"In depth" study of prayer is such a beneficial undertaking. The first, and one of the very best books that I have read on the subject of prayer, is by Andrew Murray. It was written over 130 years ago by a Dutch Reformed pastor in South Africa. It is a classic and foundational study; "With Christ in the School of Prayer".
There are so many contemporary books also, that are insightful and energizing that will guide you on starting a more intimate and fruitful prayer life.
I want to share one more concept about prayer that helped me in the beginning of my prayer journey. Praying God's Word. This is a concept that I heard about many years ago. There are "prayer promise" books that have categories for your particular need, such as marriage, physical health, fear, hope, faith, repentance etc. They can be found at any Christian bookstore and they offer scripture that addresses your particular need. We know that the Bible is God's Word to us, so if we pray the scripture back to Him, we know we are praying within His will and guidelines.
Praying passages from the Psalms and Proverbs are also a wonderful way to incorporate scripture into our prayers. Reading the books written by Paul and praying back the prayers of Paul the Apostle are passages of scripture that we can find great promises in, such as in the first chapters 1 and 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians 1 and 2 Timothy. These prayers were spoken by Paul to encourage and build up the people of the churches in the early New Testament. They are still so very relevant for us, as individuals today.
Version: NAS
Ephesians 1:17-19
17."... that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. 18. [I pray that] the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19. and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. [These are] in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20. which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at the right hand in the heavenly realms."
Let's take this apart and see how we can pray it back to God.
17." Dear Father, I ask that you might give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation knowledge about You, so that I might learn and understand who You are. 18. and that the "eyes of my heart" might be enlightened so that I can see and know the Hope of Your calling; that I might know the riches of your glory in the inheritance that I have as a Christian. 19. I ask to know the surpassing greatness of Your power toward me, and the strength of your might, like you used with Jesus when you raised Him from the dead."
Here's another passage from Paul's prayer in Philippians.
Philippians 1:6
[For I am] confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
So let's pray: Dear Father I know You began a good work in me, and I am confident that you will perfect it and bring it to fulfillment.
If this idea seems a little overwhelming just take one or two verses and break them down. Concentrate on praying those back in your prayer time. Then move on when you feel it's time. God will direct your prayer time if you will only ask.
We have looked at God's desire for relationship which leads to communication in prayer. We saw that God's great desire is for us to seek after Him. We have looked at elements of God's Nature, and realized that by being aware of these things it will bring us confidence in our ability to come before the Father to pray.
And for me the most important thing I did was to ask God to teach me to pray. Just like the disciples with Jesus, I wanted to know how to communicate with God. I had to admit that I needed His direction and then I asked Him to give me a desire to know and love Him, which would generate my desire to pray.
Prayer should be thought of not as a burden, but as a great privilege.
Be sure and check back tomorrow as I introduce our next subject. I think you will find it to be exciting and life-changing, as I did.
love,
Debra
p.s. I need to add a link to this blog, that my sweet sister-in-law visits. It is a small town in Virginia, they need our prayers.
Notforgotten Farm
p.s. I need to add a link to this blog, that my sweet sister-in-law visits. It is a small town in Virginia, they need our prayers.
Notforgotten Farm
