How to pray using ACTS

Sometimes a lesson for my elementary kids speaks volumes to me, too. Today my principal talked about how to pray during our weekly Chapel time. He reviewed how we should pray when we are praying for a request to God. He used the acronym ACTS. I found a great resource that explains ACTS thoroughly -

Adoration - Adoration is to adore God, to worship him and to fulfill the commandment to love him with all of our heart, mind and soul. As we spend time in adoration, we praise God for who He is - our Creator, our
Sustainer and our Redeemer. When we focus our attention on the One who can meet our needs, it takes our eyes off circumstances and allows us to experience God's sufficiency and peace. “Praise the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet… harp and lyre… tambourine and dancing… strings and flute… clash of cymbals resounding. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. PRAISE THE LORD.

Confession - Confession allows us to clear away the things in the relationship between you and God which are displeasing to Him. All of us have sinned, and the Holy Spirit will reveal areas in our life that are not
pleasing to Him. Take some time to confess those sins. If the Spirit reveals sin in your life, name that sin
specifically and repent. This involves a change in your attitude and an active move on your part to no
longer indulge in that sin. Then thank God for forgiving your sin on the basis of His promise in I John 1:9, "If we confess our sins He is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Finally, and most importantly, ask God to fill (control and empower) you by His Holy Spirit. Sometimes confession involves restitution or making things right with friend you have wronged. If the Holy Spirit reveals this in your life, do not hesitate to obey.

Thanksgiving - Thanksgiving allows us to thank God for what he has done for us, and through us, right now, just as Adoration is to praise God for who he is, in his pre-existent and eternal Being. Whereas adoration is to
praise him for his character, thanksgiving is thanking him for his actions toward us. Each day God is blessing us! Every moment we can recall the wonderful things that God has done for us, and the gifts that we have been given. We need to be constantly thanking God for his blessings.
"He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me." Psalm 50:2

Supplication - Finally we come to ask God for our needs and the needs of others.
PRAY FOR OTHERS. In the epistles of St Paul, we read of him praying for those he has led to faith, and asking them also to pray for him. So, you too can pray for other Christians, and encourage them to pray for you. Pray for your familiy members, and for neighbours and friends. It's also good to pray for those who don't know Jesus to come to faith - many Christians have come to believe in Christ through the prayers of others.
PRAY FOR WORLD ISSUES. For peace in difficult situations, for leaders and those in influential positions, for global issues such as care of God's environment, justice for the poor, relief of suffering in less developed countries, and other issues that come to you.
PRAY FOR YOUR OWN NEEDS. It’s easy to neglect this, but Jesus encourages us to do so in the Lord's
Prayer - the model for prayer that He gave us.
"No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly." Psalm 84:1
(source from: http://xacentral.com/resources/files/ActsPrayer.pdf) 


When you pray, think about ACTS and how it can help you have a clearer more precise conversation with God. He WANTS us to pray and come to him with our troubles. Being specific with your prayers will build a stronger, more faith-filled, relationship with God.