It’s funny that the reason why some people pray and others have quit praying is actually the same. Some people, in fact most people pray because they want something from God. While others didn’t get what they wanted from God so they stopped praying. But as believers praying is much more than asking for things and then thanking God for the things you get. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with bringing your requests to God, but if that is all praying is about then you’ve missed the most important parts of prayer.

 

 

Prayer is about building a relationship with your heavenly Father.

“This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name…

 – Jesus (Matthew 6:9 NIV)

 

Most of the time when we pray we treat God more like a genie in a bottle rather than our Heavenly Father. The name “Father” speaks of a loving relationship based on authority, respect and trust.

Prayer is about discovering God’s will for your life.

 

…your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…
 – Jesus (Matthew 6:10 NIV)

 

The purpose of prayer is to surrender our will to our Heavenly Father, it’s not to impose our will on Him.

 

Prayer is about declaring your dependence on God.

…Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

 – Jesus (Matthew 6:11-13 NIV)

 

When we pray what we’re doing is acknowledging our dependence on God for provision, forgiveness and protection. A person who doesn’t pray is a person who depends more on themselves then they do on God.

 

Provision, recognizes that what we want, need and have all comes from God.

 

Forgiveness recognizes that we can never be good enough to relate to God without His pardon.

 

Protection recognizes that our Heavenly Father watches over us and has saved us from more accidents and danger than we will ever know.

 

It’s Simple, praying is much more than asking and thanking God. It’s about building a relationship with our Heavenly Father, it’s about discovering His perfect will for our lives and it’s about recognizing how much we depend on Him.

 

Heavenly Father, thank you for granting me unlimited access to you through prayer. It’s such a special privilege that I treasure with all my heart. I never want to make my prayer time about getting the things I want. I’d much rather make it about drawing closer to you and discovering how great and awesome you are.

 

Check out our Dear Heavenly Father prayer blog @ cdaprays.com

Foundations of Prayer