A Christian's question about prayer....?

Question

Please only answer this is you are a serious Christian..."Christ Follower"

I'm a Christian and have been so for many years. Lately I've been struggeling with my prayer life. Some people say you should pray as though you know God is going to do whatever it is you are asking...praying with faith...like....God, thank you for the healing I know you are going to bring to my mother. ...instead of asking...Please heal my mother. I'm just confused about this. They say that it takes the faith of a mustard seed to move a mountain...is this how we should pray too? I hope my question makes sense.

Answer 1

Prayer is the way we discern God's will ... not the way we convince God to do our bidding.

The only ones who are assured of God answering their specific prayer requests are those who are presently and actively engaged in doing God's work, and who need those blessings to further God's plan.

The best example of folks like that is the apostles. They needed miracles to accomplish their great and holy work, and they received them. And right away, too!

Most of us don't fall into that category.

Ultimately, it's the Holy Spirit who teaches us how, and also for what, to pray ... and the first step in discerning the will of God is make sure we're free from sin, and in a state of grace ... because grace IS the presence of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us.

When we listen to the Spirit, discern, and properly respond, our prayers are sure to be answered, and usually in quite a prompt, and positive manner.

But it takes practice.

St. Paul is the one who admonished us to pray without ceasing, and he had no problem doing all sorts of healings and other miraculous things for others, in God's name, but he never received healing from God for his own personal eye problems.

Was it due to God's will, some flaw in St. Paul's personal character, or something else?

Maybe he just needed a constant reminder of the day Jesus knocked him off his high horse, showed him the error of his ways, and revealed the true purpose of his life.

Only God knows.

So in the mean time, grace, listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, discerning God's will, making our best effort to avoid sin and stay in his will, praying with confidence, and praying incessantly, is all we have to go on.

But we have God's word that it will be sufficient, and isn't that what FAITH is all about?

Answer 2

There are several things about prayer which you must know.

1) Prayer is often mistaken as sort of a "slot machine". You'll pray and simply hope for the best. If not, oh well. God hears every single prayer we make but sometimes the answer is no.

2) Be patient. God works in ways unbeknown to me and you. He'll tend to answer prayer in a way you'll least expect it.

3) Mother Teresa herself, on several occasions, admitted that her prayers seemed to, "reach up to the heavens and fall back down to her." (paraphrase).

4) The Lord won't heal everyone. Some he want's to suffer in this life so they can appreciate the next even more. Moreover, when people are at the weakest God is at His strongest in them. God will use what seems like evil (bad things happening to good people) to bring out the ultimate good within us. In this we must submit completely to His will for us to "bear our cross" and realize that He knows what He is doing.

5) Prayer is a two way conversation. You must take the time to hear His, "still small voice". Remember the words, "Be still and know that I am God."

6) God will test your faith. He'll take away a little bit of His divine grace and see how you'll react. This produces a truthful honesty on your part. Are you going to give up praying because it doesn't seem to work? Or are you going to pray even more until the Lord relieves you?

7) I end it on a quote I heard not too long ago. It says, "We don't pray to change Gods mind. We pray for God to change OUR mind." Remember, HIS will comes first.

Answer 3

I think that your question makes perfect sense. I think that sincere prayer is what God asks. Too many people try to label prayer and define what the perfect prayer is. For example: You say to God thanks for the healing you're going to give my mother, then she isn't healed and they say--well you didn't pray hard enough. Or please heal my mother--then she gets better--your prayers were answered or vice versa. There are always people who want to inflict their definitions on you, but you need to do what feels right to you.

I think that we should pray to God with a sincere heart, speaking to him like a parent or good friend. I don't think there's anything wrong at all with asking God for help, but just like any other friend, sometimes he may not be able to give us the help we think is best for us. It's what's in your heart that counts, but in the end sometimes things happen the way we don't want, but it's not because we did anything wrong.

Finally I don't believe God would want you to feel so much anxiety about whether you are praying correctly. He would want your prayers to bring you peace. God loves you very much and wants you to be happy. If you pray with a sincere heart then you are praying correctly.

Answer 4

You have very eager statement, and I desire all have that too, however sadly, so much persons do not appear to have it. I grew up with Buddhist and Catholic affects, and so I've noticeable such a lot of of the precise equal rituals from the all sides. For instance, use of go, rosaries in prayers, monasteries, Celibate Monks and clergymen and nuns, repeating prayers time and again, dressed in ropes and hats and the record is going on and on, even the doctrines like heaven and hell fireplace and trinity and and so on. The rationale is each religions are managed by way of the equal individual and the opposite religions too adding witchcraft managed by way of the equal one. And he's Satan the satan. There is just one real faith on this global and they do not have these kind of rituals. If you get to understand them you'll be able to see they're unique. And they do get persecuted by way of all different religions at this gift time, but it surely would possibly not be too lengthy earlier than God destroys all fake religions. If you do care to uncover out the actual faith the high-quality factor to do is ask God your self for the course and be competent to comply with and watch for his course. If God sees your truthfulness for your center, he's going to direct you to the actual faith. And while you meet them you'll be able to see they've the reality in case your center is eager for the reality. And you're going to see they do have the real love in them.

Answer 5

You are praying right, also when you are asking the Lord to do something, you are suppose to say "in Jesus name" at the end, for Jesus says in John 14:14 "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it" then go to Acts 3:1 and read. But just ask God to heal... or provide..or whatever it is, in Jesus' name, then you thank Him for doing it and thank Him for favoring you and pray as if He already has done it. He has said for us to "call those things that be not as though they were" Romans 4:17, but you may want to start at Romans 4:13-19, it's awesome. You are to speak the Words of God in and on your life and all you pray for. Just say scripture dealing with whatever you need and while praying speak that scripture back to God, I say " Lord you have said that whatever I ask, I receive because I keep your commandments and do those things that are pleasing in your sight" That's 1 John 3:22, and I ask for whatever it is I need the Lord to show up in my life. He is faithful, let me tell you! but yeah, go thru the bible and write down scripture that appeal to you and things that you will apply to your life and post them around the house or in the car and you can just say it thruout and thank God for His word and His promises. That's what works for me and do I have some testimonies. You must also pray with faith and never cease in praying, you can pray and if nothing, pray about it again, until you see something. And the devil will get in your mind and tell you that He ain't gonna answer your prayers or anything negative against God, you have to bind satanic thoughts and tell God to rebuke satan, in Jesus' name. Yes, you have to pray boldy also. So I hope and pray that this helps and with time you will get it, pray for strength and faithfullness in your prayer life and God will see you thru. God bless you.

Answer 6

Prayer is a wonderful communication with God. In which you can request anything. Look to the NT and prayer. Also look how Jesus taught others to pray. The Lord's prayer can be an outline to prayer. Let me show you incase this is unclear.

Luke 11
Jesus' Teaching on Prayer
1One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
2He said to them, "When you pray, say:
" 'Father,[a]
hallowed be your name, (Take a moment to Praise God)
your kingdom come.[b] (Pray for a Godly nation and Jesus return)
3Give us each day our daily bread. (Pray or acknowledge God gives us what we need and it all comes from Him)
4Forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.[c]
And lead us not into temptation (Obvious)

I hope this helps you. I sense your confusion and would say more but I fear it would muddle things more. Suffice it to say pray to God and have faith he will do what you ask or have good reason not to. (my kids always ask for candy and if I always gave them that they would be obese and diabetic before they turned 10!)

Answer 7

Forgive me for not being a Christian, but I do know a bit about prayer, and I don't intend on insulting your faith at all. As you pray to God, I'll use that name for Deity.

When petitioning God, many preachers tell one to pray as if their prayer had already been answered, that faith will work miracles, and if they have enough, their prayer will necessarily be answered. The point is that this isn't always true.

One could have great faith, and pray for one who is ill to live. None of us though, can live forever; "It is appointed for all to die once (paraphrased)". With that said, it is impossilbe to believe that we can always pray for someone to live, and to always have that answered; each of us HAS to die.

Some say that we should pray instead for God's will to be done. That's a much more sober attitude. If it's God's will to keep someone alive, then that person will live. Even better is to pray to know God's will and to pray for that.

I remember one time when a person where I worked fell into a tank full of nearly boiling water. That person suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns over 100% of his body. I recall praying, and KNOWING with CERTAINTY that he would not only live, but recover. I knew that I was praying for God's will. That man did recover. He has scars, but none that are visible when he is wearing long pants and long-sleeved shirt. He suffered greatly, but every day startled and amazed his doctors.

To pray with YOUR intentions in the forefront and pressing God to deliver based on YOUR faith rather than HIS will is more akin to magic than Biblical Christianity. It's important to remember who is God and who is man.

Maybe before praying for what you want, it might be wiser to pray to understand what God wants. When you know that, maybe your own prayers will make more sense. I'm fairly certain that prayer is more about understanding God than making God understand us.

Answer 8

I dont think we are supposed to tell God to do what we are praying about. He already knows what is in our hearts, but he is waiting for us to come to him for his help. Our faith teaches us that anything is possible with the Lord. I think that is what we have to reflect on and truly believe with all of our being. This is what makes prayer so powerful.

Answer 9

You put your faith in God, you don't put faith in your faith.
God is not a candy machine where you insert your prayer and get what you want. Of course you can, and should, ask God to heal your mother. This is a good thing to do. But at the same time you have to surrender the situation to Him and accept whatever has befallen her. Compassion means "to suffer with", which it seems you are doing this good thing.

Matt. 16:24; Mark 8:34 - Jesus said, "if any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Jesus wants us to empty ourselves so that God can fill us. When we suffer, we can choose to seek consolation in God and become closer to Jesus.

Your mother has an opportunity to draw closer to Jesus in her suffering, and that would also be a good thing to pray for.

Phil. 1:29 - for the sake of Christ we are not only to believe in Him but also to suffer for His sake. Growing in holiness requires more than having faith in God and accepting Jesus as personal Lord and Savior. We must also willfully embrace the suffering that befalls us as part of God's plan. Thus, Christ does not want our faith alone, but our faith in action which includes faith in suffering.

Col. 1:24 - Paul rejoices in his sufferings and completes what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of His body. Is there something lacking in Christ's sufferings? Of course not. But because Jesus loves us so much, He allows us to participate in His redemptive suffering by leaving room in His mystical body for our own suffering. Our suffering, united with our Lord's suffering, furthers the work of His redemption.

Sometimes God heals, and sometimes He doesn't, but if He doesn't, it doesn't mean your faith is weak.

Answer 10

Personally, I think you should pray to God in the way you feel comfortable. Prayer is a personal thing, would you let some one else tell you how to talk to your husband or boyfriend. My priest prays in tongues, and he doesn't expect everyone else to. So just pray to God the way you feel comfortable.