Thoughts On Prayer (Part III)…

Here are some hopefully encouraging thoughts on prayer

that God has been teaching me over the years…

May the Holy Spirit use these to help us pray more with Him!

(please click on the Bible book/chapter/verses below to read the actual Scripture text)

.

The road to forgiving others who have hurt us
is paved with our genuine prayers for them;
prayers are the asphalt of forgiveness (Matthew 5:44).

 

1. Just noticed something for the first time in Ephesians 6:10-18—
   the “and” in verse 18 connects ‪prayer
   as part of the armor God gives us in verses 13-17! YES!

 

2. In prayer we give God the brushes & the oils
   and present ourselves to Him as the canvas,
   inviting Him to paint whatever He wants…(Luke 22:42)

 

3. Despite the importance of our
   theological training
   and spiritual maturing 
as followers of Jesus,
   without prayer we remain stuck in “park”,
   revving our engines loudly but going nowhere.
   James 5:16 NIV

 

4. Instead of asking you to pray for me because I’m preaching this weekend,
   please pray for me for the equally if not more important work I am engaged in every day:
   sacrificially loving my wife, children, and neighbors at home/in my neighborhood.
   1 Timothy 5:8 NIV

 

5. God wants us to pray
   and then start preparing for Him to answer that prayer before He answers it,
   e.g. Asking for rain and then carrying an umbrella…even when it’s sunny out!
   Philemon 1:22 NIV

 

6. Sometimes our desire for immediate answers to our prayers
   is as ridiculous as a farmer’s prayer for an April harvest.
   Even though we can’t see it,
   God is at work behind the scenes
   like seeds under the soil preparing to sprout, grow & bloom our prayers to Him.
   Hebrews 11:39-40 The Message

 

7. One of my daily struggles is doing domestic chores
   while multitudes languish in the midst of global suffering…
   .
   …LORD God Almighty,
   please do through my faithful prayers
   what could never happen through my physical presence.
   James 5:16 NIV

 

8. When stressed, don’t pray in the name of Visa (retail therapy);
   partner with the Bank of Jesus–the great forgiver of spiritual debt.
   1 Peter 5:6-7 NLT

 

9. Let’s bring prayer into all areas of our lives!
   Like a spiritual pizza,
   let’s make prayer the dough on which we layer the tasks of life
   instead of making prayer one of life’s last-minute toppings sprinkled on top!
   1 Thessalonians 5:17 NIV

 

10. Prayer is not us bringing God to us so we can control Him;
    prayer is God bringing us to Himself so He can transform us.

 

11. God—Who determines whether or not to give us what we ask for—
    also determines first whether or not what we ask for will spread His fame (John14:13).

 

12. Terrified? Discouraged?
    Before praying for God to change our situation,
    pray He will help us trust that He is with us in our situation! (Joshua 1:9)

 

13. Any greatness we might have comes from God’s closeness to us when we pray to Him!
    (Deuteronomy 4:7)

 

14. We’ll pray for others when we realize there’s only so much we can do for them with our hands
    but there’s NO LIMIT to what God can do for them with His.

 

15. For those who have said “Yes!” to Jesus’ free offer of forgiveness,
    praying to Jesus is NOT like being cross-examined by a prosecuting attorney;
    it’s being comforted by Him Who served your sentence for you.

 

16. Lord Jesus, please help me to pray.
    Help me also to be willing to personally sacrifice
    so I can be part of Your answer to my prayers.
    In Your name I pray, Amen.
    .
17. Lord Jesus, teach us in prayer to be still
    & have Your love, grace & Truth
    be the cashmere
    that gently covers
    our raw & sunburned shoulders.
    In Your name I pray, amen…
    .
18. In prayer, God gives us the strength, not to fix our problems, but to face them (Isaiah 40:28-31).
    .
19. Seven days without prayer makes one weak…