PRINCIPLES OF PRAYER PRACTICAL LIVING MINISTRY

Transcription

1 PRINCIPLES OF PRAYER PRACTICAL LIVING MINISTRY

2 PRAYER PRINCIPLES Pray Often 1 Thessalonians 5:17 - Pray without ceasing. Pray Often Pray Fervently Which Includes Consistency Pray Fervently Pray Purposely No haphazard or overtly traditional prayer Pray Purposely

3 PRAYER PRINCIPLES Pray Truthfully According to the Word and a truthful estimate of self Pray Truthfully Pray For Others True and Selfless Intercession Pray For Others Pray With Thanksgiving Not self praise or experiential, but sincere praise to the Father Pray With Thanksgiving

4 PRINCIPLES OF PRAYER Pray With Confidence and Faith Our faith must be centered in our trust and confidence in our Almighty God Pray With Confidence and Faith Most Importantly Pray According to the Word of God God s Will is identified in His Word Praying the Word of God brings freedom, discernment, and protection as you know what to pray for as you ought

5 SCRIPTURE Mark 11:22 - God. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in This may mean, have strong faith, or have confidence in God; a strong belief that he is able to accomplish things that appear most difficult with infinite ease Mark 11:24 - Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Keep in mind that while we are truly praying, the Pray-er is changed and aligned with God so that the Prayer is changed also and strengthened with faith We are to pray with assurance that what we pray for we shall have it because our desires are aligned with God and we trust that god is able to do what he said he would do

6 DEFINING OR DESCRIBING FAITH Faith is defined in two areas: Our statement of belief; our religion; what makes us serve God Faith as trust and confidence in our God in such a way that our lives, thinking, and behavior is changed and aligned Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith is in the Now, the present This is not a Definition of Faith, but a Description We see Jesus in the gospels describing faith as weak, strong, little Having a rigid definition of faith can bring condemnation

7 HOW MANY OF US STRUGGLE WITH OUR FAITH? Mark 9:24 - And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. Jesus answered the man s request to do something about his son suffering from demonic oppression, If thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth In his distress, the man said, I believe - I have faith. I do put confidence in thee, though I know that my faith is not as strong as it should be. Help thou mine unbelief Help me with the defects of my faith so that I may put my entire trust in thee. This man prayed for faith to receive God s promise

8 HELP THOU MY UNBELIEF It was not that the man didn t believe, but he needed help with his faith to believe for the situation that he was facing Even the Disciples had trouble with their faith to accomplish this task We need to be aware and pray to God to help us address the defects of our faith Lack of knowledge of God and His Word (Romans 10:17) Defects caused by the guilt and shame of sin & separation The need for prayer and fasting Allowing the problem to become the norm leads to a lack of prayer Not adding to your faith 2 Peter 1:5 those things your faith needs (virtue, knowledge, temperance, godliness, kindness & love)

9 PREVAILING FAITH Luke 22:31-32: Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, 32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Jesus prayed because he needed Peter s faith to prevail It is our faith and trust in God that keeps us from falling In the midst of trials and persecution a person's faith may waver, or they may even turn from their faith.

10 TRUSTING GOD Some people withhold their faith because they still want control of their lives Living by faith is trusting that God s ways of doing things is right and good Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. While John 3:16 is for the unsaved person; John 8:28 is for the believer In the midst of my trials I must believe that things aren t going to end the way that they are now