"If My People Pray..."
10 Days of Prayer 2025 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 19 viewsGod give an amazing conditional promise. What is the condition? That we pray. Let's meet that condition.
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“I’d rather be able to pray than be a great preacher; Jesus Christ never taught His disciples how to preach, but only how to pray.”—D. L. Moody
Most of us
take for granted
the privilege of prayer.
But the disciples
watching Jesus pray
were so moved
by his prayer life
they asked Him,
“teach us to pray.”
Today
we will discuss the
basics of prayer.
The
Why
What
When
Where
How
Who
of prayer.
I hope you will
learn something
or be reminded
of something.
Why
Why
Why should I
focus on strengthening
my prayer life?
if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Restores Relationships
Restores Relationships
Prayer opens channels
of communication.
Relationships are built
on communication.
To prevent
relationship breakdown
Restore
relationship health.
It takes communion
talking
prayer.
Why Else?
Jesus prayed a lot.
Why did he pray?
And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,
Prayer Brings Power
Prayer Brings Power
Christ knew,
that he needed
power from on high
to perform His mission
on this earth.
If that was
true for Him,
how much more
true for us?
What other
blessings does
prayer bring to us?
Job 21:15–16 (ESV)
What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?
And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’
Behold, is not their prosperity in their hand?
The counsel of the wicked is far from me.
Wisdom and Prosperity
Wisdom and Prosperity
Those who pray
experience
wisdom
prosperity.
May not always be
prosperity in worldly sense.
Yet God does
prosper His people.
Each in their own way.
In ways we
don’t even understand.
Unseen protection.
Preservation of health.
God is looking to bless
His people.
How will he know
who is His?
Those who talk to Him!
What
What
We covered why.
Now “What?”...
Not answereing:
“What is prayer?”
(for another sermon)
Answering:
“What to pray for?”
At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—
Evangelism Opportunities
Evangelism Opportunities
What is Paul praying for?
evangelistic opportunity.
Towards the top
of our prayer list
should be...
Each asking Lord
open doors for us
to share Him with others.
What other circumstances
are we specifically
told to pray for?
Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
Physical Healing
Physical Healing
God gave specific
instruction to
pray for believers
who are sick.
May I be honest,
we give far too much
trust in medicine
Not enough
trust in
healing power of God.
God is the God of science,
He allowed these advance.
I do not advocate for
rejection of medication
interventions that God gave.
I’m advocating that
first gut reaction
should be to pray...
Before we get
diagnosis
prognosis
prescriptions.
Come to the God
who created our bodies.
The gift of
medical missionary work
been hijacked by world.
Time to bring it back
in proper order.
What else
are we called
to pray for?
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
Wisdom
Wisdom
If any lack wisdom?
Those who think
they don’t need wisdom
from infinite God...
are in real trouble.
We all need wisdom!
But..
Sometimes our prayers
don’t help our
health
wisdom
A co-worker asked a friend why he got donuts if he is trying to diet. He said, “Well, I came around the corner where the donut shop was. I told God, if He wanted me to buy some donuts to have a parking spot in the front. On the eighth time around, there it was!”
We all need wisdom!
This is something
we should pray for
frequently.
Which brings us to
our next question:
When
When
When should we pray?
We all know
this passage.
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Without Ceasing
Without Ceasing
We should pray
continually.
There is a time
when we should not pray.
I’m getting to that shortly!
But otherwise,
there is not bad time to pray!
In the Garden of Gethsemane
Jesus specifically commanded
disciples to pray
for Him and themselves:
and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
When In Danger of Pride and Other Sin
When In Danger of Pride and Other Sin
In life we enter
different
phases
circumstances
experiences.
To a trained Christian,
we should know
when we will need
extra prayer!
At times,
temptation is stronger.
What is the answer
pray more!
What other periods need special prayer?
Psalm 5:1–3 (ESV)
Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my groaning.
Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
Crying Out To the Lord for Help
Crying Out To the Lord for Help
This song talks about
individual crying out to God
for special purpose.
These verse do not name
reason on the need.
You know the say:
“There are no atheists in fox holes.”
People who has had
nothing to do with God previously
suddenly call out to Him
in time of need.
Like this story:
A fisherman was at sea with his godless companions when a storm came up and threatened to sink their ship. His friends begged him to pray; but he said, “It’s been a long time since I’ve done that or even entered a church.” At their insistence, however, he finally cried out, “O Lord, I haven’t asked anything of You in 15 years, and if You help us now and bring us safely to land, I promise I won’t bother You again for another 15!”
This is good.
This is natural.
But it’s important
to call out to Him
all the time...
No just when
we are in special need.
Where
Where
Where Physically?
We already answered that...
Everywhere.
“Pray without ceasing.”
Where are you spiritually?
Bible talks about
times when
you should not pray....
Story of Achan
Story of Achan
After Jericho
people are happy.
Next city - Ai.
Send only a few.
completely defeated.
Joshua is confused
upset
heartbroken.
Falls down to pray...
Joshua 7:10–12 (ESV)
The Lord said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies...
It was not
time to pray.
It was time
to deal with sin
in the camp.
Prayer to restore
relationship with God
while ignoring what
caused destruction of relationship
is hurtful to God.
Story of Tammy
Similar story in Jeremiah:
“As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you.
Living in Unrepentant Sin
Living in Unrepentant Sin
God will always
accept sincere prayer.
He says:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
All sins will be forgiven
if they are confessed.
At the end of a revival service the evangelist invited people to come forward if they wanted someone to pray for them. About midway through the line of people stood an imposing, intimidating looking man. When the minister asked about his prayer request, the burly guy said, “Reverend, I need you to pray for my hearing.” The evangelist quickly placed his hands over the man’s ears and prayed fervently for restored hearing. When the minister finished praying, he looked the man squarely in the eyes and shouted above the choir’s strong singing, “How’s your hearing now?” The man loudly replied, “I don’t know yet, Preacher. My hearing ain’t until next Wednesday at the courthouse.”
Source: Unknown
All sins will be forgiven
if they are confessed.
Pretending we are
right with God,
while living in
open rebellion
will not be forgiven.
How
How
The disciples were
in awe at the
prayer life of Jesus.
They had been
around prayer
their whole life.
But Jesus’ prayer life
was different.
Finally,
one day,
they asked Christ:
“teach us to pray!”
So,
how do we pray?
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
We Don’t Know How
We Don’t Know How
The first lesson
in learning to pray
is that we don’t
know how to pray
or what to pray for.
Our words
are all like
babbling of babies
before the infinite God.
Thankfully,
God has given us
The Holy Spirit
that will
lead us
and intercede for us.
But Jesus did give
some instruction
about how to pray:
---Instruction about Prayer---
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
Don’t Pray to Be Seen
Don’t Pray to Be Seen
First instruction:
public prayer
is not so others can say
“wow… look how he prays.”
Don’t pray to be
seen by others.
There is a time
for public prayer but
Jesus seems to
encourage the opposite more:
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Pray in Secret
Pray in Secret
There are many
great settings for prayer:
Public prayer at church
Small group prayer
Prayer meetings
Prayer Partners.
All are great.
Yet,
the prayer that Christ emphasizes
is personal,
private prayer!
This is the prayer
that seemed to lead
to much of the power
in Christ’s life.
He was frequently
alone praying
in the wilderness.
Follow Christ’s example
The greatest percentage
of our prayer life
should be private prayer!
Next:
“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
Stop Meaningless Repetition
Stop Meaningless Repetition
As SDA we like to
point the finger at
other denoms.
like Catholics and
their wrote prayers...
It is true,
God is prohibiting
prayer mantras
repeated over and over.
Yet even as protestants
there is much wrote prayer.
In many prayers,
before meals
before travel
during service
say that same words
until they mean nothing
to us and others.
I’m not advocating
not to pray in those times.
I am advocating
to make those prayer
varied and meaningful.
One such prayer
that is often repeated
as a mantra
is Christ‘s model prayer:
Matthew 6:9–13 (ESV)
Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Pray Simply and Specifically
Pray Simply and Specifically
Instead of just
mindlessly repeating the prayer,
what can we learn from it?
One point to make
is that Christ models
simple and specific prayer.
Prayer does not
have to be in
complex and flowery language.
Christ spoke in simple words.
Yet His words were
full of meaning and purpose.
Christ’s appeals were
very specific.
What I mean by that is
it was not redundant mumbling:
He:
Praising God
Ask for food.
Forgiveness of sin.
A forgiving heart
Protection from temptation.
He had a thoughtful progression.
Like a real conversation.
He could have been
more specific...
For us,
instead of asking for
forgiveness of sin:
What sin?
Instead of asking for
God to provide daily needs
clarify what needs.
Instead of asking for
forgiving heart..
Identify what relationship
is needing healing.
This is how
real conversations work.
At home
we don’t ask kids:
do you want food.
We ask:
“What do you want to eat today?”
pancakes?
cereal?
Real conversations
are very specific
That brings meaning and value.
Here are some
examples of specific prayers.
But they are written
by young children.
“I didn’t think orange went with purple until I saw the sunset You made on Tuesday. That was cool.”
“Instead of letting people die and having to make new ones, why don’t You keep the ones You already have?”
“I bet it is very hard to love everyone in the whole world. There are only four people in our family and I’m having a hard time loving all of them.”
“Did You mean for the giraffe to look like that or was it an accident?”
“I went to this wedding and they kissed right in the church. Is that OK?”
“Please send me a pony. I never asked for anything before. You can look it up.”
“We read Thomas Edison made light. But in Sunday school they said You did it. So, I bet he stole Your idea.”
“Please send a new baby for Mommy. The baby you sent last week cries too much.”
In a different conversation
Jesus is instruction about prayer:
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Pray Earnestly
Pray Earnestly
Jesus specifically
tells them to pray earnestly.
In Jeremiah:
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
Earnest Prayers Are Answered
Earnest Prayers Are Answered
God answers earnest prayers?
Why?
Because earnest prayers
are sincere prayers.
The story is told of a boy named Patrick who asked repeatedly for a watch. His parents forbade him to talk about it anymore. At dinner he was asked to pray and he said, “Before I pray, I would like to quote Mark 13:37, ‘And what I say unto you, I say unto all, WATCH!’”
(It was earnest
maybe not spiritual
but - yes - earnest)
God desires earnest prayers
Flippant prayers
are insincere.
On the same note
Jesus adds this detail:
And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
Pray In Faith
Pray In Faith
God expects us to believe
the words coming out
of our mouth.
Let me illustrate
this with a story…:
During a time of great drought, the Scottish preacher Dr. Guthrie prayed for rain in the morning service. As he went to church in the afternoon, his daughter, Mary, said, “Here is the umbrella, Papa.”
“What do we need it for,” he asked.
“You prayed for rain this morning, and don’t you expect God will send it?”
They carried the umbrella, and when they came home they were glad to take shelter under it from the drenching storm.
Who
Who
Who should pray?
Everyone...
But who should we pray for?
Pray for Others
Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
Praying For Everyone
Praying For Everyone
In the garden of Gethsemane
we do see Christ
pray for Himself.
Elsewhere,
Christ and other leaders
are frequently praying for others.
As human sinners
we frequently err in
focusing too much upon
ourselves and our family.
Both of those
need prayer and
we have examples of such...
But when we pray
mostly for self
our prayer becomes lopsided.
Spend a majority
of prayer time
praying for something
other than self!
Paul prayed for others frequently:
For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for.
and
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
Intercessory Prayer
Intercessory Prayer
Paul was frequently
praying for the congregations
the he had helped start.
There is power
in praying for each other.
Dr. Helen Roseveare, missionary to Zaire, told the following story. “A mother at our mission station died after giving birth to a premature baby. We tried to improvise an incubator to keep the infant alive, but the only hot water bottle we had was beyond repair. So we asked the children to pray for the baby and for her sister. One of the girls responded. ‘Dear God, please send a hot water bottle today. Tomorrow will be too late because by then the baby will be dead. And dear Lord, send a doll for the sister so she won’t feel so lonely.’ That afternoon a large package arrived from England. The children watched eagerly as we opened it. Much to their surprise, under some clothing was a hot water bottle! Immediately the girl who had prayed so earnestly started to dig deeper, exclaiming, ‘If God sent that, I’m sure He also sent a doll!’ And she was right! The heavenly Father knew in advance of that child’s sincere requests, and 5 months earlier He had led a ladies’ group to include both of those specific articles.”
Source: Character out of Chaos, David Dykes
Generally speaking
the weaker and more immature
need more intercession:
Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And he laid his hands on them and went away.
Prayer For Children
Prayer For Children
Those who are
but children
physically
spiritually.
Should be prayed
for often.
Intercession allows
the Holy Spirit
to move in way
otherwise un-allowed.
Young Children
especially those who don’t
yet know how to pray effectively
on their own.
Spiritual interests
who are young in the faith.
Fruit that is green
who are not allow
Christ into their lives personally.
All need extra prayer.
The beauty of intercession
is that it works
both ways:
Brothers, pray for us.
Ask Others to Pray for You
Ask Others to Pray for You
Paul was
always pray for
his congregations.
But he was not slow
to ask them
to pray for him too!!
We all need prayer.
and we need friends
we feels safe with.
We need people
that will help us pray
our specific needs.
George Mueller said: “I look upon it as a lost day when I have not had a good time over the Word of God.
Friends often say,
“I have so much to do,
I cannot find time to study and pray.’
Perhaps there are not many who have more to do than I.
For 4 years I have had annually about 30,000 letters, and most of these have passed through my own hands.
“Then, as pastor of a church with 1,200 believers, great has been my care.
Besides, I have had charge of 5 immense orphanages;
also, at my publishing depot, the printing and circulating of millions of tracts, books, and Bibles;
but I have always made it a rule never to begin work until I have had a good season with God and His Word.
Source: A Journey to Victorious Praying, Bill Thrasher
Appeal
Appeal
Pray!
Spend time
every day
meaningful season of
study and prayer.
