Prayer is simply dialogue between God and people. It includes God listening to us as we listen to Him. Prayer is a sincere, from-the-heart conversation with the God of the Universe. The one who created us and loves us wants to hear from us. It is as necessary to the spiritual life as oxygen is to the physical life. Prayer should become a way of life for us--as natural as breathing.
Jesus set the example for us to follow when it comes to prayer. After watching Him pray, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. (see Luke 11:1)
Here are a few of the things the disciples heard and saw:
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.” -- Matthew 6:5
After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone... -- Matthew 14:23
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. -- Mark 1:35
This, then, is how you should pray: `Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” --Matthew 6:9-13
Read John 17:1-25 in your Bible and look for specific things Jesus requested, ways He addressed God, and the focus of His requests.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Paul directed Christians to “pray without ceasing”. He was encouraging us to be in a constant attitude of prayer, much like a conversation with a friend would progress over days and weeks.
Prayer is not an attempt to force God to do our will; instead it is an effort to be open to His direction in our life. Prayer is not laying out our stubborn will before God and asking for His approval; it is yielding what we want to what He wants for us. Ultimately, it is His plan that is best for us.
Why Pray at all if God Knows Everything?
If we understand that God is real and our relationship with Him is to be a personal one, then we will understand prayer. We express words of encouragement and love to our friends and family even though they already know we love them. Why? Because such expressions are part of our personal relationship with these people. Yes, God is aware of everything in our lives. However, prayer is a confirmation and recognition of our personal relationship with Him.
What Is The Key To Prayer?
One of the most important matters concerning prayer is regularity. Prayer needs to be a continual part of your everyday life and not just the words spoken in time of crisis or when you are drifting off to sleep. A regular prayer life will pay immeasurable dividends in your life.
One thing you can do to help you is develop a prayer journal. It doesn't need to be complicated. In a notebook, list prayer requests, being specific with your request and noting the date. As these requests are answered, keep a record of how they were answered. In time, looking back at how God answered these prayers will become a real encouragement to you.
Another idea would be to pray for a specific kind of request on different days. You may pray for your family on Monday, friends on Tuesday, co-workers on Wednesday, church leaders on Thursday, and so on.
Ask God to teach you how to pray and strengthen your faith in the process.
Subscribe to our RSS feed NOW!