Prayer Power: Learning to Pray Like George MüllerMfano

Praying Through A to Z

Each Tuesday morning, I block off time to pray for the needs of our church. My goal is to pray for at least ninety minutes, but hopefully for two hours, bringing everything I can think of to God.

It can often take thirty minutes or even an hour before I feel like I have made a breakthrough. God has to help my distracted, worried, and wounded heart settle down and lean into His presence. Often, I begin burdened and weary but emerge energized and encouraged.

I use a prayer practice that may seem strange but that I have found to be very effective. It’s praying through the alphabet. I start with A and ask the Spirit of God to bring to my mind those things for which I need to pray. First, I pray for church members whose names begin with "A," for God’s help in reaching people in apartments, and for angels to watch over our children. Then I move on to B—for more baptisms and blessings on our youth. Then comes C—college ministry. And so on.

The letter J is an easy one because three of our church leaders have names that begin with “J.” Of course, I also pray for my wife, Jen. I’ll admit that coming up with something for X and Z is tough. Sometimes I will think of the “X-factor” of prayer, asking God to help me bring everything before the Lord and not neglect this central, powerful gift. A friend recommended that a good prayer for Z is Zoom, because so many people have struggled to use that online tool to connect with people remotely. It’s a prompt to ask God to keep our church unified and mindful of those who are isolated.

The practice of praying through the alphabet helps me acknowledge that nothing is too big or too small for God. Everything is a matter of prayer. If anything matters, everything matters.

George Müller believed that the vision to open orphanages was from God. He wanted to help children in need, but more than that, he wanted to offer “visible proof” to everyday people that God still answers prayers just like God did throughout the Bible. Therefore, Müller gave every need to God. He never asked another person to supply what was lacking. Instead, he trusted that God would move people to give.