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: The Orgasmatron
Posts: 24,338
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Prayer is first and foremost meditation. A person evaluates one's inner thoughts and feelings. In this contemplative mode, as YOhio points out, to the extent we are open to revelation, we can receive it better. To the extent we are not, at least we can align our thoughts for good karma for those individuals.
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