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What is Prayer?
Prayer is talking to God. Prayer is vital to the Spiritual Life of Christians. Christians pray to God because they know that they are following the will of God by doing so. We are taught that God is our Father. As his child, we must speak to him, talk to him and pray to his. In doing so he answers our prayers and guides us in life.
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Ask In Faith
When you begin to pray, you must believe and have faith in God.
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (apostle Paul wrote)
You see..... those who turn to God must believe that he really exists. Those that do believe are rewarded by him. Why? Because you had faith in him and believed in him.... therefore God will hear your prayers.
Matthew 21:22
Christ said,
“And all things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive”
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Bibles Definition of Faith
Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
God always fullfills his promises and if you faithfully turn to him then he will faithfully be there for you. You must have faith and believe. When you have faith and believe.... he will answer your prayers. You also have to believe that he WILL answer your prayers. "This is what FAITH is." Remember the verse in Matthew 21:22. "And all things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive."
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In Prayer we have faith.
With Faith we must be Deligent
What this means is, we must not give up when we pray to God for something that is important to us. In prayer we must pray and talk to God more than once. More than twice. We must be "Deligent" in our prayers. Be heartfelt and come to God daily with your prayers, your want's and your needs. Let God know how important it is to you and how much you need his help in the matter that your praying for. This is what he want's you to do. Why? Because HE want's to be there for you and answer your prayer.
Matthew 7:7-11
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh 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 ye 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?
Luke 11:8-9
I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. 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.
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Your Prayer Requests must be centered on what God desires
Do you ask God to forgive you of your sins? You should
Do not pray for selfish reasons or for bad will toward others.
Do your prayers reflect love and kindness? They should
Do your prayers reflect mercy? They should
Do your prayers reflect concern for others? They should
Do you thank God Daily for everything? You should
I John 5:14-15
The Apostle John wrote, “And this is the confidence that we have in [God], that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He hears us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.”
- God want's you to ask for forgiveness of your sins so you can come to him being forgiven for your sins so you may then ask for blessings in your prayers to him.
- God wants you to draw close to Him and confide in him. He want's you to trust him and show Him where your heart is.
- He wants you to express out-going concern for others. He wants you to NOT be selfish and pray for others as well as for yourself.
- He wants you to claim his promises. By claiming His many promises according to his scriptures, you prive to him that you know his will.
- He wants you to submit your will to Him. If you believe God’s Word and pray from the heart, God’s thoughts will saturate your mind. You will come to think—and act—like Him. Eph. 1:17-19
- Eph. 1:17-19 - That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
- You are a child of God, God wants to know His children. Specific, highly detailed prayers please God. Prayers that are non-selfish pleases God. One must stay away from prayers of... I want I want I want! For example: prayers of winning the lottery. This is a selfish prayer. Or prayers of asking God to punish someone who has done you wrong. God listens to all of your prayers but does God answer your selfish and distructive prayers that you ask for???? God likes more prayer of thank you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. God likes more prayers that pray from the heart. Like.... ..... help me with... and I need
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Key Points on How To Pray
Ask for Forgiveness
Thank Him for the many blessings He showers upon you daily: Food, drink, shelter, clothes, family, pets, friends, health, employment, protection, understanding his will, freedom from the Devil.
Thank Him for the trials you came under for the day.
Every day is not perfect. We have bad days all the time but we learn something important from everything bad that happens in our daily life. They may seem like stumblingblocks but thanking God for what we learned from it builds a true faithful character. God is actively teaching His children to think, speak and act properly each and every day. Thank God for what you have learned from the trials of the day. He gives us the strength to endure all.
Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
In your prayers, ask for God’s will to be done, not yours.
Ask Him to give you a teachable attitude of his will so you understand it.
Also, ask Him to help you properly accept His answer—even if it is not what you wanted to hear.
After you have put God first in your prayers,
then you can pray about your daily needs.
If you need a job, pray for it. If you need to be healed, ask. If you are drowning in debt, spread your bills before God and seek His help. As long as you “seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness”
(2 Corinthians 12 - 33), God will provide for your every need. All you have to do is ask.
Philippians 4:13
Paul wrote, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”
You must forgive others who have sined against you.
Make sure that all prayers are said in the name of Jesus Christ. Only by His authority—His name—can you approach God’s throne of grace:
Saying “Amen”
This simply means, “so be it.” You should end all prayers with “amen.”
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