Prayer: Can You Hear Me Now?Matt 6:5-13 Prayer is simply communicating with God. It is both talking to Him and listening to Him. Unlike the common question asked in conversation on cell phones, "Can you hear me now?," God always hears us, and He always responds to our prayers. The problem most Christians run into is that they have a certain idea of how and when God should answer their prayers. With God, the signal is always full; all bars are present at all times. Have you ever started to pray and feel like your prayers fall to the ground before they even hit the ceiling? Have you ever wondered how to pray or what to pray about? Have you ever seen or heard someone pray and you wondered if they even knew the definition of the words they were using, or if they were really talking to God? Jesus addressed all of these issues in his teaching on prayer in Matthew 6. Jesus is giving instruction on how to live in a relationship with God under the new covenant, which is the new way of doing things since Jesus came to the earth and the new way of doing things after his death and resurrection. The key point to understand is that whether it was the Old or New covenant, God has always desired the heart of His people. God does not desire long or fancy prayers. Lip service does not please Him. The Pharisees, who followed the Old Covenant precisely, were concerned with what other people would think of them. They wanted to make themselves look good and holy. They seemed to think that somehow a lengthy prayer with large words earned them more merit. Jesus says that prayer should be done out of a right heart. It is between the individual praying and God. It is not a matter of how long you can pray, or what words you may use, but a matter of pouring your heart out to God. God knows all things. He already knows what you are going to think before you think it. Still, just like a husband and wife, boy friend and girl friend, or best friends, God still desires you to communicate with Him. When you pray talk with God like He is your best friend. Literally use the same language, tone, and honesty. 1 Thessalonians says to pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances. This honest, heart felt prayer should be a daily, constant communication with God. To pray continually means to always have your mind on God and in connection with Him. Be always in an attitude of prayer, communion with God. In Matthew 6:9-13, Jesus gives his followers a model for how they should pray. “Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name.” We address our prayers to God and only God. Start with glorifying God. Worship Him for his love, faithfulness, and His gift of salvation in His son Jesus. Hallowed would be like saying, “Holy and respected be your name.” “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” This is a major principle we must apply to all of our prayers, whether for our needs or desires, or for someone else’s needs or desires, or for an event, or for anything we pray for; we must pray through the scope of God’s will. It is not just what we want or think we need, but what God desires for us. This removes our expectations and ideas of how and when God will answer prayer. Feel free to express your desires to God, but be careful to always express your desire for His will not yours. God will surely answer and respond to our prayers, in His time and His own way. He is sovereign and He knows best. “Give us today our daily bread.” Understand that God will meet all of your needs if you are striving to be obedient to his word. It is important to recognize in your prayer that God is the one who provides for your needs and ask Him to continue to do so. “Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.” We should have a pure heart and always seek forgiveness for our disobedience to God. We should seek to keep a pure heart towards others who have wronged us as well. It is important to note that Jesus includes others in this model for prayer. This would be a great point in your prayer to intercede for others. Intercede is to stand in the gap, to pray on behalf of someone else. Intercede for salvation for unsaved friends, pray for the needs of others. “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Pray for deliverance from struggles with sin or sickness for yourself and for others. Pray that when Satan tries to tempt you, God will protect you so you can live a holy, pleasing life of obedience. Pray that each day God will help you become more like him, to walk in holiness, purity, and the power of the Holy Spirit, bearing much fruit. This passage of scripture is a great prayer to pray - word for word. It is also much more than this. It is a model for how we should pray. Apply the principles found in this passage to every aspect of your prayer. Pray in faith and with passion and believe that God will answer in His time according to His will. Remember, “quality not quantity.” It is great to pray for a long period of time, but the most beneficial way to pray is on a daily basis. Pray every day even if it is only for 5 minutes. (If you pray for each part of the model for prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 for 1 minute, you would be praying for 5 minutes…this is just a starting point) Steps for Prayer from Matthew 6:9-13
Ideas for Prayer
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