Who doesn’t want their prayers answered? Who doesn’t wish for the confidence that God hears and gives answers to their requests? Most Christians strive to grow in this area. In fact, after Jesus’ disciples had been with Him for a certain amount of time they asked Him to teach them how to pray. The disciples noticed that powerful answers came when Jesus prayed.
praying to God
We can have this same experience as Christians. Because Jesus gave us authority to use His name, and since faith in Him places us in the position of friends of God and power to be sons of God, we too can have our prayers answered.
So why is it so hard for many to develop their prayer life?
Problems in Praying with Power
We aren’t sure God hears us
We aren’t sure that we are praying according to His will
We are foolishly trusting in ourselves, our own sense of goodness.
We don’t understand enough about God’s promises
We give up after failed efforts
We get discouraged because we haven’t seen the answers after what seems a long time.
Prayer is so much more than asking God for things. When growing spiritually, it helps to gain insights from others who have walked that road before. So many difficulties could be avoided if we just could hear that certain things are just normal.
Although I will go forward with fine points in future videos, one purpose for laying a foundation in this video are for these reasons:
When people think of power they want to skip to the end point. People believe they can find hacks, jumping ahead of the line, from novice to expert in spiritual matters. If we look at the example of Jesus, He accomplished each step of His ministry in the right time and order: as He heard from the Father.
Don’t let the world’s demand for social proof, or your own desire for a pre-eminent place hurry you out of the timeframe of God.
This especially is true in prayer.
Jesus Gives Prayer Tips
Actually this is being facetious about a serious topic. The Lord Jesus did more than give tips, He gave truth. So if you want to learn spiritual truths, you have to take the words of Christ jesus seriously.
What guidance did Christ give, on praying?
Don’t make a show of your prayer before men… trying to impress them. Go to your Father in Heaven in secret. Let your prayers be between Him and you when you seek standing with God.
Don’t have a flood of words, repeating things over and over. Let your words be an honest communication with the God who Hears.
Understand that He wants to give good gives to those who ask, because He is a father with a loving heart.
Keep praying and don’t give up.
Besides these points, the “Our Father” prayer is a study in the main order and points of praying powerfully.
Now that we have looked at a few of these thoughts, why not watch the entire video? Any feedback on it, is welcome.
Video for Building Confidence in Praying Powerfully
I created my first prayer talk video.
I take basics and put them together with lessons from my experience through the years of praying. Laying a foundation that with practice and time will build an effective prayer life.
Why basics? Because it is the foundation that matters and because prayer is something you do. If you want to start building a powerful prayer life, start here.
My prayer life is still a pathetic and small thing, but I find when ever I open the door to the Lord, even the smallest bit, He is ready with revelation.
…If only I will hear it.
With a mouthful of sandwich already, I suddenly remembered to say grace. Giving thanks for God’s great provision for me daily.
That small “daily bread” reminder to communicate thanks began to grow into a longer prayer…as a re-awakened prayer life is wont to do, and soon I began to realize something.
The Holy Spirit is seeking to declutter my disorganized and overburdened mind. He sorted through a number of vague guilt trips and forgotten good intentions. It struck me how like this was to the decluttering actions I had repeatedly followed all through the past year. In my house… As I opened the doors to rooms that I had ashamedly kept closed, hauled out boxes of mish-mashed contents, removed cobwebs, I began to clean and then install belongings in their rightful place. Or I simply bagged up “stuff” and hauled it away (much to my husbands delight).
In my heart…
The Holy Spirit acts as a guide, but it must be me that opens the doors and assembles the thinking. I must decide whether I am willing to throw something out or put it in the right place. Somewhere I can then access it when needed.
In my physical life, it was something that I had experienced breakthrough within. Lifelong piles of accumulated stuff, much of it useless and undesirable, had finally been cleared. New and accessible fittings were begun to hold what was kept. And now I could see that this is the way God wishes me to live in the inner rooms of my soul.
There are so many dusty places of old thinking, values, and ideas that never had anything to do with God’s thoughts. Bits of broken dreams, the broken cisterns of past teachings that were incongruent with the love of God, the life of the Spirit.
Those, along with layers of living only for myself, making my own plans without consulting either God or the people impacted by those plans. It all needed to be swept away or sorted through, pulling the valuable from the surrounding debris.
What’s Gone?
False guilt and the judgments of others
Insecurity about my failings- we all fail, and I had to get over that fact.
Fear of success. Change is a good thing, and success is one type of change I want to embrace.
The need to control. I have little of it, and that is okay.
What Stays?
Releasing control to God, allowing others their choices.
An attitude of gratefulness
Courage to step forward
General plans of improvement, one step at a time.
Taking control of myself and my decisions.
Instead of lots of “must-do” lists, I find that insight into the work of the comforting Helper creates a desire to try out more of the connection of prayer during my day. Try to live what I believe instead trying to make it work. Like the flow of lifegiving sap, from my roots in the Lord; not the forcefed infusion of outer stimulation.
Instead of worrying concerns and tormented thoughts, there is a feeling of strength and peace.
I like this clear and open space much better than trying to gather control and harbor resentments.
I needed to jot down these thoughts so that I would have them to meditate on and be more open to a greater understanding of what God has been wanting to do in my life from the beginning.
I do wonder at myself… that I can go so long and be so very unaware. I am thankful for the insights of today. May they multiply!
Last year I had no significant focus word, even though I sought one. Instead there were practical directions, some from many years in the past that molded the decisions and directions.
I decluttered to organize and simplify my life, (and get rid of the guilt and insecurity that a cluttered and dirty environment produces).
My entire year geared towards the plans of my family to rendezvous for Christmas at home in Ohio.
There were some large detours along the way, and the timetables took several rewinds and delays. Still, as I write this at the end of 2014, the progress and accomplishment was quite amazing (considering we are twelve very independent minded people with equally independent minded spouses and busy lives). It turns out I did not need guiding words or specific resolutions.
I look at this past year, and it was full of answered prayers of the past.
Unsought, But Welcome Word
I have a faithful prayer partner, who I have met with every month for the past five to six years. During December, while praying, the word “Alignment” came alive and stood out as the keynote of what God would be doing with us this coming year.
So often we pray for God to come into our plans, hear our desires, and cooperate with our hopes.
But the idea contained in the giving of this living word of direction was an inner desire (that almost seemed to be born at that moment, although it wasn’t new):
to become aligned with what God wanted, be in on His plans and cooperate more fully with Him.
I wasn’t seeking direction, it was premature in the expected timing of a New Year’s set of resolutions- I was still in the midst of working on the present!
But almost as a gift, the word of Alignment took form
It has the feeling for me of adjusting and fine tuning, although I am aware that large portions of my habits and actions should make drastic change.
Some things which come to mind are:
Returning to remembering grateful prayer, from grace said before meals to “giving thanks in all things”. I’ve gotten very sloppy, neglectful, unmindful.
Being more regular in church. I miss having this in my life, and the feeling of obligation has practically disappeared. I just want to connect more in corporate worship and service.
Returning to a regular daily prayer time. Time when I can meet with God, not just flyby prayers as I hurry on my work schedule.
Those are a few things this word is inspiring for me at the moment.
I want to explore what it means for my blogging, my goals in gardening and the home, the trips IÂ travel, my steps to better physical health.
How may I align with God’s revelation to me, with His purposes?
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In my house… As I opened the doors to rooms that I had ashamedly kept closed, hauled out boxes of mish-mashed contents, removed cobwebs, I began to clean and then install belongings in their rightful place. Or I simply bagged up “stuff” and hauled it away (much to my husbands delight).
