PRAY A TO Z by Amelia Rhodes Review

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO PRAY FOR YOUR COMMUNITY

AMELIA RHODES HELPS READERS FOCUS THEIR PRAYERS ON THE NEEDS OF THOSE AROUND THEM

12/2/2016 || Seattle: A text from a friend. An urgent phone call from a family member. An announcement at church. Maybe even a share on social media or story from the news. Many needs surrounding us require prayer. Each request is valuable and worthy of time before the Father, but the sheer number of them can be overwhelming. In Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Pray for Your Community (Worthy Inspired/November 15, 2016/ISBN 978-1617957451/$14.99), author Amelia Rhodeshelps readers topically organize their prayer requests and lay the burdens of their community at the feet of the Heavenly Father.

When faced with more prayer requests than she could count, Rhodes realized how often she was failing to follow through on praying for others long-term. She longed to participate fully in lifting up those around her rather than simply offering quick, fly-by prayers as she learned of needs. Rhodes sought the Lord’s guidance and help with being more disciplined in her prayer life, and an idea started to take root in her heart. “I realized how many people I knew were struggling with the same types of things — adoptions, cancer, marriages. The idea of praying by topic seemed natural, and then I decided to see if I could make an A to Z list of all the needs and struggles facing our communities today,” Rhodes explains.

Covering matters such as abuse, depression, hunger, persecution and more, Rhodes helps readers categorize requests into manageable groups. Each letter of the alphabet covers five topics, the first three of which are for prayers of petition asking God to work in a certain area of one’s life. The last two topics for each letter offer opportunity for praise, acknowledging God’s character and His work. “Don’t ignore the prayers of praise,” Rhodes encourages. “Just recognizing who He is lightens the load because you’ve placed the heaviness where it belongs — on His strong shoulders.”

Pray A to Z can be used in many ways, including personal quiet time, as a part of a small prayer group, during family devotions and in Sunday school classes. Readers can pray all the way through one letter each day, allowing them to complete the entire alphabet in a month, simply lift up one topic per day or utilize any other order or schedule that suits their needs at the time.

Rhodes hopes readers will experience a renewed excitement about prayer and enjoy a closer relationship with God. Beyond that, she prays they will become more involved with the people around them as God opens their eyes to the struggles others are facing and leads them to be His hands and feet of love to their communities.

Rhodes has developed a set of prayer cards covering many of the major issues in communities, as well as a downloadable guide for anyone who desires to begin a prayer group in his or her neighborhood or church.

Learn more about more about Amelia Rhodes and Pray A to Z at www.ameliarhodes.com, on Facebook(ameliarhodeswriter) and via Twitter (@amrhodes).

ADVANCE PRAISE

“Have you ever longed to pray more effectively for your community? Amelia Rhodes has written an outstanding resource that will help you to initiate prayerful conversations with God. Pray A to Z will assist you in covering important topics in an organized way that will enrich your time alone with God. You’ll want one copy for yourself and several more to give to your friends.”

~ Carol Kent, speaker and author of When I Lay My Isaac Down

“Whether you’re a seasoned prayer warrior or just beginning to talk to God, Pray A to Z is guaranteed to bring new meaning to your prayer life. Profound in its simplicity, this book is an invaluable tool to keep us in conversation with God, and to keep the needs of others at the forefront of our minds. Because we pray to a God who answers, I can’t wait to see how this book changes the world around us.”

~ Jocelyn Green, award-winning author of Faith Deployed: Daily Encouragement for Military Wives

“We often respond to those we love by saying, ‘You’re in my prayers,’ but how many of us actually pray as we have promised? In order to help us find the words, Amelia Rhodes has crafted a spiritual guidebook to suit nearly every human hurt. This simple tool could heal many a heart and enable entire communities to join together in faith, hope, and love. It belongs on every nightstand.”

~ Julie Cantrell, New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of Into the Free and The Feathered Bone

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amelia Rhodes is an author, speaker and self-proclaimed recovering perfectionist. She has a passion for taking the everyday stories of life and connecting them with God’s truths. Having been freed from the grip of perpetual anxiety, Rhodes has a growing speaking ministry through which she encourages women to discover who they are in Christ and to deepen their relationships with one another.

Rhodes has written for several publications including The Upper Room and four Chicken Soup for the Soul books. She is the author of Isn’t It Time for a Coffee Break?, offering a fresh perspective on women’s relationships. Her latest release, Pray A to Z: A Practical Guide to Pray for Your Community, helps readers topically organize their prayer requests and lay the burdens of the community at the feet of our Heavenly Father.

Rhodes lives in Michigan with her husband and two children.

Connect with Rhodes at ameliarhodes.com, on Facebook(ameliarhodeswriter) and via Twitter (@amrhodes).

SUGGESTED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

—Pray A to Z is not an instruction book on the mechanics of prayer, but rather a guide to praying for one’s community, born from your personal experiences. Where did the idea of praying from A to Z come from?

—You lead readers in praying through the alphabet for their community, but there are more than just 26 topics in this book. Share with us how the book is structured and how you organized the individual letters.

—Why did you feel it important to include aspects of praise and adoration, rather than having only need-based topics?

—What are some of the prayer needs you cover in the book?

—Why is it hard for us to pray with focused intention for the requests of those around us?

—Why do you encourage readers to write down their requests, the names of those they are praying for and the dates they started praying?

—Is Pray A to Z best used individually, or does it work in a group setting as well? Is it appropriate for parents to use with their children?

—Tell us about your process of prayer-walking in your neighborhood.

—What do you hope readers take away from this book?

—Do you have any additional or supplemental resources to help readers pray A to Z?

To request a review copy of Pray A to Z, to schedule an interview with Amelia Rhodes, or for more information, please contact Audra Jennings, audra@litfusegroup.com.

My Review:  

This is a great book that is small enough to fit in your purse. It is also great because it saved me time. I feel as though I am always late, and this book made it so much easier to get praying done. In the car, waiting in line, anywhere really. I liked the way the book is separated and think that this would be a great way to teach kids in catechism how to find time to pray. I am giving this book a 5/5. I was given a copy, all opinions are my own.