Sometimes we get into a prayer rut, repeating the same prayers over and over. It’s okay to repeat prayers as God continues to place something on our hearts and in our minds, but when our prayers become stale because of the monotonous, passionless repeat cycles, our relationship with God begins to suffer. Trying to renew your prayer life can present a completely new set of issues, as you struggle so much to get out of the rut, you get stuck. You might need a few prompts.

Grab a newspaper or magazine and begin to browse. Instead of reading full articles or ads, simply scan and glimpse the pages. Do so with a prayerful attitude, asking God to guide your eyes and stir your heart. Perhaps you’ll see a word repeated multiple times. Or maybe a string of connected phrases stand out to you. Whatever it is, stay alert, and jot down (or cut out) the words and phrases that stand out to you. Use them as prayer prompts. Repeat the words, asking God to highlight His will through them. Pray for situations that seem related to the words. Perhaps the words remind you of specific Scripture verses. Claim those verses in your prayers.

As we pray, we can be distracted by so many things around us, but we need to trust God to focus our eyes, ears, and hearts. The same happens as you glance across the page of a magazine, newspaper, or laptop or tablet screen. As you prayerfully peruse the words in front of you, determine not to let the distractions pull your focus away from God’s purpose. Practice your determined focus on Him. He knows what He wants you to focus upon, but you have to yield your attention in order to get the focus right…His way.