How am I praying? - Pastor Frank Dana

☀️ Where to Start

In this message from July 19, 2026 Pastor Frank takes us through how to pray. Pulling from Matthew 6:5-9, Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6-7, and Matthew 6:10 he shares revelations on the model prayer that is taught by Jesus. 

• Start your day in the secret place with Him, even if only for a few minutes. 
• Prayer is about taking our minds off our needs and recentering ourselves on Him. 
• Do you see God as your Father?
• God chose you, not the other way around.
• Slow down and take the time to see God as holy and set apart before you ask for anything. 
• Invite God and pray big. 

Full Service: https://youtu.be/SNp_hCZ4b6Y?si=40My7xr6RUNaonVG

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Amen. Amen. Amen. Well, I'm gonna try to push a little bit today. I know we had a lot of things to do. I just want to share this with you out of the out of the come and see moment. I I think it'll it'll line up exactly where we're at today as you look at the verses we have. Many of you already know what where that's going and and what you'll see there. And um, and again, the the question I I fought with this this morning. My wife came in, she she says, uh, are you ready? I said, No. And I said, Um I'm still trying to figure this one out. So um so I'm again, I'm I'm hoping that um he is going to unveil this in a very precious way to you today, and um you'll as you see this. So I'm I'm banking on him, not on me. Hallelujah. So listen now, it says, here's the title. Running off at the mouth. Running off at the mouth. That's not the title of my message. That's the title of the coming see. I see y'all looking there. You're looking up there and you're saying, well, that ain't lining up. Yeah. So it says, uh, it says, when you talk to the boss now, don't run your mouth off like an auctioneer who don't know how to when to say so. Just repeating the same words over and over and over again. Don't get your prayers answered. Okay? So repeating over and over again just won't get them answered, okay? He goes on, it says now in verse 7 through 13, we read the famous Lord's Prayer. Many people learn it's a nighttime prayer as kids. But before Jesus shows up, how to pray, he tells us how not to pray. Hmm. He tells us not to go running off at our mouth, using fancy words, repeating the same things over and over, won't get you anywhere. So, how does he tell us to pray? Good question. Our boss who owns the heavenly pastures in the sky. May your name be revered above all others. Know who you're talking to. I mean, you really need to understand who you're talking to. I hope your pastures come soon. And I hope we'll all do what you want us to do here. Just like things are done up there on your spread. Our goal is and always should be oneness with God. Jesus tells us to pray for what God wants. Uh-oh. Wait a minute now. Bringing us totally everything we need to get us by. God wants to provide for us his kids. Well, maybe he doesn't. Just want to provide. He wants you to know that he is the provision. And look the other way when we fail you. Help us also to look the other way when our partners fail us.

SPEAKER_00 3:19

Hmm.

SPEAKER_01 3:21

Why should we forgive others? Listen, every single time you break God's law, or in other words, every single sin, it is a slap in God's face. Yet He forgives time and again. All that means, all the mean things ever done against you will never get close to the amount of meaningless you've had against God. And don't let us fall into gopher holes that will kill us, but keep us safe and sound from evil. If the only thing God ever, and I mean ever, did for you was forgive you of your sins, it would be all you need. If he never gave you wisdom or the gifts of his spirit, we'd still have everything. But the fact that he does all these things in addition to forgiving us is really incomprehensible. Here's our call. So it is easy or hard for you to forgive. Question is, is it easy or hard for you to forgive? If you've been forgiven for everything, maybe it's time for you to forgive that one person for that one thing. Amen. Amen. Come and see. All right. Okay. So as you see the question today, how am I praying? How am I praying? Some of you saying, well, I'm not praying at all. Um of you saying, I don't know, I'm just praying. I'm just asking for stuff. I'm just asking. God said, ask, ask, ask, ask, ask. But I want us to look at it a little different today because I'm not even going to go into the part about that. Because I think so many times we get our we get things twisted around. We get things from, we bring the bottom to the top and the top to the bottom. And uh and I think that's what Jesus is trying to share here with us today, because we're going to find out one of the greatest prayers of all time, one who spent lots and lots of time in prayer, he's going to teach us that today. That's what Jesus has come to do. And he, this is the thing that they've asked, you know, will you teach us how to pray? And that's the only thing that the disciples ever asked him to do that that we find out in the Word is teach us to pray. And because they seen how important it was, they seen what it done, they seen the changes it made, not only in him, but in others whenever he would literally pray for others. They would see things happen. They'd see the dead rise. They'd see uh people healed, they'd see eyes, they'd see all kinds of things happen, and they knew that it had to come from a different power, it had to come from something different than they'd ever seen and ever messed with before. So let's go and look and see what he has to say uh this morning. I don't want to spend too much time there. I want to just uh kind of concentrate on the word. So here it goes, and um, as we go to Matthew 6 and verse 5. And Jesus says, now, and when you pray, so other words, what is he telling us? First of all, you must pray. Okay? That's the first of all. So when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. All right? For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. As surely I say to you, they have their reward. So, other words, other words, what he's trying to tell you is don't be one of them that that that you're quick to stand so everybody can hear you praying, even though it may not be there, you're gonna get your reward right there. But here's what he says in this. He said, But you, but when you pray, now this is said, when you pray, other words, whenever you come to a place where you decide that you're gonna come to God, you're gonna, you're gonna uh expand yourself, you're gonna describe, you're gonna request, you're gonna come to an entreaty, you're gonna have a direction toward God. That's what prayer looks like. So bringing God into the midst of it, you're gonna say, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your father who is in the secret place, and your father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Okay, there's the number one thing to do. When was the last time you went in somewhere and closed the door behind you and prayed to the Father in heaven? Don't answer. That's the first thing he tells us to do. He's not telling us that's the only way to do it, he's just telling us that's the first thing that you need to do with your mindset, with your mind, whenever you're trying to worship a God, you're trying to worship the God, you're trying to do it what he says. Jesus says, this is what you first must do. If you've never watched the war room, I encourage you to watch that. If you don't think God can't change some things, watch that. It'll change your heart. She turned a closet into a war room for prayer. She began to pray and put put um the prayers on the on paper on the wall so she could see them, praying for them, and then seeing them answered. And I know that's that goes against what we think today because why? Because we're too much of a fast paced, we don't have time to do that anymore. We don't have time to stop for a moment, we don't have time to walk into a room and shut the door. I gotta get to the I gotta get to work, I gotta get, I gotta get. Traffic's so crazy now, I gotta leave this much earlier. I gotta go, I gotta go, I gotta go, I'll just have to do it on the car, I'll have to do it in the car while I'm on the way. It'll just have to work there. I'll shut the door when I get in the car, I'll make sure I don't leave the door open, I'll shut the door when I get in and go on. And I know that, I mean, I know that you can pray there, but that's not what Jesus is saying. Jesus said, here's what you gotta do first, then you can do that. And I know that's not what we want to hear. I don't want to do that. Well, then how much love do you have for God? He didn't say, he didn't say now, go in there for an hour. He didn't say go in there for he said go, he just said, go in there, go in there, shut the door behind you, get in that place, and if you spend two minutes in prayer, hallelujah. Because all I'm gonna ask you to do is this first part we're gonna look at. And leave out of there. And then go on your day and pray without ceasing as as you read, Paul shares. But he wants us to come to that very place first. Because why? Because he knows how precious that is. Because there's things in your life that only God can answer them, and you need to go in that very place, it's this very secret place that you only you and God are and share with that, and then you watch God unveil it in the midst of it. But here's the problem. We want to pray out loud, we want to pray where others can hear, hoping that God will answer because why not? Because then it makes us look like we've done something. And it ain't about us. Get it off your mind, it ain't about us. The Bible's not about you, it's about God and about his will for your life. But it ain't about you. Get that out of your mind. The enemy wants you to think it's all about you. What I just shared with you ain't about you, it's about him. Get right with him, getting your life right with him, put making him a priority in your life. Then he goes on and says, and when you pray, now, do not use vain repetition as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. So let me share this with you. If you start praying and you just come up with words after words after words, be careful. Because he says right there, you're stepping into the ways of the heathen. They're hoping, hoping something will happen. Even though they don't even know who they're praying to or whatever, they're just praying and and and asking. Because I've heard it over and over and over again. Been on the job site and and and they'll thank Jesus in one breath and curse him in the next. So I heard it over and over again. Then he goes on to say in verse 8, he says, Therefore, do not be like them. Okay? Amen. All right. For your father knows the things you have need of before you ask him. Okay? So again, what is that helping us to do? It's not taking us from being able to ask him from, it's taking our minds off of our needs and putting our minds on him. That's what he's trying to tell us. So, because we go into prayer this way. God, it's time for you to do this, this, this, this, and this. We're demanding. Because that's where we are with society. We're not we're not willing to to to to look at it a different way. We're demanding because why? Because we're living in a demanding time. You don't believe me? Be part of something that they need done and ask them when they want it done. They needed it done yesterday. You needed that package got to you yesterday. So we're we're at we're our minds are at that place. I I need it done. I ain't got time to go through all the riff-raff. I just need you to do it. And that's where we are with our prayer life. Not all of us. I hope none of you. I hope this. I really hope and you understand, I want you to understand this. This was a tough one for me this morning. I'm listening to what the Lord is saying, and I knew he had some stuff going to share because he wouldn't share nothing with me. Every time he does me that way, he has something he has to share here because he knows if he shares it with me, I'll talk him out of it. Because why? Because I'll get the mindset if I'm not careful. I'm trying to please you and not trying to please him. And I get it, I have to be very careful about that. I'm stepping on very thin ice then. Because it ain't about me pleasing you. I didn't bring you in here to please you. I brought you, God brought you in here for me to please him, and you hear what you need to hear. So then he goes on and says this. So, in this manner, therefore, pray. Okay. Easy now. All right. We found out, we found out what we're supposed to do. Find out where we go, we find out now what how to do it. He says, our Father in heaven. That's the very first thing he says. Do you see God as your father? That's the first thing you got to do. The father that is greater than any father that you can ever imagine. A father that will never leave you or forsake you. Do not, listen to me, do not try to use your father here on earth to represent the father in heaven. I don't care how good he was or how bad he was or if he was there, if he wasn't not there. That's not the one. Jesus is saying, This is the father I'm talking about. And you want to know what he looks like? Look at me, he says. He and I are one. So any kind you wonder about how good the father is, look at Jesus. I heard a teaching, so I didn't think I was gonna get to go here this day. And I can't get this off of my mind. I got to share this yesterday twice. And I just can't, it's just burning in me. Gave me a whole different way of looking at what happened at the cross. It makes you understand that the love that God had for you, that God loves you. I shared this yesterday. God loves you whether you love him or not. People looked at me like I was crazy. I said, Yeah, he loves you whether you love him or not. Because why? Because he allowed his son to be crushed for you and I. See, we we we get so mindset on thinking about everything the Romans did, and it takes our eyes off of what God did. God allowed Jesus to get crushed so you and I could have eternal life. Crushed. Just like the olive seed is put in there and pressed till the oil pours out of it. He was crushed so much that his blood poured out of him. That not not one single drop of blood was left. God had to turn his back on him because why? Because all the sin of the world was placed on him, and God cannot be in the presence of sin. So you want to know how much God hates sin? He had to look away from his own son. And he done it for you and I. So Jesus was crushed for you and I. So again, he says you look to the Father who is in heaven. Not the Father here on the earth, the father in heaven. Capital F. The only capital F, Father, there is. Okay? Hear that. There is no, do not listen to me, do not capitalize your father here on earth. Because you're saying he's in the same plateau as the Father in heaven. And that's blessed me. You'll find every place in the Bible where Father's done, it's a little F until you get to the Father who is in heaven. It's a capital F. So always remember that. Because why? Because he needs you to see who he is. Then he goes on. So I carry you now to Romans 8 and 15. And listen to what it says, Romans 8 and 15. He said, For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba Father. So again, he's trying to tell us to understand that now if you've been born again, you did not receive a spirit of bondage again. You were in bondage before you become a believer. That's why you needed Jesus. But now that you've become a believer, you no longer have that spirit of bondage on you. If you do, you need to rebuke it. You need to stand up against it. And then you don't, and to fear. How many of you are still walking in fear today? It's because you've not allowed the Holy Spirit to overwhelm you with his presence. Because he says that. And you receive that spirit of adoption. You've been adopted into his family. God chose you. You did not choose God. That's the other thing you have to get a hold of. You did not choose God. God chose you. Hallelujah. And then know that without him choosing you, you can't be adopted. Then you have to accept that invitation because it's an invitation that he gives. And he gives it to every person. We just have to decide whether or not we're going to accept the invitation. And then are you going to go on with it? Because some of us accept the invitation. We send the RSPP in and we still don't go. You got people today doing the same thing. They're coming to church, they get the invitation. They look at it. They think about it. They even respond back, yeah, I'll tell you what, I'm going to go on. I'm going to go. And then they don't come. They sit right there in their chairs and don't come. The invitation's given. You put the RSVP in, and then the enemy talks you out of getting up out of your chair to walk up. And then the other verse I want to share with you is Galatians 4, 6 and 7. And because you are sons or daughters, God has sent forth, or sent forth, excuse me, sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts. Okay? He just told you that. He just told you that God the Father, because of you being a believer, has sent the Spirit of the Son of Jesus into your heart. You have the Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, in your heart as a believer. He said that. He said that. That has been sent to you. And to your heart's crying out of the Father. So that's why he wants you to come to that place to cry out to the Father. Because why? Because of what He's done, He put His Spirit in you. You won't cry out to the Father without His Spirit, but with His Spirit you'll cry out to the Father. And he goes on, says, Therefore, you no longer are a slave now. Again, what did you do? You got moved out of a slave. You're no longer a slave to sin, but now you're a son. And if a son, then you're the heir, heir of God through Christ. So now you begin to understand why you want to call out to the Father because why? Because you're an heir to him and a joint heir to Christ Jesus. And it's because Jesus is why you have and you've been adopted and in heir with him. So now it makes you understand, okay, now I know who I'm I'm talking to. A father who is greater than anything I can begin to fathom, that is able to do exceedingly above. He is able to do what's possible when everybody says it's impossible. That's the father he's trying to get us to look at when we go back over here to where we were at in um in Matthew 6. And he goes on and says, So, our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Other words, come in and establish the principle of a prayer that is a perception of worship. Other words, when you're when you're seeing what hallowed mean it's it's another way of rendering or treating as holy. Do you see the father as holy? You know, as you heard a singing earlier, the angels went around and around and around. And that's what they do, is they go around and they see and they see something different about him. That's why they're saying holy, holy, holy every time they pass by.

SPEAKER_00 24:15

If we're not careful, we'll see him as no more than a necklace on our neck. We'll see him no more than a than our Bible.

SPEAKER_01 24:36

We'll make him into an idol if we're not careful. That's why Jesus said this. Hallowed be your name. Not, not, he's not, and this is what Jesus is saying. He's telling God, we render your name. We're in awe of who you are. So when you come to come to the Father, that's the first thing you've got to do. You've got to get your mindset like that. Because if you come to him any other way, you'll never see him answering your prayers. You'll never think he can. That's why we do everything ourselves. That's why we're so busy working on doing it ourselves. Because why? Because we come to God in the wrong way, because we don't see that he can do what we're asking him to do. Or he's not doing it in the time period that we're wanting to do it, so I tell you what, God, you just get out of the way, I'll do it. Do you see God as He's sanctified? Do you see Him as set apart from any other? If not, walk outside at night and look at the sky when the stars are shining and know He placed every one of them there and He knows every one of them names. Watch when the moon comes up and it shines with its brightness. Or the sun's breaking the horizon in the morning, and the sky is just all kind of colors. And even makes the children get happy, amen. Yeah. That's what I'm sharing with you. And that's just that's just some minor things. He makes the sun rise every morning. I don't know how it all does that. I don't understand that. I just know God does. He done it. And it works. So again, I'm trying to help you get a different mindset about God. So because some of you got some major things you need to pray about. And you've put them aside, you put them on the under the rug, you've quit praying because why? Because every time you go to prayer, it's your mindset. I'm going to pray. I'm going to ask. And I and I'm I've I got time, God, to lift you up. I got time to see your splendor. I got time to. I just need you to answer this right now. So Jesus says, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done. So let me ask you this question. Do you want to see God's name exalted and his kingdom extended? That's what Jesus is talking about right here. Like I said, it ain't about your kingdom, it's about his kingdom. And when we get that mindset to see that, your kingdom come. Your kingdom come. God. Show me what you want me to do for your kingdom. And see, when you start looking at his kingdom, you start looking for some of your pity, and and and and please don't misunderstand that he listens to all your prayer, but some of your pity prayers that you're praying will not even be a part of your prayer life because why? Because they mean nothing. Because it's all about trying to build your kingdom up. It's all about trying to build up what is around you. Because your focus has been on you the whole time and not on God. That's why I only want to stop at this first here. I didn't want to go to the next. That's when it starts, you start asking after you get this part here. But if you can't get this part right, why you don't even have no right to ask? The way I look at it, now you can take it any way you want, but that's my thought. Because I'm going to the monster now. I'm not going this to the monster. This is not who I'm saying. This is not how I'm telling you to pray. This is what the word of God says. This is what Jesus says. He believes it. He wants us to have it. He wants to see prayer in our lives. He wants to see us thanks to me. But we want that we got to do it his way. And quit trying to think we can do it our own way and get by with it. So he says, Your kingdom come and your will be done. When was the last time that you told God, God, may your kingdom be done and your will done here right on earth. In my life. Not in somebody else's. No, no, no. Because we're quick to do that. We're quick to want to, why God, you do that in their life. But me, I'm going to do it my way. I don't want, I don't want, I want to line up with you. Because that ain't no fun. That's that's the I I think that's probably the biggest thing that we want to say. It ain't no fun. It's because you've not hallowed his name, that's why. There's no greater thing to be, there's no greater one to be a part of. And like we heard that, there's no greater gift to have than to know that you've been forgiven of your sins, regardless of anything else that ever happens to you. I love the answer that you heard when you heard me share that. If we never got nothing else, that right there. It's worth it all. I love the children. I love the I love the adults. The excitement that you've seen right here was exactly what we see night after night. It just got getting better and better and better. Every night. Because why? Because those kids ain't afraid. See Jesus is a real light. We just see him as a light bulb. They see him as a light. And they truly believe that Jesus will light them up to be the light of the world. But yet we don't even think he'll light us up. Jesus is sharing with us. You want to be lit up? Do it my way. Do it my way one time. Just try it one time, he says. Try it for a week. In the morning and shut the door behind you for just a few minutes. And all I'm asking you to pray is this first part right here. My Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Period. Stop right there, walk out. And watch what happens. Don't even go no farther. Because there's no greater thing. God knows exactly what he wants for you, knows what you need. That's all you need to say. He'll throw other things into your lap whenever you're driving down the road going to work. But go right there for a second. How long did that take me to say that? Maybe two seconds, three seconds, four? I don't know. If you're a slow reader, maybe it'll take you ten seconds. I have no idea. You have that much time to put God first in your life. Or you just prefer not to. Because see now, the only thing bad about messages like this is now the Holy Spirit brings conviction upon you. Because you're going to, I I promise you this right here, right now. And don't, and you can call me up, I'll be up in the morning. But your your alarm's gonna go off in the morning, and you're gonna reach over to do your usual, hit the button to snooze, and the Holy Spirit will not let you find that. If you're not careful, he'll knock it off on the floor, so you've got to get up. Because why? Because he wants you to try this. He wants you to try it out for once in your life. Some of you, some of you trying, I didn't know, I didn't know that's how you got to pray. That's why I hadn't been praying. Or maybe that's why I hadn't, I never want to pray. Back to that question, how am I praying? Are you praying that way? Are you starting it out that way? And I'm talking about at the beginning of the time when you get up in the morning. Okay? Now, when you're praying through the day, you don't have to go through all that. You've already acknowledged that at the beginning, that it's the Father in heaven that you're going to be talking to throughout the day. And you've you've already lifted him up on high, you already see him as who he is, and who is able to do you can never do. He wants to help you with that. And as you go through the day, then you'll ask him. You won't feel, it'll it'll feel different to you when you do that. Because why? Because you'll begin to see him different. You'll begin to put, you'll begin to get confidence in him, you'll begin to get courage in him, you'll begin to get audacity, you'll begin to pray things that you thought you'd never pray. Because why? Because now you see the Father different than you ever seen before. You see him able to do that, what you thought he could not do. Jesus said, with him all things are possible. You got a loved one, listen to me. You got a loved one that's that's went stranded, you got a loved one that's a prodigal, you've got a loved one that you just done, and and and guess what? You've took God and you've put him to the side, and you've tried your best to try to figure out how to pray for him, and and here you are, because you don't believe. Because listen to me what I'm sharing with you. When Jesus said those very words, but all things, God, all things are possible, he was talking about a lost person then. Because remember, it's about a kingdom, it's about growing his kingdom. Now you don't, don't you ever, ever think that God does not want that lost prodigal saved? Because he says, I don't want any to perish but ought to have the saving knowledge of Christ. It's the devil who's got a hold of him, it's the devil who's got a chain hooked to him. And you can't fight the devil without God. But you bring God into the midst of it and you watch what happens. God will kick him out of there like he kicked him out of heaven. But you gotta come to that very place.