Discipline of Prayer
Thursday, October 30, 2008 at 04:51AM 
Photograph by Cheryl EmpeyThe art of praying really baffled me in the beginning of my Christian life, because I compared my prayers to those I heard from various pulpits and on TBN, and I feared that if God graded prayers, my short and unimaginative "thank you’s" and occasional requests would earn at best a D minus. I’ve never been good at extemporaneous speaking, I always do better if I can write down what I want to say. Even though I was over forty, I felt like a tongue-tied kid whenever someone asked me to pray aloud, because I didn’t know the "right" words to say or the right way to say them.
What relief I felt when I realized that God doesn’t care about fancy language or the length of our prayers. God wants to know that you want to obey Him (Psalm 119:145), that you trust Him (Psalm 23:1, Philippians 4:6), that you care to know His ways and humble yourself before Him (Daniel 10:12, Psalm 5:2). In Matthew 6:5-7, He admonishes us not to show off our prayers, but to spend time alone with God and pray to Him in secret.
God allows us to talk to Him about any and everything, but the more you get to know His word, the better you will see whether or not you are praying according to God’s will. In the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), Jesus gave us a model of acceptable prayer:
"Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name." Bless the Lord, worship Him, if you expect Him to hear you.
"Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Pray in line with His will.
"Give us this day our daily bread." Pray expectantly. Call Him your provider.
"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." Recognize that God cannot forgive you or listen to your prayers if there is anyone whom you have not forgiven.
"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." Ask the Lord for the power and faith to obey Him.
"For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen." Know that God is the solution to every problem and the answer to any question. Know that God alone is God.
(This is an excerpt from "Stepping into the Light: You're a Christian, what now?" by Diane L. Harris)
Reader Comments (1)
Great info for new and not so new Christians. Keep posting for the Lord.