Back to Basic in Prayer

It is good to re-examine the purpose in prayer from time to time. Prayer is essential to our spiritual growth; it is how we build and nurture a deep, meaningful relationship with God. God takes heed to all who pray. A lot is to be said on how we pray, our sincerity and our unceasing determination.

The Basics:

Why do we Pray? Effective prayer ministry is a lifestyle of connecting with and communing with God; it is your loving relationship with God. Although it is said that it is a command to pray, I would like to think that we communicate with God because we WANT to; we love him so much that we anticipate His interaction in our lives.

What do we Pray For? Everything! Life’s concerns and blessings for us, for those we love, and to invite others to know God.

Does God listen? Yes, when we come with a sincere heart; He wants to hear from us; he wants us to communicate…in a nutshell, God loves us…That’s all the reason we need. Be still and allow the Lord to come into your heart.

• Are prayers answered? Yes, all sincere prayers are answered; but consider the following: What we’re praying for? Are we selfish in our request? Are the prayers focused on us at the expense of others? Are we willing to sacrifice for the sake of others? Do we pray for others with the same sincerity and urgency? Do we ask…Is this right with God? What is God’s will?

• Are we satisfied with God’s decision/action? We must be true to God and have faith in Him with all of our hearts, minds and soul. He has an unrelenting love for us and his decision and action may be far beyond our understanding. Remember, all prayers are answered at God’s will and time; the outcome may not be what we expect, but they are for our good.

What Does God Expects from us?

How is our presence before God in prayer? We must always give glory and praise to our Lord no matter what our life’s circumstance is. Humble ourselves before his presence and place our focus on Him; leave all the worldly distraction at the door. Confess; ask for forgiveness and ask the Lord to give us a clean heart.

Intent, Goals and Expectations:

With our relationship in God, the intent, goals and expectations comes for some naturally! As we continually grow in our faith, all who truly walk in the light of God will ultimately experience His love; to think and communicate with Him at all times. It will become a way of life - we will no longer see the world as others do. We become more conscious of our morality; our interest will change; our priorities will change. We will feel more compassion for others; we will be more than willing to serve giving God glory.

"I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe" —Ephesians 1:16-19a

How do we Pray? Jesus gave us simple instructions on prayer: There is no such thing as “unanswered prayer,” (Matthew 7:7-8). “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” Repent any of your iniquities; we must be watchful of our thoughts, our deeds and actions. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (James 5:16-18) Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.

The Lord’s Prayer (Lk. 11:1-8): Give honor, glory and praise to our Heavenly Father because He is omnipotent; He is holy; He is everlasting; He is merciful; He is Love. Thank him for all our blessings; opportunities; favors and positive changes in your life. Repent and ask for grace and mercy and direction; pray for protection against others and yourself. Obey God …and ask to be instilled with the light of the Holy Spirit to embrace and understand His word. Request our prayers and supplications; do not be superficial, passive or automated, but genuinely express from your heart what you want or what concerns you! Extend all glory, honor and praise to our Lord for He is worthy!!!! Give thanks again to God again for making him known to us. Closing our prayers, “In the Name of Jesus” the only reason God would grant your requests is that you come in Jesus Name (the Sacrificial Lamb). 

The Difficulties to Pray

We need to be consistently walking in the Spirit -- dependent and yielding. But sometimes, we impose difficulties upon ourselves when we pray and then it can be a challenge to approach God in prayer. We must not make excuses that we don't know what or how to pray. We have a Helper. We underestimate the enemy and consequently do not connect into God's mighty power as needed. 8Be selfcontrolled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. (1 Pet. 5:8-9)

We know prayer is important and that it should be a priority…Our prayers should not involve conditioning factors:

The Justification Factor:

• When life’s okay, we may tend to pray less;

• When situations arise, we tend to panic; lose sense of direction or emotions dull our sense to pray.

• Obligations - going to work/school; traditional family needs.

• Excuses: too tired, too busy, world’s priorities…and our reasoning is...”God understands!”

God understands more than we realize…Put God First! The Emotion/Pain Factor

• Struggles - Sometimes, it’s just too hard for express the words? We’re not sure if we are praying for the right purpose or we’re consumed by the hurt, the worry, the pain that’s too unbearable. There are no words to express our wants, our needs; our helplessness!

• Struggles - Physical, mental or emotion – we may be incapable although our heart is yearning…

• Struggles - Guilt in our heart – We may be filled with shame; we feel that God will not want to be a part of our lives. Do not let this separate you from God, it is not his doing but yours…Ask for forgiveness, his mercy and strength… Ask God to renew your heart. As said before, God Loves You! He will not turn you away, come to him!

We underestimate the role of the Spirit in helping us pray. (Rom. 8:26-27) In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 2 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

The Trust Factor:

• Lack of diligence - We underestimate the work involved in praying; make a commitment.

• Overestimate our own ability to deal with life. We feel that we can fix it ourselves.

• Lack of faith - What is our expectation in prayer? Do you believe that He will answer your prayer? How strong is our faith? • Do we wait for God’s answer or do we ask God to give us strength to endure or empower us to take this request into fruition?

Negative factors (lack of faith, time and priority) are not of the Lord, they are aimed at deterring you from God’s grace, mercy and blessings. We need to take control of our lives by putting on the armor of God (Eph 6:10-17). Be strong—not in yourselves but in the boundless strength of the Lord. Our fight is not against the physical enemy, but in the spiritual realm. Our resource is to abide in God. In life there will be hardship; but there will also be rewards in our Heavenly Father! God will not leave you nor forsake you. There are many testimonies of God’s unyielding love.

(Prov. 3:5-6) 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Trust God! We need to be abiding in Him, letting Him have control -- humble and trusting.

Scripture:

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge— that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus through out all generations, for ever and ever! Amen" —Ephesians 3:14-21.