Senior Living News

Benefits of a Physical Prayer Board

Whether you're just starting a new chapter in one of the communities under the Bethesda Senior Living Communities umbrella or trying to give your daily prayer life a boost, prayer boards offer numerous benefits. They can include:

• Visible reminders that help you stay consistent with your prayer routine
• Help organizing and focusing your thoughts and prayers
• Help remembering to pray for loved ones, neighbors and specific needs
• Peace and comfort as you're prompted to reflect on what God has done for you and others
• Support for a better gratitude habit
• Comfort for loved ones and others, who may see your board and realize how much you care for them by praying for their needs

9 Easy Steps to Creating a Prayer Board

You don't need a lot of supplies or craft abilities to make a prayer board. You can start with a basic poster board and some markers. Whether you want a super-easy prayer board or something that lets you explore your creativity, the steps below help you get started.

1. Choose a Location

Pick a place where you'll see your prayer board and be reminded to pray every day. Some people like to put their prayer board in their living area, where guests can also see it and be reminded of the goodness of God. Others know they may put private or sensitive needs on their prayer board, so they opt to keep it in a bedroom or other less-public space.

2. Select a Board Style

Choose the kind of board you want to use. Options include:

• Poster board, which is cheap and easy to replace
• A framed poster board, which offers a bit more finish when it comes to style
• Magnetic boards, where you can use magnets to organize your written prayers and other thoughts
• Corkboards, which let you use push pins or staples to affix images and writings
• Whiteboards, where you can write your prayers and thoughts directly with erasable markers

3. Gather Supplies

Gather some supplies to start designing your board. At minimum, you need the board and something to write with. Other supplies to consider include:

• Paper to write on and decorate your board with
• Markers, pens, crayons and colored pencils to add color to your board
• Index cards and sticky notes for writing prayers and thoughts on
• Pins or magnets, depending on the type of board you choose
• Glue sticks and tape
• Craft supplies and scissors if you want to decorate your board

4. Pick a Theme

This step is optional, but having a theme for your board can help tie your prayer ideas together and help you get started with creating this tool. Ideas for themes include gratitude, intercession, the goodness of God or a favorite Scripture verse.

5. Add Scripture Quotes

Pick some Scripture verses to write out and include on your board for inspiration. You can use them to theme your prayer approach for the month or remind yourself of how God works in the lives of those who love him. If you struggle with what to say during prayer, write out verses you can pray, such as Philippians 4:6-7 or Matthew 6:9-13.

6. Write Out Prayers and Post Them

As you bring prayers before God, write them down. You can make a list on a whiteboard, put each prayer on a sticky note or write prayers on colorful scrapbooking paper. Add them to your prayer board so you remember to uphold those prayers over the days and weeks to come.

7. Attach Notes Celebrating Answered Prayers

As you see God's hand move in your life and the lives of those you're praying for, record those answers. By writing down the specifics about answered prayers, you can enhance your faith and demonstrate gratitude for everything God has done.

8. Use Design Elements to Categorize Prayers

This is another optional step, but it can be especially helpful for visual learners. Consider categorizing your prayers with design elements like colors, shapes or locations on your board.

For example, you might put prayers for your own needs on orange sticky notes, prayers for others on green sticky notes and prayers of thanksgiving on purple notes. Alternatively, you could separate your board into quadrants and post certain types of prayers in each corner.

9. Customize Your Board With Visuals

Make your board as basic or as fancy as you like. Some people like to print images of the people or things they're praying for and add them to the board. You might have a picture of your family or a sick friend posted to remind you to pray for them, for example.

You could also add borders, flowers or anything else to your board to make it enjoyable to look at and interact with each day.

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