LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY

PRIVATE PRAYER

WHAT IS AUTHENTIC PRIVATE PRAYER?

One of the big misunderstandings of what prayer is, is that most do not understand what it is not. Prayer is NOT about the one pleading but rather the one being pleaded to. When we understand this, it is then that our prayer life can be immensely altered to the glory of God.

True private prayer is a GIFT of grace in which we are able to enter communication with God, to the glory of God, in which a believer humbly comes before the Father, submitting and entrusting their full being to the will and authority of God, giving complete reverence to Him in honor, power, and glory. The chief theme of true and authentic prayer’s isn’t who’s praying but rather WHO is being prayed to. Private prayer is that still moment when the world is quieted, we enter the throne room, gazing upon the beauty our our Lord and Father, genuinely engaging in petition, entreaty, supplication, thanksgiving, praise, hymns, and lament.

Petition- To ask for or plead

Thanksgiving: Gratitude for God’s deliverance in Christ characterizes the the believer. With this understanding of thanksgiving, all other relative thanksgiving falls into place. Without the thanksgiving for God’s deliverance in Christ, all other thanksgiving is nominal thanksgiving, Christian thanksgiving is rooted in the person of Christ and what He has done for us.

WHAT IS THE RESULT OR EFFECT OF PRAYER?

Ultimately, the end result of prayer is that God would be enjoyed and glorified. It is not that we get what he ask for but that God gets what he desires, and through that we become beneficiaries or bi-product of his manifested glory.

“True prayer brings the mind of God’s character to the immediate contemplation of God’s character and holds it there until the believers soul is properly impressed.”

“Prayer, like everything else in the Christian life, is for God’s glory and for our benefit, in that order. Everything that God does, everything that God allows and ordains, is in the supreme sense for His glory. It is also true that while God seeks His own glory supremely, man benefits when God is glorified. We pray to glorify God, but we also pray in order to receive the benefits of prayer from His hand. Prayer is for our benefit, even in light of the fact that God knows the end from the beginning. It is our privilege to bring the whole of our finite existence into the glory of His infinite presence.”

-Sproul

WHY SHOULD WE PRAY?

Short Answer: THE BIBLE, WHICH IS THE WORD OF GOD, INVITES IT AS WELL AS COMMANDS IT. PRAYER UNITES THE BODY OF CHRIST.

Acts 1:14 (CSB)

14They all were continually united in prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

Philippians 4:4–7 (CSB)4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!5Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.6Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (CSB)Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:15 “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!””

“The sovereign God commands by His holy Word that we pray. Prayer is not optional for the Christian; it is required.”

-Sproul

“One might pray and not be a Christian can pray, but one cannot be a Christian and not pray.”

-Sproul

“We are both invited and commanded to pray. Prayer is both a privilege and a duty”

-Sproul

Prayer, like everything else in the Christian life, is for God’s glory and for our benefit, in that order.

WHEN DO WE PRAY AND WHEN SHOULD WE PRAY?

Men usually apply their prayers like sailors do their pumps, when the ships leaks.

We should pray without ceasing, always being readied to pray, in all matters. The model of the Christian life is in the life of Christ, therefore our prayer life can be modeled after his. Christ prayed in the morning, in the day, and sometimes all night long. A believer is dependent on God, for everything, therefore,

WHERE SHOULD WE PRAY?

ANYWHERE! There are times when we are commanded to pray alone, there are times when we are commanded to pray in public or corporate settings. There is never a time that prayer is put on a shelf. The one thing a Christian can do, no matter the circumstance, is pray.

HOW SHOULD WE PRAY?

Psalm 27:4 (CSB)

4I have asked one thing from the Lord; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the Lord and seeking him in his temple.

HOW CAN WE IMPROVE OR PRAYER LIFE?

The more we open the word of God, the more we know about Him, the more we know about Him, the more He becomes more dear to us, the more his name is hallowed. The word of God is full of prayers from the Old Testament to the new. The more we understand the Bible, the more we learn how to pray, what to pray for, and the more our prayers are directed to the glory of God. A indicator of a healthy Christian’s life will always be rooted in two disciplines, prayer and opening and examining of God’s word.

What is better, 2 hours of reading God’s word or 2 hours of worshipping God in prayer from your knees?

Answer: 2 hours of reading God’s word while worshipping God in prayer from you knees.