Why pray? - (top)

2/3rds of people say that they pray to God whether or not they have anything to do with organised religion or go to church.

For those of us who believe in Jesus Christ, prayer is our direct line with heaven. Prayer allows us to talk directly with God!

There is only one supreme Creator and sovereign God. Human beings are designed to live in close relationship with Him but all of us make wrong choices and commit sins that are a barrier to this. However, in God's amazing love, mercy and forgiveness he has provided the one way we can be saved from the consequences of being cut off from Him - through the life, death and resurrection of His only Son, Jesus Christ.

He is the only God who can and has done this. His enemy, Satan, sends many false gods to try to deceive us about this but we must not allow anything or anyone to take priority over having a life-giving relationship with the only true and living God.

Jesus tells us that once we choose to accept God's love and forgiveness and become his follower then prayer is the key to getting to know the heart of God. It is His gift to enable us to develop a real and personal relationship with Him.

We can pray knowing that will find intimacy with God through communicating with Him in prayer.

Why pray? | What should you pray about? | How do you pray? | How do you hear what God is saying? | But what about unanswered prayers? | The first step

What should you pray about? - (top)

The Bible teaches us to pray about everything - "pray without ceasing" and "in everything give thanks to the Lord."!

We can go to God in faith, knowing that He hears and answers all our prayers (1 John 5:14). We can also be confident that God knows and wants what is best for us (Matthew 7: 7-11)

The Bible gives many examples of what we can do in prayer:

> Acknowledge that He is God, and that we want to accept His gracious gift of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour (Genesis 17:1, Romans 6:16-18)

> Confess our sins and accept God's forgiveness (Romans 3:23-26)

> Worship God (Psalm 95:6-7)

> Ask that His will be done in our lives, that His Holy Spirit will guide us, that we be filled with the fullness of all God has for us and grow in spiritual understanding and wisdom (Proverbs 2:6-8, 3:5)

> Give thanks for all the ways He blesses us (Philippians 4:6)

> Gain strength for when we are ill, lonely, going through trials ourselves or when helping others in need (James 5:14-16, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Why pray? | What should you pray about? | How do you pray? | How do you hear what God is saying? | But what about unanswered prayers? | The first step

How do you pray? - (top)

Many people worry that prayer seems complicated, but it is simply talking to God and that can become like talking to your best friend - someone you know loves you unconditionally!

So the Bible tells us that we can pray boldly:

The key is our attitude - that with sincerity, honour and humility we truly want to speak and listen to the Almighty God.

> Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and make you new in Him!

> Thank Him, for dying on the cross for you

> Thank Him for all his blessings - there is so much that we can take for granted even if in some parts of our lives things are tough.

> Tell Him your needs!

> Have confidence and belief that God will respond:

Why pray? | What should you pray about? | How do you pray? | How do you hear what God is saying? | But what about unanswered prayers? | The first step

How do you hear what God is saying? - (top)

Many people long to hear God speaking but don't think it ever happens.

Well, the Bible makes clear that God is speaking all the time because he wants us to hear from him. The Bible also says that listening to him is as natural as speaking with a best friend! God doesn't speak through the stars, mediums, fortune-tellers, crystals, tarot cards or ghosts. God doesn't speak only on special occasions or if we chant special incantations. God speaks to us in the natural moments of life.

And even better God is with us right now in the person of the Holy Spirit to make it possible! Shortly before He was crucified, Jesus met with His disciples to reassure them of what would happen after He was gone. He promised them a helper:

The Holy Spirit is God inside us speaking!

So we….

> First, be sure we are ready to listen - and that we want to hear God's voice for the right reasons. God does not perform for anyone - so our motives matter:

God will speak if we truly want to know what he has to say - if we truly intend taking some notice.

> Second, we start a conversation. All relationships are built through speaking and then listening. That's what we do in our prayer relationship with God - we start sharing with Him about the things on our heart and then we stop to listen……and we begin to get inspirational thoughts….we remember things that we have read in the Bible or that wise friends have said to us….we get overwhelming feelings or convictions….a distinct word or phrase comes into our mind…..and just sometimes, some people will also hear an audible voice.

> Then we allow the conversation to develop. A crucial way in which we hear and confirm what God is saying is through prayerfully reading the Bible:

Every word in the Bible has been inspired by God. The evidence of history, archaeology, fulfilled prophecy and personal testimony over thousands of years is overwhelming that the Bible is God's Word. If you want to hear God's voice then pray and start reading the Bible.

Crucially, we know that God will never tell us to do or believe anything that is not the same as what the Bible teaches.

Why pray? | What should you pray about? | How do you pray? | How do you hear what God is saying? | But what about unanswered prayers? | The first step

But what about unanswered prayers? - (top)

Many people feel that their prayers go unanswered - this is especially difficult when the pleas are for healing or protection from harm. Some claim that this proves that God doesn't exist or that he ignores some prayers but Christians know that God would not urge us to pray and then ignore them.

So first we have to ask if there are barriers to us hearing what God is saying.

The Bible says that like any good parent God responds to our attitude when we pray - and so childish actions or motives affect a prayer's desired results. The Bible lists a number of attitudes or actions that will stop us hearing God: Refusing to forgive (Mark 11:24-25), selfishness (Proverbs 21:13), holding on to doubt (Matthew 21: 21-22), greed (James 4:2-3), pride (2 Chronicles 7:14-15), and stubbornness (Zechariah 7:11-13).

Second, we have to be sure that we aren't just ignoring God's response because we don't like what he is saying.

Prayer is not a casual "back-up insurance" to hopefully guarantee a life free from pain and struggles. Prayer is to know the heart of God and his will for our lives. It is about actively recognising him as the source of all power and authority in our lives. It is about listening to and obeying his answers. We may be just asking for the wrong things and God is not responding positively for our own good!

Third, we have to be ready to be persistent in our prayer.

Good parents don't immediately give in to every good request from their children. Sometimes they wait to be sure that the child's desire is genuine or that they truly understand the implications of what they are asking. The Bible says that this is also true of God (Matthew 7: 7-11).

Fourth, we may need to be ready for the unexpected!

Why pray? | What should you pray about? | How do you pray? | How do you hear what God is saying? | But what about unanswered prayers? | The first step

First Step - (top)

God invites you to have a new and wonderful relationship with him. He loves you perfectly. Jesus died on the Cross to set you free from sin - to remove all the barriers. If you want you can accept his gift of new life - you can let him lead you on to become the person you are meant to be.

I know that I need to take the first step to let Jesus into my life