michellelong81Prayer
Why pray when God already knows everything we need and have going on in our lives?
1 Thessolonians 5:16-18 says "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”
We all need prayer, it is our way of connecting with God. He truly wants to know us better and for us to receive blessings by spending time in communication with Him.
1 John 5:14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
1 John 5:15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
1 Chronicles 16:11 Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.
2 Chronicles 6:21 Hear the supplications of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.
2 Chronicles 7:14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Ephesians 1:18 I pray 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 his holy people
Ephesians 6:18 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 Lord’s people.
Jeremiah 29:12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.
James 5:13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.
Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Mathew 26:41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Psalm 17:6 I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Psalm 4:1 Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
Luke 6:12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.
Luke 18:1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.
Above you can see there are many verses in the Bible that talk about prayer. These are just a few of the many scriptures related to prayer. You can even see that Luke mentioned Jesus praying all night and Jesus told his disciples to pray and never give up. It is through prayer that we connect with and hear from God. When we are not in prayer, how can we hear from him?
Important aspects of prayer: (https://www.christianbiblereference.org/faq_prayer.htm)
Expressions of faith and trust in God
Confession of our sins
Praise of God's mighty deeds
Thanksgiving for all the good things we have received
Dedication to serve God and other people
Requests for our needs and the needs of others
The Lord's Prayer
Jesus spent a lot of time praying. He often went to a solitary place and prayed for hours at a time, especially at difficult times in His ministry (Matthew 14:23, 26:36-41, Mark 1:35, Luke 5:16, 6:12). The famous Lord's Prayer is Jesus' model of the perfect prayer:
First, we call God by the affectionate term "Father," and praise His holy name:
Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. (NLT, Matthew 6:9)
We ask that God's will be done on earth and in our lives:
May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. (NLT, Matthew 6:10)
We ask to be given the things we need, but we don't ask for things we merely desire:
Give us today the food we need, (NLT, Matthew 6:11)
We ask forgiveness of our sins and acknowledge that we must also forgive those who sin against us (Matthew 5:44, 6:14-15, Mark 11:25, Luke 6:28):
and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. (NLT, Matthew 6:12)
Finally, we ask for the strength to resist temptation and evil (Luke 22:40):
And don't let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. (NLT, Matthew 6:13)
God Will Answer Our Prayers, but ...
Jesus said this:
"Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened. "Or what man is there among you, when his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone? "Or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! (NAS, Matthew 7:7-11)
God will answer our prayers and give us everything we need and more (Mark 11:24, John 15:7). But a wise parent will not give a child everything he or she wants. Similarly, prayer is not a magical trick to get anything we want or a "quick fix" for problems that we should be solving ourselves. God answers prayer requests in His own way in His own time (Psalms 40:1-3), and will not grant requests that are against His holy and wise purposes (1 John 5:14-15), are selfish in nature, are not in our best long-term interest, or those made with impure motives (Psalms 66:18, Proverbs 28:9, Isaiah 29:13, Isaiah 59:2, Hebrews 11:6, James 4:3).
Often, we must be persistent in prayer (Luke 11:5-13, Luke 18:1-8). The answer, when it comes, may be in a form radically different than what we expected, and we must be alert to that possibility (Deuteronomy 3:23-27, 2 Corinthians 12:7-9). God frequently uses other people, such as physicians, friends, relatives or new acquaintances, to supply an answer to our prayers (Daniel 10:11-12, Acts 9:10-17).
Sometimes, the answer must come from within ourselves and persistent prayer will help us find that answer. We may need a new attitude or a different way of looking at things (Matthew 5:8, Romans 2:1-5, 1 John 4:7-8), or we may need to make amends with someone (Matthew 6:14-15).
Prayer is The Best Way to find true Peace in your life. When in the Lord's presence, who can come against us. Troubles seem to melt away and for the moment we are praying, God is bringing comfort to us.
If you are struggling with your salvation or how to pray, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or a pastor to help answer any questions you have.
With the Love of Christ,
Michelle