We all know that we must always all the time pray, however will we all the time know the way to pray? And by the way to pray, do we all know the way to focus and direct our prayers, strategically?
In 1 John 5.15, the Apostle John says this: And if we all know [for a fact, as indeed we do] that He hears and listens to us in no matter we ask, we [also] know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we’ve got [granted to us] the requests (or petitions) which we’ve got requested from Him.
God loves once we pray and He loves once we pray with specificity. Not essentially that He loves it roughly, however it’s a particular second that attracts us in. We see this a number of instances in Scripture the place Jesus Himself asks straight, “What would you like Me to do for you?” even when the necessity was clearly apparent (Matthew 20.30-34).
Why does He do that? It’s not as a result of He doesn’t know or wants a touch. When God is asking us a query, it serves as a locator for our coronary heart. He’s serving to us to see the place we’re at, to consider what we’re fascinated about, and the way to belief Him with our most elementary and likewise deepest wants and desires. God loves this a lot that we even see Jesus inform the disciples to hope for staff to assist save the misplaced (Matthew 9.37-38); a prayer request that, like all prayer requests, He was greater than able to doing. So why inform them to hope for this?
When God tells us to hope, it’s to redirect our eyes and a focus to Him – the Creator, the Holder, and the Fixer of all! It’s our alternative to companion with Him in what He’s doing. And if you consider it like that, we actually to GET TO pray slightly than it being that we HAVE TO pray.
Even the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6.9-13) was very particular in focus as they seemed to God. Fortunately, simply as Jesus was educating the disciples the way to pray right here, so can we learn to pray from this instance and plenty of others in Scripture.
Listed below are 10 methods (of many others) that you may powerfully and strategically pray.
1] Pray For Open Doorways
Be persistent and dedicated to prayer, being alert and centered in your prayer life with an perspective of thanksgiving. On the identical time pray for us, too, that God will open a door [of opportunity] to us for the phrase, to proclaim the thriller of Christ, for which I’ve been imprisoned; 📖 Colossians 4.2-3
We don’t all the time know what we’re doing, why, or the circumstances that we’ll encounter. However when God involves dwell in us, we take Him with us wherever we go, in good and dangerous conditions. However particularly in tough terrain, we must always pray for God to supply a possibility to proclaim Him and His methods. That doesn’t all the time imply preaching a sermon in every single place we go. It may well merely imply taking the chance to mannequin Christ in how we behave, carry out, and deal with individuals.
2] Pray For Boldness
And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to Your servants to proceed to talk Your phrase with all boldness. 📖 Acts 4.29
Doing God’s work and responding in obedience wherever we’re at shouldn’t be all the time straightforward. Fortunately, God doesn’t go away us to fend for ourselves and simply determine it out. As we see with the disciples, we will ask Him for boldness to symbolize Him effectively and do what He’s referred to as us to do the place we’re at. Different translations use the phrase “confidence” right here. It’s vital to do not forget that God doesn’t need us to cower in worry once we’re shifting on His behalf. He desires us to maneuver in confidence and boldness as we rep His title!
3] Pray For Knowledge
If any of you lacks knowledge [to guide him through a decision or circumstance], he’s to ask of [our benevolent] God, who offers to everybody generously and with out rebuke or blame, and it is going to be given to him. 📖 James 1.5
Maybe our favourite prayer – particularly as younger adults. “God, give me knowledge!” 🤣 It goes with out saying however it ought to be mentioned that God doesn’t need us shifting in silly. We’ll by no means have the solutions to every little thing on this life, however He doesn’t go away us to determine all of it out. He invitations us to ask (pray) for knowledge. Dr. Tony Evans says that “Biblical knowledge shouldn’t be merely info however to have the ability to take the correct info and apply it to the choices in life.” If God is all-wise, and we imagine that He actually is, we must always pray for knowledge in all of the issues we strategy in our lives, massive and small.
4] Pray To Be Innocent
Hear rigorously: I’m sending you out like sheep amongst wolves; so be smart as serpents, and harmless as doves [have no self-serving agenda]. 📖 Matthew 10.16
It’s pure to behave out of our self-interests and even our zeal, however this may be damaging within the unsuitable approach, time, and place. Asking God to assist us be innocent, to place away our self-interests, and to reply out of consciousness, grace, and mercy helps us to co-mission with Him with out getting in the way in which of individuals having the ability to see Him. All through the tradition, particularly in enterprise and politics, we’re usually praised for saying or doing the correct factor within the unsuitable approach, dismissing it as collateral injury. However in God’s Kingdom, He cares about the way in which too.
5] Pray For Open Hearts
A girl named Lydia, from town of Thyatira, a vendor in purple materials who was [already] a worshiper of God, listened to us; and the Lord opened her coronary heart to concentrate and to reply to the issues mentioned by Paul. 📖 Acts 16.14
Yo… Lydia was a worshiper of God however she had not but heard the Gospel of Jesus the Christ. How usually do we’ve got a few of it or most of it proper, however we’re nonetheless lacking one thing? And but we don’t even know what we don’t know and are lacking as a result of our hearts should not open to receiving. That is so pivotal in witnessing and sharing fact, that we’d achieve this to open hearts AND with open hearts as God leads us. With Lydia’s willingness to pay attention and God opening her coronary heart, she turned a trustworthy follower of Christ and the primary recorded convert in Europe!
In a while, Lydia supplied hospitality and shelter for the disciples as they ministered within the area. Not solely did God remodel Lydia’s coronary heart however He used her to supply for the mission. After we pray for God to open hearts and for us to guide with open hearts, the probabilities are countless.
6] Pray For Conviction Of Sin
And He, when He comes, will convict the world about [the guilt of] sin [and the need for a Savior], and about righteousness, and about judgment. 📖 John 16.8
Quite a lot of instances we need to assist carry a couple of coronary heart change in somebody however solely God can actually change a coronary heart. And one of many main methods He alters our hearts is to indicate us the place we’ve gone unsuitable – as solely a loving Father would do. It’s not our job to essentially pray for particular punishments or how God ought to cope with somebody, however we completely ought to pray for individuals to obtain conviction for his or her sin. To not pay them again or to see them undergo however in order that they might flip from their sin (repent) and see and comply with God. Turning from their sin first requires seeing their sin (conviction). And… seeing our personal too (ouch).
7] Pray That The Holy Spirit Will Reveal Jesus To Them
However when the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) comes, whom I’ll ship to you from the Father, that’s the Spirit of Reality who comes from the Father, He’ll testify and bear witness about Me. 📖 John 15.26
Amongst them the god of this world [Satan] has blinded the minds of the unbelieving to stop them from seeing the illuminating gentle of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who’s the picture of God. 📖 2 Corinthians 4.4
Together with conviction of sin, we merely want individuals to see Jesus! It’s not nearly seeing our sin, however realizing that we’ve got a Savior for it; somebody Who has already paid the value for our sin and gave us a approach out. It’s comprehensible why we wish to pray for individuals to start out or cease doing sure issues. But when we pray for them to actually see Jesus revealed by the Holy Spirit, He can get them to the place they must be, and He’ll achieve this in His approach and time. It’s arduous if not unattainable to make anybody do something. Our prayer ought to be for Holy Spirit to disclose Jesus, and never simply to the misplaced, however for the discovered as our day by day information and reverence.
8] Pray For Demonstrations Of Energy, Indicators & Wonders
So Paul and Barnabas stayed for a very long time, talking boldly and confidently for the Lord, who continued to testify to the phrase of His grace, granting that indicators and wonders (testifying miracles) be executed by them. 📖 Acts 14.3
One of many ways in which Jesus is revealed to us is by the uncooked energy and awe of God via miracles, indicators, and wonders! Whereas God shouldn’t be a genie and won’t enable Himself to be pimped out for present, we will additionally acknowledge that He’s a God that likes to indicate. He demonstrates His energy to redirect our gaze again to Him, and to get the glory because the one true sovereign King of all. With confidence, we will and will pray with expectation for God to indicate up grand, for Him to do the unthinkable, and for individuals to see this superb God we serve via His energy. That doesn’t all the time imply God will present up in a loud and miraculous approach. Perhaps it’ll be low-key and quiet or simply in a approach or timing that we didn’t anticipate. Sovereign means God all the time reserves the correct to maneuver how and when He sees match, whether or not we perceive it or not. However like a toddler who believes their mother and pop can do something, we’re too invited to ask our Heavenly Father for His energy and marvel in our circumstances and on behalf of others.
9] Pray For Their Salvation
The Lord doesn’t delay [as though He were unable to act] and isn’t gradual about His promise, as some rely slowness, however is [extraordinarily] affected person towards you, not wishing for any to perish however for all to return to repentance. 📖 2 Peter 3.9
When individuals take a look at the world falling aside and ask why hasn’t Jesus returned, that is why. Opposite to some denominational teachings, God doesn’t need anyone to perish and invitations all to be saved in Him. For God, the timing is inconsequential as a result of He lives outdoors of time. 100 years to God is successfully no completely different than 1 minute. However we expertise time a lot otherwise.
Simply as Jesus advised the disciples to hope for staff to assist save the misplaced (Matthew 9.37-38), we’re to companion with Him by praying for many who don’t but know Him to make Him their Lord and Savior. That is in all probability an important and consequential prayer we will provide, that God would open the hearts and minds of the misplaced and make Him their saving grace. Think about… What would your job appear to be if everybody there gave their lives to Christ? What would your neighborhood appear to be? Town? The locations you hang around? Although not all by any means, a whole lot of issues would go away if an increasing number of individuals obtained Jesus as their Lord and Savior. So perhaps as an alternative of simply praying that somebody would cease or begin being this or that, let’s additionally bear in mind to hope for them to obtain Jesus and are available to bear the fruit of salvation as a result of every little thing else flows from that.
10] Pray For The Spirit To Pray On Your Behalf
So what will we do once we don’t know what to hope and even how for a state of affairs at hand? Plot twist… He’s already praying.
In the identical approach the Spirit [comes to us and] helps us in our weak spot. We have no idea what prayer to supply or the way to provide it as we must always, however the Spirit Himself [knows our need and at the right time] intercedes on our behalf with sighs and groanings too deep for phrases. And He who searches the hearts is aware of what the thoughts of the Spirit is, as a result of the Spirit intercedes [before God] on behalf of God’s individuals in accordance with God’s will. 📖 Romans 8.25-27
It’s good to hope strategically with focus, and to make what’s vital to God vital to us. However once we don’t know what and the way to pray, or the state of affairs is just too overwhelming, we have to do not forget that the Holy Spirit praying for us. And He doesn’t get drained or confused. He is aware of precisely what we want!
We can also pray into that, asking Holy Spirit to guide us in the way to pray, what to hope, or who to hope for. That we’d seize His coronary heart and can for all that He needs to do and reveal. Certainly one of my favourite prayers is just, “Lord, be loud in my ears and my coronary heart.”
Praying to be led in prayer is next-level prayer! God loves once we carry our particular wants, issues, and desires to Him. Massive or small, they’re all the identical to a BIG God – and He cares.
Tailored from A Discipleship Journey by Dave Buehring.
