Prayer Helps the Pray-er in More Ways Than We Can See

PRAYER CHANGES SITUATIONS -- AND IT CHANGES US!


Prayer is vital to the spiritual life of Christians. Many profess to be Christian and never pray. Others say their prayers go unanswered.

Christians pray. Prayer is talking to God. Do you know how to talk to God?

God is your Father. As His child, you must speak, talk—pray—to Him. This is far more important than you may realize.

Christ taught, “Pray after this manner.” What manner did He—and the Bible—teach?

The Bible is filled with accounts of answered prayers.

Moses pleaded with God to change His mind and not destroy rebellious, carnal-minded Israel (Num. 14:11-19). Hannah, who was barren, implored God to give her a child of her own (I Sam. 1:5-11). David beseeched God to forgive him for committing horrendous sins (Psa. 51). And before He was taken to be crucified, Jesus asked God to protect His disciples (John 17:6-11).

God answered their prayers. He will also answer yours.

But there are conditions. You must approach God HIS way, not your own. You need to know how to pray—when—how often—where—and what to pray for. The answers are in God’s Word.

Let's look at some of the conditions to answered prayer we find in the Bible. Other conditions will be covered or expanded upon later. But first notice we are to Ask in faith: You must believe—have faith. The apostle Paul wrote, “But without faith it is impossible to please [God]” (Heb. 11:6).

Why? Because “he who comes to God must BELIEVE that He is”—that God exists—“and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (same verse). If you want God to answer your prayers, you must first believe that He exists and that He will hear you. That takes faith.

Christ said, “And all things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive” (Matt. 21:22).

The apostle James added, “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord” (James. 1:6-7).

But what is faith? Here is the Bible’s definition: “…faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). Faith is your PROOF that God will deliver His promises—it is your GUARANTEE that You can depend on HIM, that in His Way He will come through for you.

God cannot lie (Heb. 6:18). He fulfills His promises. And He promises that if you faithfully turn to Him, He will turn to you (Zech. 1:3)—God will answer your prayers. Perhaps not the way we see it, or in the time we see it, adn sometimes He says NO for our own good, but He hears and answers the fervent prayers of righteous people (James 5:14-16).

We also see the need to Be diligent: When most people pray (to be healed, find a job, etc.), they ask God once, maybe twice, and then give up. But prauter is a continuing conversation with God, and being in God's presence in prayer can lift your own faith. So if something remains on your heart, you may continue to ask the Father until he shows you another way.

Be ebcouraged that our Lord Jesus Christ said, “ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?” (Matt. 7:7-11; Luke 11:9-13).

Let God know that you are serious about your request. Keep in mind that He seldom answers prayers in the way or time frame most people expect. God does things His way, according to His timetable. If a matter is important to you, do not pray about it just once. It is okay to come to God again and again, not in a nagging way, but with sincere, heartfelt petitions. Be diligent. Sometimes praying helps the pray-er in more ways than we can see.