Let’s Pray

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Dear Lord, I thank You for this day..... Heavenly Father, I humbly come before You and ask for forgiveness of my sins.... Jesus, You are the King of all kings and.....

Urgh!!

Have you ever tired praying, but you just don’t know how to start or you struggle with what to say? Sometimes to the point that you don’t even bother praying anymore? Being African and having previously attended two different churches where they were both predominantly African, I observed how the adults would pray and picked up their mannerism. However, after visiting other churches of mixed nationalities, I soon came to realise that prayer doesn’t necessarily have to be all ‘shouty shouty’.

I believe that sometimes our perception of prayer can hinder our prayer life. But have you ever stopped to ask: what is prayer? Prayer is our way of communicating with God. It’s as simple as that. Although we can pray whilst fellowshipping with others, it’s still a personal conversation between you and God. We can find a lot of scripture within the bible that talks about prayer, but Christ Himself showed us how to pray:

“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.” So He said to them, “When you pray, say:

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us day by day our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins,

For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.”

~ Luke 11 vs 1-13 NKJV

Prayer doesn't have to be longwinded. It can be short and simple, or you can spend a bit more time in prayer. Everyone has their own perception on prayer, but either way, God is ready to hear us and is waiting for us to talk to Him. Christians have the great privilege to speak to God at anytime of the day. We don’t have to wait for a certain time of the hour before praying. We can freely do so, whenever, wherever. But sadly, it seems we only tend to pray when sometimes happens or when we need or want something. Yet, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 puts it quite simply, ‘pray without ceasing.”

It’s always easy to say to someone, “Sure. I’ll stand with you in prayer.” But the question is, do we actually pray for that person? It’s almost as if “I’ll pray for you” has become the new Hello within the Christian community.

As cliche as it may sound, there really is power in prayer. So, let us start making a difference in this world through prayer. We don’t have to wait to get home before praying about something. We can say a quick prayer in our head and God will still hear us. Let us make the change today.

Lord, I just pray that You encourage those who are finding it difficult to pray. I ask that You will bring about peace and reassurance to them. May we always seek You first in everything and not take matters into our own hands. I pray that we will remember to pray for the sick, the orphans and other issues of the world. Help us to be the change this world needs. Amen.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

~ Philippians 4:6 NIV