How To Pray

Unfortunately, many Christians have not learned how to pray.

Prayer is simply speaking to God.

Let’s look at the five steps of prayer:

1. Praise

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. Psalm 63:4

Praise is recognizing God for all that He is. We declare His virtues and accomplishments.  We share with God those qualities about Him that we both recognize and appreciate.

Praise is to verbalize our adoration of God.

2. Confession

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Confession means a willingness to declare our guilt.  When we confess our sins, we are verbalizing our spiritual shortcomings.  Confession is not for God’s benefit, but for ours.  He wants us to be cleansed from that sin, and also to become aware of what we have been cleansed of so that we might avoid those sins in the future.

3. Intercession

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone. 1 Timothy 2:1

Intercession is the act of mediation.  It is to stand between a lost soul and Almighty God, praying that this person will be delivered from the snare of Satan.

4. Petition

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7

Petition is to verbalize our personal needs to the Lord.  It is to express our helplessness in some specific matter.  Our petitions give God access to our needs.

5. Thanksgiving

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4

Thanksgiving begins with a conscious awareness and acknowledgement of the blessings God has given us.  It is the act of expressing gratitude to God for what He has done for us.

A few suggestions for Prayer:
First, find the best time for prayer.
Second, fight all interruptions.
Third, recognize the importance of your daily communing with God.
Let today be the start of a new adventure into the presence of God.

This lesson was prepared using The Practical Prayer Life by Dick Eastman.