Understanding Prayer

What is prayer and why do we have to pray?

Prayer is the means to communicate with God. We can never come to God without first talking to Him….. 

• We must confess that Jesus is Lord. (Romans 10:9) 
• We must confess to gain salvation. (Romans 10:10)

There are several aspects on prayer…...

Jesus gave his disciples, and us an example of how to pray to God.

The Lord’s Prayer, Matt 6:9-13

“Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed by your name,

Your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one”

How does this help us to really “talk” to God?
It is an example and includes the following parts:

• Recognizing God as holy. 
• Desiring God’s kingdom, which is His will to come in my life. 
• Asking for what we need. 
• Recognizing God as our provider, not ourselves. 
• Recognizing that we still need God’s forgiveness. And we agree to forgive just like he does us. 
• Asking for his protection and help for us to stay away from temptation and sin

The three parts of a balanced prayer life

Read Matthew 6:5-15 for Jesus’ teaching on prayer.

• Talking to God

  I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2 NIV
  
  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6 NIV
  
  And pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make know the mystery of the gospel.... Ephesians 6:18-19 NIV
  
  So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind.... 1 Corinthians 14:15a NIV

• Listening to God

   Guard your steps when you go the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.
  Ecclesiastes 5:1 NIV

• Intimacy with God

  But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2 NIV
  

Each of the verses listed above refer to a specific type of “talking to God.”

• Praise and Thanksgiving 
• Requests 
• Praying with your mind and with your spirit 
• Praying for others.

Dealing with the confidence problem

One of the biggest obstacles to many Christians’ prayer lives is a lack of confidence that results from an awareness of real or perceived failure or sin.

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God....
                                                                       1 John 3:21 NIV

Awareness of failure or sin comes from three sources:

• Our conscience (see 1 Corinthians 4:4) 
• The Holy Spirit (see John 16:8)
•  The Devil (see Revelation 12:10)

The answer to all three is the same: the blood of Jesus.

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus... let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience....
Hebrews 10:19-22 NIV

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:7-9 NIV

For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
Revelation 12:10b-11 NIV

Three keys to a powerful and effective prayer life

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
James 5:16b NIV

1. Know God’s will.

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him.
1 John 5:14-15 NIV

The fear of the Lord is the secret to knowing the will of God.
See Psalm 25:14 and Proverbs 1:7.

The Hebrew word rendered confides in Psalm 25:14, NIV, is defined as a company of persons in close or secret talks or an exchange between trusted parties.

2. Ask boldly

“...yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. Luke 11:8 NIV (See Luke 11:5-13)

3. Don’t give up!

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. Luke 18:1 NIV (See Luke 18:1-8)