Praying in the Church: The Content of Our Prayers

Introduction:

Have you ever felt compelled to pray, but when you finally got alone with God and sat down, you closed your eyes, bowed your head, and in 3 seconds you ran out of things to say?

For some reason, churches generally don’t teach new believers how to pray and study the Bible.

We hear people that pray in church and some of them sound like they were on the King James Translation Committee and use words that sound fancy, but no one understands what they are saying.

Even if we are not praying in public, we struggle with the content of our prayers. This really doesn’t have to be so.

Think about sitting down for a moment and writing a letter to someone you really care about. What things might you talk about in the letter?

You might talk about your life and what is happening.

You might talk about your family and how they are doing.

You might talk about your job.

You might talk about your cares and concerns, depending on how personal your relationship is with whomever you are writing to

How many of you have new stuff that happens to you every day in your life? All of us do!

We can take all of these things and more to the Lord in prayer. We can even pray back the Bible to God.

Prayer is mostly our talking to God and reading the Bible is mostly God talking to us. It’s that basic.

Prayer is a conversation with God, but just like in any conversation, everything can’t be about ourselves.

We have to learn to listen.

We also need to learn to pray about other people and events and situations and not just what is going on in our own lives.

I imagine that being under house arrest as Paul was when he wrote the Book of Ephesians, he had a lot of time on his hands to pray. While we cannot know everything that Paul prayed about, He writes down some of his prayers for the Ephesians in this chapter.

Last week we looked at the subject of whom we are to pray to.

This week we are going to look at some things we can pray about and then next week we will see the results we can expect from our praying.

Ephesians 3:14–21 ESV

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

1. Divine Enablement (vv.16)

Ephesians 3:16 ESV

16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,

To Be Strengthened with His Power

2. Spiritual Comprehension of Christ’s Love (v.17)

Ephesians 3:17 ESV

17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

3. Filled with Fullness of God (v.18-19)

Ephesians 3:18–19 ESV

18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

life, character, virtues

Conclusion

Tonight, I want to send you home with a homework assignment.

I want to challenge you to take some time this week and pray for your church.

Take these things that Paul prayed and pray them back to God over the church and over your own life.

Write down the things you see that God does in answer to your prayers and it will encourage you when you see Him answer.

You will know that He hears you and He loves you and He is actively involved in your life.