What is prayer? There are many explanations of what prayer is, and they come from many different faiths. It is a known fact that no matter what belief one has, whether it is Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, tribal, Muslim, or whatever culture or country one is in, there are groups of people who pray. Why do men and women pray? Even though, through many centuries, people are praying and looking toward a “god’ for solace and comfort, do we really understand and know what prayer is, especially in the Christian context?

The reason I am investigating this subject is because I find it very interesting that in all that Jesus’ disciples witnessed, there is only one thing they asked Him to teach them, and that was how to pray, and they followed Him closely for 3 years.

Luke 11:1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray as John also taught his disciples.” They didn’t ask, “How do we calm storms,” or “How do we feed multitudes,” for example.

They had witnessed over the years that Jesus prayed more than anything else. They saw Him praying every morning when He would spend hours with God, His Father. It was after these hours spent in prayer that Jesus then knew exactly where God the Father wanted Him to be that day, and also who and how to minister to the people He would meet along the way.

If prayer is such an important principle for a Christian to follow, why is it that our praise and worship sessions, our church services, and fellowship meetings are generally well attended, but when it comes to a prayer meeting, there is just a handful of people? Is it because we don’t really know what prayer is? Or is it because we don’t know how or what to pray? Do we, like the disciples, need to learn how to pray?

Martin Luther said, “More work is done by prayer than work itself”. Perhaps if we spent more time investigating prayer and in the presence of our God, we would see more work being done for God than we are seeing now.

When we accept God as our Saviour and we receive eternal life, God gives us Himself (John 17:3). God’s Holy Spirit lives in us and reveals truth. By this, He is leading us into a relationship with a person. This Person is our life. This Person is Jesus, who is Truth, and He is desiring a deep and continual relationship with us, and He will lead us to the Father, who is all-wise and will guide every step we take if we give Him the opportunity to do that.

Prayer is a two-way fellowship and communication with a living, loving God. We speak to God, and He speaks to us. It is NOT a one-way conversation. Prayer includes listening. In fact, what God says to us in prayer is far more important than what we have to say. God knows what we are going to say, but we don’t know what God is thinking. Prayer is not just a religious activity; it is about relationship. The main purpose is for us to discover what is on God’s heart and then to align our thinking to God’s, and we will witness Him at work.

We should never be too busy to pray because prayer makes our lives more focused, efficient, and peaceful. Our hours spent in prayer with God make our minutes spent in ministry or with people effective. Time spent in prayer enables one to think more clearly and wisely. Prayer makes us more discerning and more effective in our everyday activities. When we spend time with God in prayer, God reveals what He wants to do next, and we have the privilege of observing Him at work. We are also often privileged to be the instruments through which God can minister to His people. We also discover that when we spend time in prayer, God uses us to change circumstances as we come into union with God’s way of thinking. If Jesus said, “Most assuredly I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees His Father do; for whatever He does, the Son does in like manner (John 5:19). How much more do we not need to be in close contact with our God?

Jesus seemed to pray alone, and this is probably because He wanted us to understand that prayer is personal and private between oneself and a loving Father who wanted to have some “alone” time with each of His children. The fact that the disciples said, “Lord, teach us to pray”, implies that prayer is not something we can do without some guidance and instruction. Prayer is not just talking to God. Through instruction and by studying The Word of God, we learn how we are meant to function in the body of Christ and how we are to pray.

There is a way we are to pray, and it has to be learned. The Lord’s Prayer in Luke 11:2-4 is a good pattern to follow.

1. Firstly, we don’t bring ourselves to God. We are to bring other people’s concerns. We start praying by thinking of others, as it is selfishness if we put ourselves first.
2. We address God as ‘Father’. He is our source. He is the source of our help and guidance and will provide for whatever the need may be.
3. We acknowledge that God is in heaven, and we are seeking help from outside our earthly realm, and we have Jesus and the Holy Spirit as our intermediaries to help fulfill God’s plans here on earth.
4. We revere and worship God. We make God’s name holy by honouring Him and all His attributes, such as grace and love, integrity and faithfulness, etc. We magnify Him.
5. We ask for God’s Kingdom to come. What does God want to do here on earth? What does He want to accomplish here on earth? This is when we pray for other people and ask God to meet whatever needs there are.
6. We can then ask for His provision for whatever our needs are, whether it be for provision or protection for ourselves or others.
7. Having good relationships here on earth is one of the key factors to getting our prayers answered. Check to see if there are any relationships that need to be worked on. Is there anybody you need to forgive or make right with? Forgiveness is most important. We cannot expect God to do business with us if we have a bitter heart.
8. Ask God to guide you into making wise and Godly choices and decisions. Pray for God to warn you about temptations and weaknesses that may lead you into trouble.
9. Finally, after you have prayed, worship God the Father again and thank Him in advance for what He is doing and is going to do. Give Him all the glory.

The result of trusting in God and following His directions and wisdom brings us into a more intimate and closer relationship with Him. We start to experience His love in a way that only He can reveal to us. It becomes more exciting to know and do the will of God and witness Him working all around us. It is so exciting to see God in action around us, especially as we witness Him at work in the areas we have been praying and bringing to Him.

God bless you as you pray more diligently and faithfully every day.

— Mabyn Campbell

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Experiencing God by Henry & Richard Blackaby

Prayer by dr Myles Munroe
The Bible New king James Version