Prayer

Recite the Lord's prayer

Do you think Jesus ever prayed that prayer?

How about "forgive us our sins"?

Do you pray before you eat a meal?

Why?
Do you pray before you have a snack?
Why not?
Not praying before eating is not a sin or requirement in the Bible
On the other hand, why not pray at that time and any other time you think of it?

The privilege of prayer

*Last person who shows up prays
Being able to communicate with God is a far bigger privilage than having a hotline to Justin Trudeau

Justin Trudeau may be a king, but Jesus is the King of kings

When we pray we can come boldly to God but we should not be disrespectfully

It is better to practice the principles and presence of prayer than master the mechanics of prayer

Short/long

Nehemiah 2:3-5

This is the shortest prayer I know of in Scripture

Nehemiah 9 has the longest prayer

The Bible has examples of prayer in many circumstances, at many times of the day, of various content
There is no one time or best formula for prayer because it is communication and relationship
If I told my dad that I would only talk to Him from 6-6:30 every Tuesday and Thursday our relationship would be strained

It is great if I set apart times to talk with him but I should also speak to Him whenever there is a need to or I have an opportunity to do so
My dad does not care so much how I communicate with him (phone, face-to-face, in a letter, by poem) but rather that we are communicating

Philippians 4:6

How does Christian prayer differ from other religion's prayer?

Prayer is not meditation

It is conversation
Therefore we should not just think about God, but talk to Him and ask Him things
There is a place for meditation but it is meditation on God's Word and is distinct from prayer

For unbelievers prayer is generally a mater of luck

For Christians prayer is a matter of faith

Christians pray to their Father

Matthew 6:8-9
God is the Father of believer, not unbelievers

Therefore an unbeliever can never pray a Christian prayer even if they say the Lord's prayer word for word

Christian prayer is never alone

As a minimum, prayer involves the whole trinity

Father (to the father)

This is who we pray to ("Our Father who art in Heaven…")
If prayer were a letter, we would address it to the Father
If prayer were an email we would send it to the Father's email address

Son (in the name of the Son)

What does it mean to pray in Jesus' name?
Where does the Bible say that we should pray in the name of Jesus?

John 14:13-14
John 15:16
John 16:23-24
Notice that prayer in Jesus' name is always in the context of asking the Father for something

There is actually a reason why praying in Jesus' name is only in the context of requests

1 John 5:14-15
1 John 3:22
Lets say we wanted to ask Queen Elizabeth for something so we decided to write her a letter

It would be important to add the signatures of others in order for her to take it more seriously
But if the name of one of her children (Charles) were on that list it would have a far greater weight

Likewise, when we make a request to the Father it is good to have others agree with you in that prayer so that their signatures are added to your request, but if you can get Jesus to sign your petition then you are bound to get what you have requested
However Jesus will not sign our petitions unless we are obeying Him and asking for something that He wants as well
Mark 10:35-40

These two men came to Jesus with a request that He was not prepared to sign

On the other hand Jesus tells us to ask God for things because there are many petitions He would love to sign if only you'd present them and many prayers He'd love to pass on if you would only ask Him. There are other prayers that He will tell you that He can't sign
In fact, there was even one occasion when He was tempted Himself to offer a petition and then realized that He couldn't sign it Himself when He prayed "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me." And so He offered another prayer "Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." and He signed His name to that one

Spirit (in the Spirit)

This is who we pray in
Romans 8:26-27
Ephesians 6:18

Praying in the Spirit is an added dimension to praying with all prayer and supplication

Jude 20
1 Corinthians 14:14-15
What is praying in the Spirit?

Praying in the Spirit could also be translated "with the Spirit", "by means of", "with the help of", "in connection to"
Whether it is tongues or the Holy Spirit's guiding or intercession, these are all forms of praying in the Spirit because the Holy Spirit is helping us speak to the Father

Demons may try to distract you or hinder answers to prayer

Daniel 10:12-13

Angels are often used by God to deliver responses to prayer and when a sinner repents and prays they are there rejoicing
It is often good to pray with others

Matthew 18:19-20
Hebrews 12:1

This is about our race in general which includes prayer

We usually pray privately but if you go through all the examples of people praying in the Bible, they are very often in groups
Benefits

We can learn from how others pray
Together there can be more faith

Even if I am not sure that God is listening to me I have hope that He is hearing the others who are joining me in prayer

Matthew 6:6

OUR Father
Give US this day OUR daily bread
And forgive US OUR debts, as WE also have forgiven OUR debtors
Etc.
This plural language shows that we are praying with the saints

When we become a Christian we cease to be strictly an individual and become a part of the body of Christ even when we are alone

Luke 9:18

Jesus' example

When did Jesus pray?

Luke 4:16

There is no verse that tells us that He had a customary prayer time/place
If He did we are just not clearly told about it

When He was in a big conflict or had to make a big decision

Luke 6:12-13

At the big events in His life

Luke 3:21
Luke 9:28-29
Before His death
On the cross

Where did He pray?

It seems that whenever He could He prayed privately
He also prayed outdoors a lot (perhaps partly because He didn't have His own house)

How to pray

Pray with humility

Remember the Pharisee who boasted in his pray unlike the tax collector who did not think highly of himself (Luke 18:10-14)

Talk and ask

Prayer is usually spoken out loud rather than thought

Luke 11:2
Matthew 26:39, 44
Acts 1:24
This is very helpful if you struggle with wandering thoughts
One of the reasons so many Christians find it difficult to pray out loud in a prayer meeting is because they don't pray out loud privately

Requests

Don't be afraid to ask for things
Jesus often asked for things when He prayed

John 17:5, 15, 17, 20, 24

Don't think that not asking God for things is a more spiritual/mature prayer life

You can use your hands when praying

Matthew 19:13
Acts 6:6
Acts 13:3
1 Timothy 2:8

Whatever other content you have in your prayer, make sure to pray for things we are specifically told to pray for

Psalm 122:6
Isaiah 56:7 (Mark 11:17)
Think about someone who rubs you the wrong way, or someone who annoys you or that you don't get along with

Matthew 5:44

Pray for people you don't enjoy meeting on the street or that annoying person at work or those gossiping about you

The bible has examples of praying for other congregations, the sick, unity, unbelievers, Jews, yourself, forgiveness, God's kingdom, His will, missions, the future, boldness (Mark 13:18), etc.
If you don't know what to pray for ask Him what to pray for

Is it OK to use prewritten prayers?

Acts 2:43
The Lord's prayer
On the other hand, nearly every prayer in the Bible was not a formal prayer

Don't only be selfish

Don't limit your prayers to your friends, family, church, and nation
*Share personal testimony on this
Would I be willing to have my prayer answered at a personal cost

Moses and Paul both prayed that God would save Israel even at the cost of their own salvations

Pray qualitatively, not quantitatively

Matthew 6:7
This can also be applied to how many are praying
The most that Jesus ever promised would get special attention was two or three

How to pray privately/secretly

In theory this should be very easy just as a couple in love find it easy to get together and talk
In practice many Christians find it difficult to spend hours with Jesus
Difficulties:

Our relationship with God is not physical (smell, hear, touch)

Hellen Keller had a harder time communicating and having relationships with others because she was missing the senses of sight and hearing

However, she was able to do it, it just took more work

Pretty much only the 12 Disciples used all their senses to talk to God and that only for three years

After Jesus was risen He started appearing to them and disappearing when they thought they were all alone
Between the resurrection and ascension Jesus was teaching the disciples to have a sense of His presence even when He wasn't physically present. He kept coming and going till they didn't know if He was coming or going so that when He left they knew He hadn't gone.
He had weaned them off of His physical body. And that is why, when He left, He said, "And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
"Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

When I first learned to play the piano I had to persevere through it before it became a delight (Fitness, university, etc.)

Keep praying and you will slowly grow to enjoy it

At times we don't feel like praying

We may feel less like praying on Monday morning than Sunday but we must ignore those feelings and exercise self-discipline

Hindrances to praying

*If I shoot two birds and one of them falls dead and the other is struggling to get away I would go for the alive one first

Therefore take heart when you face resistance in your prayer life

Tactics of spiritual forces and the flesh

Stop you from praying
Ruin your prayers through distractions or unbalanced prayers (only praying for forgiveness for instance)

Responses to prayer

Psalm 106:15
1 Samuel 12:13
Sometimes it is a very good thing when God answers with a 'no'
Be prepared to be used in the answer to your prayer

If you pray for Africa's salvation be prepared for God to send you to Africa
If you pray for a poor family be prepared to give to them

When you don't get an answer:

When we don't hear any reply and the conversation seems to be only one-sided we get discouraged and often give up
Job cried out to God for a long time before he got a reply
Many of the Psalms ask God to respond and listen to the Psalmist's prayers
Even when Jesus was physically available to talk to He did not always respond right away

Matthew 15:22-28
Jesus didn't answer for a while even though the woman was crying and had a great need
But because of her persistence He responded and granted her request
Matthew 27:11-14

Daniel 10:12-13

If you are not getting a reply keep on praying just like Daniel did
God hears you as soon as you pray, it is only the response that is sometimes delayed

5 causes of this problem

Breakdown of communication on the human side

We aren't right with God (sin)

Isaiah 1:15
Jeremiah 11:13-14
Proverbs 28:9
James 5:16
1 John 3:22
1 Peter 3:12

We aren't right with other people (sin)

Mark 11:25
Matthew 5:22-24

We aren't right when we aren't praying

When we are praying we are the same person as when we are not praying
If you are tired all the time then you will probably fall asleep when praying
If you are impatient in general then you will be impatient in prayer
If you find it hard to communicate with people you might find it hard to communicate with God
If you don't listen when you're not praying how will you listen when you are praying?

Breakdown of communication on the Heavenly side

There is a spiritual blockage as in the case of Daniel's prayer

Resist the devil and he will flee from you
Keep on praying like Daniel did till you get an answer

I am suspicious that sometimes God holds back answering right away so that we persist and become a stronger prayer and press in to Him

When a baby is learning to walk sometimes the parent step back a little ways so that the child has to walk forwards
Sometimes we are so rarely in prayer that when we finally need to pray God doesn't want to fix our situation right away so that we stay praying for a bit longer

Persist in prayer

Luke 11:5-10

Present-continuous

Luke 18:1
Colossians 4:2

When not to pray for someone

I personally don't pray alone with someone of the opposite gender if I'm not married to them

What do you think?

1 John 5:16

1 John 5:14-18 (for context)
Jeremiah 7:16
Matthew 12:31
Hebrews 6:4-6

Does prayer change God's mind?

Exodus 32:11-14
Prayer is partnering with God in what He already wants to do so when our prayers affect God's actions it is because He was hoping and waiting and knew that we would pray and that He would partner with us

This is something I am still refining in my thinking and would love to know other opinions on

Personal recommendations

Keep a prayer list

Do you ever think of all the things you aught to be doing (besides praying) soon after you begin praying?

Write those things down so that you can put them out of your mind without neglecting them
Another thing you can do is to start praying for those things

Write down your prayer requests so that you can look back and see how God has answered your prayers

The Bible does not mention closing eyes during prayer or folding your hands

If you find it relaxing/less distracting to close your eyes go for it
If you are tired and trying not to drift off then keep them open
If you pray in the morning and often drift off then pray standing or with

Ask the Holy Spirit to give you a passion for prayer so that you want to pray, a knowledge of what to pray for, and persistence to keep on asking till you get a reply
Don't glibly offer to pray for others

Offer to pray for people right on the spot

How to pray as a group

Everyone should be prepared to contribute
If you are scared praying in a large group try praying with only two or three

Ask the Holy Spirit for knowledge and discernment so that you know how to pray for a situation

Say there is a drought in Canada

Our instincts might be to pray for rain but Elisha prayed that God keep the rain away for three years

Jeremiah 11:13-14
I believe God prefers specific requests but if you don't know what to pray for, God's will is a great generality

Mark 11:24

*Example of praying for a neighbor's salvation

Expect to succeed

The Father wants you to succeed in prayer
The Son has made it possible to succeed in prayer
The Spirit helps us succeed in prayer