Prayer

In order to answer the concern “why do we pray?” let’s take a look at exactly what the Bible says. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 exhorts us to “Hope continuously.”.

We pray since God cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). When we pray, we surrender and release our thoughts, fears, and desires to God. We pray since prayer shifts our attention to “him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or picture, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).

In a world filled with chaos, we pray since prayer is the remedy to anxiety. “Do not be distressed about anything, however in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Jesus hoped. Throughout His life on earth, Jesus was in continuous communion with His Dad. Toward completion of His ministry He hoped, “Papa, I have actually brought you magnificence on earth by finishing the work you provided me to do.” How could Jesus understand what the Papa wanted Him to do? How could He have understood His Dad’s heart, His Father’ will, if He had not spent time with the Father in prayer? If the sinless Messiah, “the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2) seriously sought the Father, just how much more do we, simple mortals, need to seek His will and hope?

Prayer grows our relationship with God. Prayer reminds us that we are reliant on God and not on ourselves. Prayer draws us closer to God.

God wants us to let him know what we are thinking.  God does know what is in our hearts and minds (better than we do, really), he still wants us to pray to him as he knows all of the benefits that prayer can provide us.

There are five fundamental types or sorts of prayer.

The first type is the prayer is to simply tell God “Thank You.”  This prayer of thanksgiving allows us to thank God.  We can thank him for the many good, and great, things that he provides us in our everyday lives. He gives us shelter; provides us life; food and clothes; he provides us helpers throughout our lives to assist us and to take care of us. The simple prayer of giving thanks for our food is called grace.

The second type is the prayer of praise (God might like this one best). We inform God about how wonderful he is, when we praise through prayer. The most basic way of applauding him is in the name we call him: King of Kings; Almighty God; Lord of Lords; Lord Jesus Christ.  We understand his wonder when we use any of these names. You can find lots of prayers in the psalms in the Book of Psalms.

The 3rd type is the prayer of supplication, or requesting help. We ask God to keep us safe, to offer us courage in tough times, or to offer us the things we have to be healthy and strong. When we are afraid or in trouble and require aid, God constantly desires to hear from us.

The 4th type is the prayer of confession, informing God that we are sorry for what we have actually done. We tell God we are sorry either when we have hurt among individuals God has created or when we have actually done some sort of damage to God’s gorgeous creation. We inform God what we have done and that we are sorry that we did it.

The 5th type of prayer is the intercessory prayer, where we ask God to care for another person or part of his production. God indeed takes care of other individuals without our prayer, however we build our Christian community by requesting for God’s special take care of one another. Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3: 14 – 21 is a gorgeous prayer for the people of faith. Moses and Abraham asked God to take unique care of his people. The Prayer for the Healing of Children is an intercessory prayer.

There are likewise a few styles of prayer, which depend on our own characters.

The very first style is contemplative prayer. Many individuals have long and included conversations with God, where they talk things over with him, constantly sure that he is listening.

The 2nd design is spontaneous prayer. This prayer originates from our hearts practically without thinking, and it is typically a prayer of thanksgiving: “Thank you, God, for the gorgeous sundown”; “thank you for the kindness of my friend.”.

The 3rd design is prayer based around scripture, or devotional, prayer. Most people review a Bible passage or verse that helps them create a blueprint on how to converse with the Father. They typically start their prayers by checking out a psalm.

Sitting still is hard for them, and they need to include motion to their prayers. Strolling the maze while hoping can be a very deep kind of prayer.