Prayer is a powerful force, a significant act for every believer. The impact of prayer in a person’s life is meaningful. In prayer one can forget about their troubles and focus on God. With prayer, you get the answers to your problems. The Bible has a lot to say about prayer. Quoting scripture is common during prayer and it commands the attention it deserves.
How Should a Person Pray?
There are many ways to pray and for many reasons.
- In Colossians 1:3-14, prayer is used for thanksgiving and praise.
- In seeking wisdom and understanding, prayer is often used as a guide to make wise decisions.
Prayer is Often the Introduction to Blessings
“In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God.”—Robert Albert Wood
When we pray, God says He will listen. For you do not receive, because you do not ask; it’s a common term and often misused. God doesn’t promise a life full of glitz and glamour. In fact, the Bible tells us that in this life we will have troubles. Just because we ask in prayer there is no guarantee we will get what we asked. Our motives must be right, our heart must be in-line with Jesus’ teachings and it’s always within God’s timing.
It’s foolish to think we have the power to do what only God can. However in prayer there is power.
In prayer, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us, doing what we cannot do for ourselves.
By the workings of the Holy Spirit, who dwells within every believer of Christ, their prayers are lifted up to the heavens.
“What is impossible with men is possible with God.” – Luke 18:27
The Lord’s Prayer Intro
The disciples asked Jesus. Teach us how to pray Lord. Jesus replied, “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 others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,” – Matthew 6:5
Pray According to God’s Will
“What does it mean to pray according to God’s will? Praying according to God’s will is praying for things that honor and glorify God and/or praying for what the Bible clearly reveals God’s will to be. If we pray for something that is not honoring to God or not God’s will for our lives, God will not give what we ask for.” – got questions.org
Scripture teaches to trust in His word, have faith in God, and to pray about everything. In every act the basic principle remains the same: Trust. To be aware of that trust is like refining of gold. It sparkles against the beauty and withstands the fire. Prayer is lot like that. In trusting God to do what we cannot do for ourselves, we give Him the power to work.
God Answers Prayers
To say prayer is a choice is to be unaware of the powerful effects of prayer. It’s a living principle and one you can’t afford to miss. God answers prayer, in His timing. Asking God to show you a sign is a common prayer for many. It is not unusual to ask God to show a sign to prove He is listening or that He agrees. If a sign is needed or a confirmation is pleaded, God may choose to show you, however He does this so that all glory and honor goes to Him.
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”- Hebrews 11:6
Pray in Faith
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”- Hebrews 11:1
Genuine faith may be in the soul like a hidden seed. Once rooted, a blossom sprouts of which the blessings in life may be seen. Prayer is one of the greatest adventures in a spiritual life.
When prayer goes unanswered, a sense of desperation grabs the soul. Feeling alone left in the wilderness, a person feels like giving up. A painful silence from the Savior is the grievous trial of many a seeking soul. Sometimes the waiting is the hardest part. Overcoming this period is done in faith. God carves out the unwanted parts of a person’s character during the waiting. It is then that He prepares you for the blessing.
“My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from him.” – Psalm 62:5
Bible Verses about the Power of Prayer
Mark 11:24 – Therefore I say unto you, what things so ever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive [them], and ye shall have [them].
Philippians 4:6-7 – Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
1 John 3:22 – And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
1 John 5:14-15 – And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
James 5:16 – Confess [your] faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
John 15:7 – If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Ephesians 6:18 – Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
John 14:13-14 – And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
Jeremiah 29:11-15 – For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
1 John 5:14 – And this is the confidence that we have in him that, if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us:
Matthew 6:9-13 – After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Matthew 6:7 – But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen [do]: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
James 1:5 – If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
1 Timothy 2:8 – I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
James 1:6 – But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
1 Timothy 2:1 – I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, [and] giving of thanks, be made for all men;
Luke 11:1 – And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
Luke 11:9 – And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Acts 12:12 – And when he had considered [the thing], he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying.
Luke 18:1-8 – And he spake a parable unto them [to this end], that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
Acts 2:42 – And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Psalms 103:1-22 – [A Psalm] of David. Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me [bless] his holy name.
John 14:13-14 – “And whatever you ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it”.
1 John 5:14-15 – “And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him”.
James 4:3 – “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures”.
Prayer defeats Anxiety
Philippians 4:6-7 – “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”.
Pray without Ceasing
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing. in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”.
Psalm 50:15 – “And call upon me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor me.”
Psalm 145:18 – “The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth”.
How to Pray
Matthew 6:5-12 – “And when you pray, you are not to be as the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, in order to be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. “Therefore do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need, before you ask Him.”Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. ‘Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. ‘Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors’.
Jesus as an Example
Luke 6:12 – And it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.
When to Pray
James 5:13-15 – Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praises. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.