PIC No. 48:
• Title: Prayer Journal
• Author: Al Sanders
• Publisher: Ambassador Advertising Agency (Dec. 5, 2021)
• Management Bucket #5 of 20: The Book Bucket
Welcome to Issue No. 48 of PAILS IN COMPARISON, the value-added sidekick of John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. This blog features my “PICs”—shorter reviews of helpful books—with comparisons to other books in my 20 management buckets (core competencies) filing system.
Alphabetical Prayer List
In his book, Finish Line: Dispelling Fear, Finding Peace, and Preparing for the End of Your Life (read my review), Robert Wolgemuth mentions Christian radio pioneer Al Sanders (1927-2021). Wolgemuth notes that at the memorial service for Sanders, each guest received a special gift, a blank Prayer Journal.
Al Sanders was the founder of the Ambassador Advertising Agency and according to the family’s tribute on the website:
“Being an inveterate ‘organizer,’ he developed the habit of praying over names in alphabetical order. It might be first name or last name. And other names (children, spouse, and so on) might be added to the primary name. But if you knew your name was on this list, you knew you were being prayed over daily in the very early morning hours when Al arose—and, in the last years of his life, as he retired in the evening as well.”
Stunning—and what a beautiful (and organized) way to enrich your prayer life with consistency and order. I asked Peggy Campbell, president of Ambassador, if she would send me a copy of the Prayer Journal. Graciously, she did! Four pages are allocated for each letter (A, B, C, etc.) and a meaningful Bible verse is included on each of the 26 lettered pages.
A – “Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face continually.” (1 Chronicles 16:11)
B – “In the morning, LORD, you will hear my voice; in the morning I will present my prayer to You and be on the watch.” (Psalm 5:3)
In the back of the Prayer Journal, you’ll be blessed to read “Al’s Hymn List” with 43 titles of his favorite hymns, including this note regarding “May the Mind of Christ, My Savior”—“All six stanzas please!” You’ll appreciate this introduction:
“In addition to their prayer commitment, Al & Margaret Sanders deeply believed in the power of the words and music of hymns.” They add, “In the last year’s of Al’s earthly life, every day Margaret would slip onto the piano bench about 4:00 p.m. and begin playing hymn after hymn—all out of her head (who needs a songbook!). She enjoyed being asked to hear certain favorites but usually it was the ‘Spirit’s leading’ that orchestrated the playlist. And Dad would name the title of the tune—and the composer as well, on rare occasions with help from Google or a hymnbook.”
That page concludes with “Sing to the LORD a new song…for great is the LORD and most worthy of praise.” (Psalm 96:1 & 4)
ALPHABETICAL PRAISING & PRAYING. Perhaps Al Sanders’ alphabetical approach to praying is new to you. You can get started by creating your own prayer journal. (Click here for a blank journal from Amazon, or consider this one.)
I can’t remember when I first experienced an alphabetical praise time, but I’ve used it frequently over the years in board meetings, workshops, and with clients. I begin:
“Let’s pause and give praise to our Holy God. Starting with Mario on my right, let’s go around the room. Mario—you’ll share a synonym or adjective for God that begins with ‘A.’ Then Polly, you’ll give a favorite word for our Lord that begins with 'B.’ And so forth…all around the room, ending with the letter ‘Z.’ Enjoy these alphabetical praise moments and then we’ll close by reading Revelation 22:13.”
I pray that this blog will enrich your prayer life!
PAILS IN COMPARISON: Seeing this creative prayer journal reminded me of several other must-read books in the Book Bucket, plus other buckets/core competencies.
[ ] Finish Line: Dispelling Fear, Finding Peace, and Preparing for the End of Your Life, by Robert Wolgemuth. (Read my review.)
[ ] The One Year® Book of Hymns: 365 Devotions Based on Popular Hymns (Read my review to be posted on July 19, 2023. Order from Amazon.)
[ ] The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, by Arthur Bennett, Editor. (Read my review.)
[ ] A Diary of Private Prayer, by John Baillie (Read my review.)
[ ] List of “2020 Spiritual Growth Books,” including Silencio: Reflective Practices for Nurturing Your Soul, by Stephen A. Macchia, Editor. (Read my reviews.)
To learn more about the Prayer Journal method used by Al Sanders, click here. For more book reviews, visit John Pearson’s Buckets Blog and subscribe to Your Weekly Staff Meeting.
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