If you created a list of items you should pray about, you might include asking God to heal the sick and relieve those who suffer from injustice. You might pray that people who are far from God might have their hearts transformed. Your list might ask God to bless world leaders, victims of crime, and friends and family members who are enduring personal struggles. As you made your list, you might start to think that with all of the suffering in your world, it can seem a little petty and selfish to ask God to bless you.

Praying for others is good for our walk with God. It can soften our hearts to concerns outside of ourselves. But we are never told in the Bible that our prayers should be limited to the concerns of others. Asking for God's blessing for ourselves should also be a significant part of our prayer lives.

First, when we ask God for a blessing, we admit that we need his blessing, and we confront the fact that we are not able to do everything we want to. We show that we need God's grace.

Second, when we ask for a blessing, we intentionally present our deepest concerns to God. This allows us to grow nearer to him, as we recognize that God really does care about us. We do not need to hide our personal concerns or desires from him.