God made us and put us on this earth for fellowship. That means God wants to be our friend and he wants to talk to us on a regular basis. God has established how this two-way communication between God and man is going to work. The biblical term for man talking with God is “prayer.” After the advent of Jesus Christ God talks to man primarily through the pages of his word (the Bible), or through the indwelt Holy Spirit influencing our thoughts and actions. I’m not saying God can’t or won’t manifest himself to a believer, or have an angel appear with a message or speak directly to man out of thin air. I’m just saying it’d be rare for such a thing to happen. When I see televangelists say they have an ongoing verbal dialog with God I take it with a grain of salt. I’m not calling them a liar. I’m just saying it hasn’t happened to me and I remember the great Billy Graham saying God never spoke to him either.
Ephesians 5:20 – Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Colossians 4:2 – Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.
Hebrews 13:15 – Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
Psalm 5:3 – My voice you shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.
If you were invited to speak to an earthly monarch, like Queen Elizabeth of England for instance, you would first be summoned to appear. You’d have to wait outside the throne room. You’d be instructed what to do; either bow or kneel. Then you’d have to address the sovereign with a preferred royal title such as Your Majesty or Your Highness. This protocol is a sign of respect. After the preliminaries are done then you can say why you are there. Even the Queen’s family will use her royal title when addressing her in a public setting. Even the Queen’s family cannot barge in on her unannounced. The court of heaven also has a protocol and our audience is through prayer.
1 Thessalonians 6:16-18 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Philippians 4:6 – Be anxious for nothing, but let everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
Ephesians 6:18 – Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.
Psalm 63:1 – O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.
God is King of kings and Lord of lords. God is the Sovereign King of the universe which he has made. As believers we’re the beloved children of God and he has graciously granted us 24/7 access to the throne of grace. Even the angels don’t have the access to God that we have. Even as a child of God we must still approach God in the proper way using an acceptable format that shows our deep respect, admiration and reverence for God. You don’t just barge in on God and say, “Hey dad, what’s up?” When addressing God the first words out of your mouth should be to address God with one of his royal titles or an attribute of the Most High God. My personal favorites are, “Holy God” and “Lord of Heaven and Earth.” “Holy God” because holiness is God’s greatest attribute. “Lord of Heaven and Earth” because Jesus often used that title when he was praying to God the Father. When you’re coming before God know why you’re there. There are basically five types of prayers before God which are worship, thanksgiving, confession, intercession and personal petition. You can cover more than one kind of prayer when talking to God when it’s appropriate. Not only does God grant believers access to his throne, he also promises to hear our prayers and answer them. God is a good, kind, gentle, generous and merciful God!
Colossians 3:2 – Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
Luke 21:36 – (Jesus speaking) – Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.
James 5:16 – The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Psalm 4:1 – Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved me in my distress; have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
Ninety percent of all prayers to God are because we want something from God; either for ourselves (personal petitions) or for others (intercessions). The next most prevalent prayer is a prayer of confession for the forgiveness of sins. All of us need God’s forgiveness on a daily basis because we’re imperfect creatures mired in sin. When I pray to God every night I always ask for God’s forgiveness of any sins that I may have committed that day. As a believer I know all my sins before God have been washed away by the blood of the Lamb but I’m still acutely aware that I continue to sin and I want those new sins off my ledger before my eyes close for the night. It just makes me feel a lot better knowing when I stand before the bema judgment seat of Christ that all of my sins will have been confessed as well as forgiven.
Philippians 4:4 – Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice!
1 John 1:9 -If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 4:15 – Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
Psalm 6:9 – The Lord has heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer.
The last two categories of prayer are for thanksgiving to God and the worship of God. Probably less than five percent of all prayers are specifically for this purpose only. Most believers will pray to God at some point in the day; probably at meal times and maybe at night before going to bed. I fall into that category most of the time. Like most everyone else my prayers are usually personal petitions and intercessions sprinkled with a few confessions here and there. Scripture says we’re to pray to God always, ceaselessly and continually. Always means on all occasions, at all times, repeatedly and forever. The word ceaselessly means without stopping. The word continually means constantly or occurring frequently. When our prayers are only about “us”, our desires and our family and friends it’s very hard to pray as often as the Scriptures say we should. We can only pray all day long if we have the love of God in our heart. Prayers should come easily from your heart if you love God.
Colossians 3:17 – And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
Luke 10:2 – (Jesus speaking) – The harvest is truly great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.
Luke 11:9 – (Jesus speaking) – So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Psalm 22:5 – They cried to You and were delivered; they trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
It’s only when we turn to the little used prayers of thanksgiving and worship that we realize God’s priorities for prayer are different from our own. We have it upside down. Instead of 90% of our prayers being all about us and what we want, 90% of our prayer life should be focused on prayers that worship God and prayers of thanksgiving for what God has done for us. Only by looking at prayers in that context will we be able to obey God’s command to pray to him always, continually, and ceaselessly. When God says to pray continuously he doesn’t mean nonstop because then we couldn’t get anything else done. Even monks in a monastery can’t approach that level of prayer. God is actually telling us to pray more frequently during our waking hours, and in every circumstance in which we find ourselves. This could easily mean praying 3-4 times an hour with each prayer possibly being very brief, taking no more than a few seconds each. “Lord help me” is an example of a short prayer. The point is we need to keep God at the forefront of our minds as we go about each day. The moment we know we’ve a committed a sin pray for God’s forgiveness immediately.
John 9:31 – Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshipper of God and does His will, He hears him.
1 John 5:14-15 – Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
James 4:2 – Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
Psalm 30:2 – O Lord my God, I cried out to You, and You healed me.
How is it possible to pray that often? Our minds never stop thinking. Our thoughts are like the spinning wheels of a slot machine that stop briefly ever once in a while, before carrying on. As believers we have the peace of God knowing God has saved us unto eternal life in heaven and ever time that fact crosses our mind during the day we should rejoice briefly by acknowledging God and thanking him in prayer. Just a few words will do. Something like, “Holy God, thank you for eternal life”, “Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your son Jesus to save me from hell”, or “Lord, thank you for saving my soul” You get the general idea. Whatever crosses your mind that you’re thankful for let God know right away with your lips. There’s no right or wrong way to pray. Just make sure your prayer comes from the heart and you’ll be in good shape. Address God respectfully and tell him what you’re thankful for; keep it short and sweet. God knows what you mean to say when you pray and he knows your needs.
John 3:27 – A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.
James 1:17 – Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
1 Timothy 2:8 – I desire therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
Psalm 50:15 – Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.
When you pray to God frequently you can’t help but cultivate a sense of gratitude and thankfulness toward God. The more you pray to God the more your fellowship with God deepens and the happier you’ll become. The peace of God settles on your soul and you end up with a happy and successful life as you walk humbly with your God. As you study God’s word note how many times we’re commanded to pray and what we’re to pray for. Prayer is important to God so do it frequently throughout the day. Jesus Christ prayed to God the Father often during his earthly ministry as an example for us follow. Jesus commanded us to pray and he also told us how to pray. The word pray appears 313 times in the Bible. The word prayer or prayers appears 138 times in the Bible. Other forms of the word prayer occurs an additional 94 times in the Bible. Prayer mentioned this many times in God’s word shows it’s an integral part of God’s salvation plan for man. We’re to pray not only on earth but also when we get to heaven.
James 1:5 – If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Matthew 7:11 – If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Matthew 6:7-8 – (Jesus speaking) – And when you pray do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
Psalm 34:1-2 – I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear of it and be glad.