Pray the Promise, Not the Problem | Praying God’s Word for Answers
Life is full of problems, but when we pray God’s promises instead of our problems, everything changes. Discover how to shift your focus from defeat to faith, and learn how to pray the answer God has already provided in His Word—so your prayers align with His will and release His power.
3 Things To Pray Before Studying the Bible
Opening your Bible is the best thing you will do today. But first, check your heart. How you approach this precious time in the Word will determine what you get from it. Align your heart with God’s heart through prayer. Here are three things you can pray about before you dive into the Word.
Believing God for Answered Prayer: Having Faith Like Elijah
Does prayer really accomplish anything? How do I have faith my prayers will be answered? Those are good questions that aren’t without an answer. James 5:16 tells us that the “prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” and then demonstrates the awesome power released through prayer using the story of Elijah, an Old Testament prophet.
LORD TEACH US TO PRAY
Prayer can be intimidating. It was to me. When I would hear others pray so eloquently, using what seemed like all the right words and phrases, I knew that I would never be able to pray the way they did. I always avoided praying in front of others. When someone would ask for prayer volunteers, I’d be the first to put my head down, hoping that if I couldn’t see them, they couldn’t see me, kind of like a game of peek-a-boo with a toddler. What I failed to realize is that prayer is about relationship, not religion. Prayer should be from the heart, not from the head. Jesus made this very clear to His disciples when teaching them how to pray. Jesus said the following about prayer: Don’t pray for the acclaim of men (Matthew 6:5). Jesus isn’t telling us that we shouldn’t pray in front of people. Corporate prayer is an important part of the Church (Acts 23:24). He is asking us to examine our heart motives. If we are praying in front of people so we can appear more “spiritual” and obtain the praise of people, then our heart motive isn’t right and the reward we get here on earth is all the reward that we will receive. God does not reward hypocrisy Find a place alone for private prayer (Matthew 6:6). Jesus often went away by himself, away from the crowds to pray. He would go places like a mountain (Matthew 14:23) or the wilderness (Luke 5:16). The Lord tells us to be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10). What better way to be still than to be alone with Him, communing with Him, whispering the secrets of our heart to Him and listening for His response. Don’t repeat the same words over again (Matthew 6:7). There is no need to repeat a mantra to Him. Saying the same thing over and over again is religion, not relationship. Just be sincere and pray from your heart. You wouldn’t have an intimate conversation with a friend saying the same thing over and over, again, would you? No, probably not. Neither should you with God. Just be yourself. Use your own words, your vocabulary. The “Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:8). Notice Jesus doesn’t say the Father knows what you need so you don’t need to ask Him. No, he says before you ask: But why? First, God wants a relationship with us. God is not a supernatural vending machine. Prayer is more than asking and receiving. Prayer is building a relationship with God by actively communicating with Him. Communication is key to relationship. Second, God works through Believer’s prayers. He is sovereign. He doesn’t NEED us to accomplish His will, but He sovereignly CHOOSES to use us to accomplish His will on earth. The method he has chosen to accomplish His purposes is the prayer of a believer. Model of Prayer Jesus set out a model prayer for us in Matthew 6:9-13. This prayer is not meant to be repeated over and over but is meant to be a model to follow when we pray. We will call it the ARMOR model of prayer. Adoration (Matthew 6:9) The Divine protocol for entering the presence of the Father is to start your prayer with praise and worship. Praise and worship focus your attention on God’s attributes and draw your heart to God! God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3). Reaffirm God’s will (Matthew 6:10) Reaffirm that God’s will be done in your life and the life of others. There are 5 areas that you can pray God’s will for. 1.God’s will is for all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:3-4). Pray for salvation for the lost and that all men know the truth. 2.God’s will is that a believer’s life produces the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Pray for fruit in your life and the life of others. 3.God’s will is that you be set apart/sanctified (1st Thessalonians 4:3). Pray Philippians 4:8 over your mind and the mind of others. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things”. Pray 1st Corinthians 6:19-20 over your body and the bodies of others. “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.” 4.God’s will is that we live peaceful and quiet lives (1 Timothy 2:1-3). Pray for those in authority: your government leaders, church leaders, work leaders. 5.God’s will is that the church grow in peace, strength and numbers (Acts 9:31). Pray for your church. Manna (Matthew 6:11) Pray that the Lord give you your portion of spiritual bread for the day. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty (John 6:35). Jesus also said, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). This bread is the revelation knowledge of Jesus Christ. Also pray for the real bread you need to sustain you physically. Jesus assures us that all we need will be provided for as long as we seek His kingdom first (Matthew 6:33). Offer-up mercy, forgiveness and grace to others as Jesus gave to you (Matthew 6:12). Unforgiveness, bitterness, and resentment are characteristics of unhappy people. People who harbor these things cannot experience the fullness of joy that God offers to us. The Kingdom of God is built on the principles of love, mercy and forgiveness. Rescue (Matthew 6:13) Satan’s kingdom is real. We are tempted by Satan,
Pray with Boldness: Knowing Your Righteousness in Christ
Many people don’t pray because they believe that they are not worthy to approach the Father in prayer. They think the Father will not receive their prayers and that He will turn them away because of their past mistakes and indiscretions. They’ve heard about what Jesus did for them on the cross, but they fail to appreciate the significance of His work on the cross. They fail to understand their righteousness in Christ. To be righteous means to meet God’s standard; to be right with God. No one can be righteous by their own efforts, no matter how hard they try: no one except for Jesus. God made Jesus who had never sinned to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2nd Corinthians 5:21). Through His work on the cross, Jesus offers us the gift of His righteousness. All we must do is accept the gift by believing. Understanding Your Righteousness Will Deliver You from Fear, Condemnation, Guilt, and Shame There is no fear in love because fear has to do with punishment, a consequence that children of God will never face because they are FORGIVEN (1st John 4:18). You must truly grasp deep in your hearts that you owe nothing for your sin, that your debts are forgiven. “There is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). The penalty for our past, present, and future sins is not held against us since Christ paid the penalty for our sin on the cross. Once you grasp this, you will be delivered from fear and condemnation and be able to confidently approach the Father in prayer. God doesn’t look at us through the lens of what we did but through the lens of what Jesus did on the cross. If you keep thinking about your past failures, you’ll begin to see yourself as a failure and the guilt and shame of your past will prevent you from confidently approaching God in prayer. One of Satan’s greatest weapons he uses against us is our past. Past sins that we have repented from are FORGIVEN. When you understand what Jesus did for you on the cross, you will not approach the Father in prayer with fear, condemnation, guilt, or shame. Instead, you will approach Him with boldness. When you understand that you are a child of God, you will have the confidence that whatever you face, God will move on your behalf. When you know that you are the righteousness of God, you will no longer feel distant or separated from God. When you know you are righteous in Christ, you will enjoy peace, quietness, confidence, and assurance forever. So what is stopping you today? Fear, condemnation, guilt, and shame cannot stand against the truth of God’s Word. Speak the truth of God’s Word to those lies and boldly approach God in prayer knowing that you will receive mercy and find grace in your time of need.
Everyone is Called to Pray
Everyone is called to regular prayer but not everyone prays regularly. Prayer is just an afterthought for many – hidden away until some test or trial forces us to bring it out of hiding and dust it off. What we fail to realize is that without prayer, we will not walk in the complete victory God has made available to us. According to the Gospel Coalition: The Bible mentions prayer 650 times The Bible records God’s answer to prayer 450 times The Bible shows us 25 instances of Jesus praying during His earthly ministry The Bible records Paul discussing prayer 41 times The Bible is our instruction manual for living. Like with any instruction manual, we shouldn’t ignore, or skip-over instructions that the “instructor” considers important enough to repeat. Let’s say you’re assembling a desk but choose to ignore the repeated instruction to check that the pieces face the right direction; you shouldn’t be surprised when the desk drawers won’t open and close correctly (OK, there may be a desk in my house like this…). How is not following the instructions of the Bible any different? If the Bible repeatedly instructs us to pray and we ignore these instructions, we shouldn’t be surprised when our lives just don’t work the way they should. If the number of times the Bible talks about prayer doesn’t convince us of the importance of prayer, then maybe this will: the Son of God and the man who wrote 13 of the 27 books of the New Testament prayed and repeatedly instruct us to pray. Jesus “went up on the mountain by Himself to pray” (Matthew 14:23), “…spent the whole night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12), “in the early morning…got up… went away to a secluded place and was praying there” (Mark 1:35),”and fell on His face and prayed” (Matthew 26:39). Paul tells us to “pray continually” (1st Thess. 5:16), “devote [our]selves to prayer” (Colossians 4:2), “be…faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12), and “…in everything, by prayer and petition…present [o]ur requests to God” (Philippians 4:6-7). We are to be imitators of God (Ephesians 5:1), and Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). Jesus prayed often. We, as imitators of Christ, should also pray. We should “armor up” with the Word!