(Romans
12:12) Talking with God; Let your hope keep you joyful, be patient in
your troubles, and pray at all times.
a.
Approach prayer with the right attitude
Matthew
6:
Verses
5 and 6: “When you pray do not be like the hypocrites! They love to
stand up and pray in the houses of worship and on the street corners,
so that everyone will see them. I assure you, they have already been
paid in full. But when you pray, go to your room, close the door, and
pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what
you do in private, will reward you.”
b.
Use the model Jesus gave us.
verses
7 and 8: “When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as
the pagans do, who think that God will hear them because their
prayers are long. Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what
you need before you ask Him.
c.
Begin prayer by praising God.
Our
Father in heaven:
May
Your holy name be honoured (Matthew 6:9b)
Adoration - Praising God for who He is
Thanksgiving - Praising God for what
He has done
Enter
the Temple gates with thanksgiving;
go into its
courts with praise,
Give thanks to Him and praise Him.
(Psalm 100:4)
Some
examples from the Bible of Gods character to help us praise Him
'I,
the LORD, am not easily angered, and I show great love and
faithfulness and forgive sin and rebellion. Yet I will not fail to
punish children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation
for the sins of their parents.'
Numbers 14:18
God
is our protector; “No one is holy like the Lord; there is none like
Him, no protector like our God.” (1Samuel 2:2)
God
loves; Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.
(1 John 4:8)
Praise
is the basis for our boldness in making request in prayer.
God
answers the prayers that acknowledge who He is!
d.
Prayer
is to have purpose.
Matthew
6
Verse
10 “May Your Kingdom come; may Your will be done on earth as it is
in heaven.”
Pray
for God’s will to be done...in my family...my church.... my
ministry...my job...my future...my town...my nation...in the entire
world.
“So
then, my brothers, because of God’s great mercy to us I appeal to
you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His
service and pleasing to Him. This is the true worship that you should
offer. Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but
let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.
Then you will be able to know the will of God - what is good and is
pleasing to Him and is perfect.” (Romans 12: 1-2)
e.
Prayer is to ask for God’s provision.
Matthew
6;
Verse
11 “Give us today the food we need.”
What
can I pray about? All my needs
And
with all His abundant wealth through Christ Jesus, my God will supply
all your needs.
(Philippians
4:19)
In
view of all this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be
against us? Certainly not God, who did not even keep back His own
Son, but offered Him for us all! He gave us His Son - will He not
also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32)
You
want things, but you cannot have them, so you are ready to kill; you
strongly desire things, but you cannot get them, so you quarrel and
fight. You do not have what you want because you do not ask God for
it. (James 4:2)
The
key to getting things is to ask God!
Write
down your request, claim them with the promises from the Bible, and
expect an answer!
Write
them in your prayer book so you remember to always prayer for them
Don’t
worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you
need, always asking Him with a thankful heart. (Philippians 4:6)
f.
Prayer is to ask for God’s pardon.
Matthew
6
Verse 12
“Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we forgive the wrongs that
others have done to us.”
Steps
to Forgiveness
Ask
the Holy Spirit to reveal every sin in my life.
Examine
me, O God, and know my mind; test me, and discover my thoughts. Find
out if there is any evil in me and guide me in the everlasting way.
(Psalm 139:23-24)
Confess
each sin to God.
You
will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins. Confess them
and give them up; then God will show mercy to you. (Proverbs 28:13)
Make
peace with others when necessary. Repentance is the key to a fruitful
life.
So
if you are about to offer your gift to God at the altar and there you
remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift
there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with your
brother, and then come back and offer your gift to God.
(Matthew
5:23-24)
By
faith, ask for God’s forgiveness.
But
if we confess our sins to God, He will keep His promise and do what
is right: He will forgive us our sins
and purify us from all our wrongdoing. (1 John 1:9)
g.
Prayer is for others.
Matthew
6
Verse
12 “Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we forgive the wrongs
that others have done to us.”
First
of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, requests, and
thanksgiving be offered to God for all people. (1Timothy 2:1)
To
learn how to pray for others: read Ephesians 1:15-20; Colossians
1:3-13;
1 Thessalonians
1:2-3; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12
Be
a prayer partner by
Make
a prayer list of people you want to pray for
h.
Prayer is for protection.
Matthew
6
Verse
13 “Do not bring us to hard testing, but keep us safe from the evil
one.”
Christians
face a spiritual battle everyday.
The
tempter wants to defeat you through temptation and fear.
By
praying for protection, you will have the confidence to face every
situation during the day.
But
you belong to God, my children, and have defeated the false prophets,
because the Spirit who is in you is more powerful than the spirit in
those who belong to the world.
(1 John 4:4)
