What is Prayer?

By: Angeline Williams

Many people desire to pray but don’t really what it is or how to do it. Some actually complicate it and make much more of it than what it really is. I’ve heard all types of prayer from all types of people. Some I would call Pharisee prayers meaning lots of useless words with no heart and no meaning. The bible says those prayers are useless Luke 18:11, then I have also heard people murmur and complain and call it prayer, however murmuring and complaining only closes the door to answered prayer because of a lack of faith. (Matthew 13:58). Prayer is not complicated it is simply "communion with God", a form of communication, a way of talking to God. To understand what prayer is we must first believe in the one to whom we are praying and talking too, for Christians that is God exists. We must believe that He is a personal being, a person who can be addressed and one who responds. We must believe that God knows us, cares for us and loves us – even more than we love ourselves.

Another wrong pattern of thinking is that prayer is primarily as asking God for something. No, no, no, prayer again is much more than that. And although there are many prayer books on the market it is neither a half-hearted ritual nor reciting of words. Those books including one written by me is only a guide of how to pray. Prayer is an outpouring of the heart, spending time with God, communicating with Him like you would a good friend or someone you love. Our prayer life is actually an indication of the quality of our relationship with God. For example thinking of your best friend or spouse would you say you’re your relationship grew to where it is today because you spent time getting to know each other? Of course, your relationship grew because you were in constant communion with each other, learning about each other, doing things together, and sharing problems with each other. This is exactly how our relationship to our Father God should be.

Prayer is one of the greatest and most powerful tools a Christian has. It is exciting getting to know God. Once you discover that you can actually trust and depend on him it is an awesome relief to know that when you ask God the Father for something He comes through. Not when you want and not every time for some things are not according to His will or His word.

Elijah was a great man of prayer who sometimes got "No" for an answer, sometimes He said "No" to St. Paul another man of great faith who wrote two thirds of the New Testament (II Corinthians 12:8-9). God has many reasons, his reasons, why He sometimes delays answering or says no, but whatever He does we can know that all things work together for our good because we love Him and He loves us (Romans 8:28).

It is important to know that God's delays are not denials sometimes He says "wait", then sometime He times answers "before we call" (Isaiah 65:24).

I personally prayed for my dad’s salvation for more than twenty years. I never gave up because I had seen God answer many, many prayers and it helped me hold to my faith that God would save my dad. I held onto His Word in 2 Peter 3:9 for over twenty years that says “the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” and I am so happy I did.

My dad was a heroin addict who blamed God for everything wrong in his life. I gave him a Bible once and he took it and threw it across the room saying “I don’t want anything to do with your God”. Hallelujah, before my dad died he accepted the forgiveness and love of Christ. I went to see him a year before he died and he let me know with his own mouth that he had accepted Christ and was fully overjoyed at the love he had found in God. And that he never wanted to do anything that would affect his relationship with God again. He said “I’ve never felt so good, so free, and so loved. He had such a wonderful glow about him and his words seemed so sincere. I am telling you I was so overwhelmed all I could was cry tears of extreme joy. God had answered my prayer after all those years.

Another point I want to make is that prayer does not have to be long and drawn out. We are told by Jesus not to make meaningless repetitions of words when we pray. (Mathew 6:7). In fact the shortest prayer recorded in the Bible is the prayer of Moses when he discovered that his beloved sister Miriam has been afflicted with leprosy. He cries out to God from the depths of his being: "Please, Lord, heal her now." As you can see Moses’ prayer was simple, yet intense. It captured his anguish and his complete faith in God that his prayer can and will be answered. And it was.

Prayer is not limited by words; it is the touching of our spirit with the Holy Spirit of God. Sometimes we don’t even need to speak and sometimes cannot put into words what we want to say to God, yet God still hears our heartfelt thoughts and emotions.

Prayer brings the power of God into our situations and concerns. Prayer opens new up possibilities allowing God to work in our lives and in the lives of others because of our prayers.

God is our Father and we are His children, He wants us to communicate with Him. As a Blood bought child of God we can freely go right up to the throne of God and bring all of our concerns, our thoughts, our desires, our hurts and our needs to Him, knowing that He is our loving Father, who wants to hear from us, who wants to comfort us. So whether we are praying for others (intercession), for ourselves (petition), or whether we have nothing to ask but that God would hear our heartfelt thanks and praise, prayer is being with God.

Why should we pray?

You’ll find somewhere around 650 examples of prayer in the Bible which should be an indication of just how important prayer is. We pray for a variety of reasons. The primary and most important reason for prayer is fellowship with God. Just as a man and woman in love desire to be together and communicate, so we - when we love God - will desire to be with Him and fellowship. It is a form of serving and obeying God. On more than one occasion we see that Jesus commands His followers, you and me to pray.

We are told to pray for our enemies in Matthew 5:44. Matthew 6:9-13 is where we find Jesus’ famous teaching on prayer known today as the “Lord’s Prayer” where He instructs us to follow His example and pray.

Another scripture command concerning prayer is "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation" (Matthew 26:41). Many situations we find ourselves in is the result of a lack of prayer allowing Satan to gain the advantage in our lives. This is why the Apostle Paul reminds us of Jesus’ command in his letters to the church of Body of Christ to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). All of these passages imply that prayer is not just a request or suggestion but a command.

Another reason we pray is because we depend on God. God invites us to bring our burdens and needs to Him in prayer. “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Through prayer we receive the comfort, strength and all the other resources that we need in life - both naturally and spiritually. God is a spiritual and physical healer. Like any healthy relationship, we must keep a line of communication open.

It is necessary for men to invite God to act in salvation. God gave the earth to Adam and his descendants. Adam lost his dominion to the god of this world Satan through his rebellion (2nd Corinthians 4:4). Therefore, now we must invite God to work here. If no one invites God to work here, Satan will dominate the affairs of men and eventually the judgment of God will come. By inviting God often and specifically, multitudes can be saved that would otherwise be lost. This is the primary mission of Saved My Loved Ones Prayer Ministries International to stand in the gap for the lost.

Types of Prayer

As I mentioned earlier there is a lot of prayer that never reaches God. "The Pharisee in Luke 18:11 stood and prayed all about himself". Jesus said basically in Luke 18:14 that prayer was useless for he said "I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”" Jesus said “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. (Matthew 6:7 NLT) The Bible says "One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination." (Proverbs 28:9).

Our goal should be to get our prayers heard that they may be answered. So to accomplish that we must first believe that God exist for it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him (Hebrews 11:6 NLT). Next we must have faith (Matthew 6:7).

Although I don’t believe God is overly concerned with categories or types of prayer, however I do believe by adding over 600 prayers in the bible He was showing us different types and styles we could use. An effective praying person takes note of the examples, times and results of the prayers in the Bible using all types as moved and led by the Holy Spirit. With that being said let’s take a quick look at the different ways to pray.

Prayer of Praise and Thanksgiving
The Prayer of Praise and Thanksgiving is simply expressing gratitude for God's protection, His provision, His blessings, and most of all for His Son. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 to give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Even when things aren't going well in our lives and we don't feel like praying let alone giving thanks, we are commanded to give thanks anyway. If you ever have a problem doing this just look around you, visit the ICU unit in a hospital or prison, you will find a something to be thankful for. God doesn’t command us to give thanks because He is arrogant or a show boat or anything like that. He knows that our worship and praise confuses the enemy so that his attack against us become ineffective and self destructive. When we sacrificially praise Him, offer up thanksgiving for His goodness, His mercy, His grace, His healing, His favor, His blessing, His love, His friendship, His sacrifice of his Son, His power over all releases the storehouses of heaven on our behalf.

A "sacrifice of praise" is a concept that hard for a person who does not know God to conceive. Their way is to worry, complain and fear and rightly so since they are of their father the devil. I mean think about it if your goal is to kill, steal and destroy and a sacrificial praise to God meant you were defeated, had no power or effect what would do? Well you would do everything in your power to make sure that God’s children worried, complained and walked in fear.
Often during times of battle, the Lord had Israel send out the praisers first. When Paul and Silas were in prison, they praised the Lord and the prison doors were opened.

My favorite example of the power of praise is found in 2nd Chronicles 20 when the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat. Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the LORD for guidance and ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting.

Jehoshaphat stood before the people and prayed, “O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name. They said, ‘Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war, plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.’

“And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them. Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.”
As all the men of Judah stood before the LORD with their little ones, wives, and children, the Spirit of the LORD came upon one of the men standing there named was Jahaziel.

He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow, march out against them. But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!”

Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the LORD. Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout.

Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed.”

After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the LORD; his faithful love endures forever!”

At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped. (2 Chronicles 20 NLT)

Can you see how powerful prayer and praise is? When we praise God in the mist of negative situations we are affirming our faith in Him and confuses Satan and disarms the two most deadly weapons to our Christian walk; unbelief and satanic attacks. Praise is so powerful the scriptures call it a two edged sword (Psalm 149: 4-9).

Prayer of Supplication or Petition
The Prayer of Supplication or Petition means to entreat or ask God for the things we need, or think we need in our life trusting Him to provide. God wants His children to seek Him and depend on His daily provision just as your children depend on you for their provision. Ask God to give you a hunger to seek his face. This is a prayer that all Christians should pray regularly. This type prayer is usually fueled by a passionate zeal or hunger. Be specific when praying this type prayer, pray in details and not in generalities.

Prevailing or Breakthrough Prayer
The Prevailing or Breakthrough Prayer is fervent, insistent and consistent with the expectation until breakthrough comes. This can be a prayer for us, our families, or for someone else. An example would believe for emotional or physical healing.

Prayer of Intercession
Some times called “Love On Its Knees”, intercession is pleading on behalf of the needs of others. Standing in the gap, praying prayers of repentance, etc., identifying yourself with the sins of those for which you are in prayer. God wants us to ask, even urgently pray for others.

The Bible has many cases of people standing in the gap for others before God. The first solemn prayer upon record in the Bible is when Abraham took the initiative to step forward before God on behalf of his neighbors in Sodom and its area. He saw them as God’s children and even though he knew Sodom was thoroughly wicked, and he knew how furious God was he cared enough to stand up for them. We see here that the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Although God did destroy Sodom Abraham’s relative but Lot was miraculously delivered. This is the compassion we should feel for sinners, and how earnestly we should pray for them, for just as God saved my father, and Abraham’s relative he will save yours.

Daniel interceded in Daniel 9 for his people who had turned away from God. Nehemiah identified with the sins of his people, praying prayers of repentance, asking the Lord to forgive and to have mercy and to raise up once again the nation of Israel.

Jesus Christ is shown as the ultimate intercessor in the New Testament. It is because of Him all Christian prayer becomes intercession since it is offered to God through and by Christ. Jesus closed the gap between us and God when He died on the cross. He was the greatest mediator (intercessor) that ever lived. Because of this we can now intercede in prayer on behalf of other Christians, or for the lost, asking God to grant them repentance according to His will. 1 Timothy 2:5 says "For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus". Romans 8:34 states "Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us".

Some may think that those who offer up intercessory prayers are super-Christians this is untrue. The Bible is clear that ALL Christians are called to be intercessors. All Christians have the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and, just as He intercedes for us in accordance with God’s will, we are to intercede for one another. This is not a privilege limited to an exclusive Christian elite; this is the command to all. In fact, not to offer up intercession for others is sin. “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you” (1 Samuel 12:23).

Do you have a heart that really loves the Lord and cares about the things God cares about? Now that you see how powerful of intercessory prayer is why not join our prayer team or at least send in the names of your unsaved relatives that we may stand in gap for their salvation. Click here to join us or here to submit a prayer request.

The Prayer of Agreement
The prayer of agreement is what we pray often here at Save My Loved Ones. It is when two or more people come together and agree with one another and with the Word of God that something specific will be done.

When choosing a prayer of agreement partner you always want to choose someone whose basic viewpoints are the same as yours. One who agrees with you on spiritual matters. You will always find those who say, "Oh yes, I'll agree with you for healing”, but make sure they really believe it is god’s will. Make sure the believe Isaiah 53:5". You want to your prayer partner believes the same as we are regarding the scriptures. That's one of the reasons the Bible says that we are to fellowship with like-minded believers.

God has given power and authority to the Church and when we stand together in unity we can see more of God's power released. Unity is standing together with one purpose, sharing a joint vision and trusting God's Word to be fulfilled. We need to appreciate the power of unity if we are to see God's power released.

Prayer of Faith
The prayer of faith is rooted in a confident, knowing of God's will, praying it and receiving it from Him. The woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9) knew that touching Jesus would get her healed. Her faith gave her the strength to press through the crowd.

In addition to the various types of prayer, there are also several styles.

Formal is pretty self-explanatory: reciting or reading an already composed prayer, like a church congregation repeating the Lord’s Prayer as part of their worship service.

Conversational is the style many people are most familiar with—you are speaking to God almost as if He were just another person, talking things over like you would with any good friend, whether it’s praising, thanking, confessing, or asking.

The devotional or scriptural style plays a role in many types of prayer. Many people choose to begin a prayer session by reading a Bible verse or passage. Others will use a verse or passage as a point to launch their waiting upon the Lord, as in meditative prayer, for example. And sometimes that Bible verse or passage becomes the prayer itself as you focus entirely on the words and their meaning for you.

Prayer walking is a style often used by intercessors especially those who may be praying for a particular neighborhood as they actually walk through it or even walking in an appropriate setting, like a forest or a meadow.

Spontaneous prayer is one of my favorite styles. It is not just make it up as you go along but comes out of heart and love for God and a knowing and confidence in His word. It rises unannounced usually in response to something God has done, or something that has happened.

PREPARING YOURSELF TO PRAY

You must first begin a relationship with God. Imagine some guy named James decides to ask you to co-sign a car loan for him. However, if that your daughter asked you to co-sign a car loan for her, it would be no problem. Relationship matters to God. When the person is actually a child of God, when the person belongs to God, he knows them and hears their prayers. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me...my sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand."

Do you really know God and does he know you? Is God pretty much just a concept in your life, or someone or something you’ve heard about but never taken the time to get to know him? Do you have a relationship with him that warrants God answering your prayers? It’s not about devoting yourself to unselfish, good or religious deeds? It doesn’t matter if you don’t steal, don’t drink, do drugs whatever it is that make you think you are a good person it does not give you a relationship with God. You cannot become a better person so that God will accept you? No, none of that will give you a relationship with God. God has made it very clear in the Bible how we can know Him and that is through Jesus Christ.

If you are ready to accept Jesus now, here is a suggested prayer you can use. This is not a ritual based on specific words, but rather, a prayerful guideline for your sincere step of faith. It is important that you believe and agree with these words, are consciously aware that you are seeking Jesus Christ, trying and intending to speak directly to Him otherwise the prayer means nothing. Just speak directly to Jesus with your lips.

Let us pray:
Dear Jesus, Your word says that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13). Jesus, I am calling on You right now. I admit that I am a sinner, deserving of Hell. I believe You are the Son of God who came in the flesh and died upon the cross, sacrificing Your precious blood to pay for my sins? I repent from all my sins, please forgive me. By faith I invite you to come into my life as my Lord and Savior. Thank you. Amen.

Now beloved if you prayed this prayer and truly meant these words the Lord Jesus HAS accepted you, welcome to the family of God. If you prayed this prayer send me an email at info@savemylovedones.com. I want to celebrate with you and send you some information that will help you in your new life with Christ!

I invite you to join Save My Loved Ones Christian Community Room. Everyone is welcome here to have Christian discussions, get your questions answered, get encouragement, spiritual mentoring, ask for prayer and offer prayer and find help in all stages of their walk with Jesus. The doors never close at Save My Loved Ones Christian Community Room and encouragement is just a click away. (http://savemylovedones.ning.com)

God Bless you,

Angeline
Save my Loved Ones Prayer Ministries International
http://www.savemylovedones.com

Article Source: http://www.articles.narrowisthepath.com

More Scripture references taken from NIV: Luke 2:36-38, Philippians 4:6-7, Mark 1:35; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 4:23-31; 6:4; 13:1-3, Luke 11: 9 - 13, James 5: 17-18, 1 kings 8: 37-40, 54 - 55; Nehemiah 1:3 – 10; Romans 8:26-27; Matthew 28: 16-20, Mark 11:12 - 14, Mark 11: 20 - 25, Luke 7: 1 - 10, James 5: 13 - 18, Matthew 9: 18 - 26.

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