Welcome to Word of Life Study Series- Foundations for Christian Living! The subject of prayer is so vital to the disciple of Jesus Christ that we have dedicated an entire episode to this area. I would venture to say that for most people, the concept of prayer will be different than the material presented in this episode. With that being said, I would encourage the listeners to have an open mind and pay close attention to the Scriptures that will be covered. The purpose here is broaden our scope concerning the toolbox of prayer; we have the rest of our lives to further discover the wonderful world of prayer.
1. What is Prayer?
Through Jesus Christ we can have fellowship, talk and commune with God the Father. In the very beginning when man was created, God would come and fellowship with Adam and Eve. All relationships have a foundation in communication. The God of the universe has honored us with the privilege to have precious conversation and communion with Him. I believe there is a personal and business side to prayer. We just talked about the personal side of communion and fellowship. The business side is working with God to establish His will upon the earth; preparing the way through prayer, empowering believers, and supporting the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
2. Claiming the Precious Promises
The Bible teaches that all the promises are ‘Yes’ and ‘Amen’ in Christ Jesus. Many of God’s promises are conditional in that we have to believe God and act in faith. Learning to receive from God is not rocket science, but it does take time to learn how the principles work. Often times, the only limitation is our faith- Mark 9:23, “Everything is possible for him who believes.”
3. Effective Prayer
Just as in sports there are different kinds of rules that govern the play of each sport, so it is with the different kinds or forms of prayer in the Bible. Just as chaos would ensue if I tried to play Basketball with Hockey rules or Golf with Football rules, so it is with prayer. For our prayers to be effective we need to follow the principles of God’s Word as it instructs us how to pray in relation to the different ‘kinds’ of prayers. When it comes to prayer we want to avoid the ‘Traditions of Men’ as it pertains to prayer. I’m not a big fan of doing anything in vain, especially when it comes to prayer.
4. The Prayer Toolbox
Now we turn our attention to another side of prayer that addresses getting things done or accomplishing things in this life through the power of prayer. We are going to be looking at nine different ‘Kinds’ of prayers in the Bible. So how effective would a carpenter be if he/she only had one tool in their toolbox? Let’s say that one tool is a hammer; which works great with nails. Unfortunately a hammer is not the right tool for sawing wood. As Christians, approaching prayer by one method or trying to lump all the principles of prayer into one kind of prayer, is also like using the hammer of prayer to address every need in life; as a result our prayer life will be limited and less effective.
5. Final Prayer Tips
Let’s wrap this episode by exploring together seven prayer tips or rules that govern the overall operation of prayer for the Christian. Even if we recognize the nine different kinds of prayers as mentioned in our prayer ‘toolbox’, we can’t ignore the wisdom and understanding required in their successful operation. This is where the difference is found between a novice and a journeyman- experience and skill in the trade of prayer.
Welcome to Word of Life Study Series- Foundations for Christian Living! The subject of prayer is so vital to the disciple of Jesus Christ that we have dedicated an entire episode to this area. I would venture to say that for most people, the concept of prayer will be different than the material presented in this episode. With that being said, I would encourage the listeners to have an open mind and pay close attention to the Scriptures that will be covered. The purpose here is broaden our scope concerning the toolbox of prayer; we have the rest of our lives to further discover the wonderful world of prayer.
1. What is Prayer?
Through Jesus Christ we can have fellowship, talk and commune with God the Father. In the very beginning when man was created, God would come and fellowship with Adam and Eve. All relationships have a foundation in communication. The God of the universe has honored us with the privilege to have precious conversation and communion with Him. I believe there is a personal and business side to prayer. We just talked about the personal side of communion and fellowship. The business side is working with God to establish His will upon the earth; preparing the way through prayer, empowering believers, and supporting the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
2. Claiming the Precious Promises
The Bible teaches that all the promises are ‘Yes’ and ‘Amen’ in Christ Jesus. Many of God’s promises are conditional in that we have to believe God and act in faith. Learning to receive from God is not rocket science, but it does take time to learn how the principles work. Often times, the only limitation is our faith- Mark 9:23, “Everything is possible for him who believes.”
3. Effective Prayer
Just as in sports there are different kinds of rules that govern the play of each sport, so it is with the different kinds or forms of prayer in the Bible. Just as chaos would ensue if I tried to play Basketball with Hockey rules or Golf with Football rules, so it is with prayer. For our prayers to be effective we need to follow the principles of God’s Word as it instructs us how to pray in relation to the different ‘kinds’ of prayers. When it comes to prayer we want to avoid the ‘Traditions of Men’ as it pertains to prayer. I’m not a big fan of doing anything in vain, especially when it comes to prayer.
4. The Prayer Toolbox
Now we turn our attention to another side of prayer that addresses getting things done or accomplishing things in this life through the power of prayer. We are going to be looking at nine different ‘Kinds’ of prayers in the Bible. So how effective would a carpenter be if he/she only had one tool in their toolbox? Let’s say that one tool is a hammer; which works great with nails. Unfortunately a hammer is not the right tool for sawing wood. As Christians, approaching prayer by one method or trying to lump all the principles of prayer into one kind of prayer, is also like using the hammer of prayer to address every need in life; as a result our prayer life will be limited and less effective.
5. Final Prayer Tips
Let’s wrap this episode by exploring together seven prayer tips or rules that govern the overall operation of prayer for the Christian. Even if we recognize the nine different kinds of prayers as mentioned in our prayer ‘toolbox’, we can’t ignore the wisdom and understanding required in their successful operation. This is where the difference is found between a novice and a journeyman- experience and skill in the trade of prayer.