Jesus taught us how to pray in Matthew chapter 6:
But thou, when thou prayest enter into thy closet, and when thou has shut the door, pray to the Father which is in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him (verses 6-13).
When we pray He wants a quiet, one on one time with us. In the earlier days the Pharisees would pray loudly on the corners of the streets just so people would see them and see how pious they were. It was for show and recognition. He wants us to just come to Him without pomp or splash, recognition or display. And most of us do. However, most don't give a thought of prayer until they are falling asleep and then trail off into dreamland somewhere in the middle of it.
Then people wonder, "Why doesn't He hear my prayers"!? Perhaps it got muffled somewhere in between the snoring? Or maybe your prayer was out of alignment with Scripture to begin with? And since all things happen or don't within His will, perhaps the answer was No.
The biggest reason most people never get results with prayer is because they are seeking things not of Him. He gave us a model of prayer:
After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever (Matt. 6:9-13).
Just a few verses down He admonishes us:
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (verse 19-21).
People ask me, how do you pray? Most people just don't know how to pray and they want to know how others pray so they can learn.
The churches teach that every little materialistic thing we want is just a prayer away. They teach prayer as a power or force directed at God of which He is then forced to respond. Blab it and grab it.
Well that is not the way it works with Him. He does not want us to spend our time with Him rambling on about the things we want or need. He doesn't want our want lists He wants our hearts. And who are we to demand anything of Him? He is GOD, we are not.
He has already told us not to do that. Yet how many make prayer their sole time of rattling off what they want or need and never move on to anything else? They claim they don't because after all they throw in a few other things to masque it, but they are only kidding themselves and the Lord is not amused. He is patient, but not amused when the main focus of prayers is spent on what someone wants or needs in regards to this earth and the things in it.
If you were of His heart you would be praying for His judgment on this wicked earth and for Him to utterly destroy it because of the rejection of Him here instead of another car, house, winning the lottery or whatever else would make your life easier in a world He told you not to be a part of. "Be in the world but not of the world" ring a bell?
Didn't He say "lay not up for yourselves treasures on this earth?" Yet most people pray and seek the things of this earth. And the things He wants us to do, "lay up treasures in heaven" people ignore.
I had to learn this myself years ago. I was always praying amiss in regards to how He wants us to pray. So I asked Him to teach me how to pray. He didn't recite Matthew 6 to me. He didn't say anything. But I noticed I started to change myself. That my interests of this earth no longer mattered. Frankly I started losing interest of this earth. I found myself asking for more of Him and I couldn't get enough of it. I would bug Him all the time for the same things, or more, more, more of something in particular. And I still do to this day. Persistence.
I ask for His eyes, ears, and heart. And when you ask for these types of things He gives them in measure. A little here, a little there. That's why I always seek for more. I want all of Him, to be more like Him.
I ask for things not of this world.
I ask Him for strength, boldness, discernment, to see things how He sees them, to hear things how He hears them, and to feel things how He feels them. I ask Him for the truth in all things and for Him to keep me from evil. I ask Him to talk to me, to reveal things to me, to walk with me. I praise Him, I thank Him, and I adore Him.
Your prayers reveal your heart to Him. Are you of this world or are you of Him?
I don't spend a lot of time praying about my enemies or telling Him how broke I am or how miserable I am. He knows I hate it here. If my enemies are bothering me I ask Him to take care of them and I leave it at that. I mean come on folks, how much more powerful is it to leave your enemies and problems in His hands? What do you think you can do compared to what He can or will do? So why dwell on it? Why dwell on the problems of this earth when there's nothing you yourself can do about them anyway? Give them to Him. He wants them. As far as I'm concerned, He can have every one of mine. I don't want to waste my time on something He said He would already take care of. Don't run in circles with yourself or around Him.
He knows what we need before we ask Him. And He is not deaf or hard of hearing. There is a difference between being persistent about something spiritual and something materialistic. He will not say no to a request on the spiritual, but if you are bugging Him for a materialistic thing and you haven't gotten it then stop the temper tantrums already the answer was no or later.
People actually lose their faith or abandon it all together because their prayers are not answered the way they want them to be. The prosperity beast prophets teach name it and claim it, and they will teach it all the way to the pit of hell knowing it is making you miserable and losing your faith in God because you are not getting anything but suckered into false doctrines. Millions have been deceived by them and praying amiss because they believed them instead of searching the Scriptures for themselves on how to pray instead.
Many people actually believe that to get anything from the Lord they must give money to these beasts masquerading as pastors and evangelists to finance their multi-million dollar entertainment facilities they call churches and their lavish lifestyles. They think they have to pay for gifts from the Lord as in "sowing seeds." That is heresy folks.
Pray for things that will make you more like the Most High. Seek Him and His kingdom above everything else. Pray for the things you need of Him to fulfill your calling in Him, or to realize what that is, or to do His work here on earth. Our reward is in heaven, our reward is heaven.
Set your mind on things above and there is where your heart will be.
Dear Heavenly Father, the Most High,
Teach me how to pray. I know I have been praying the wrong way and I need You to teach me the right way. And Teach me the truth in all things so I can get out of the deceptions I am in and learn what the truth is from You Yourself. I want to learn from You, not man.
Father give me discernment so I can know what is of You and what isn't. And help me to learn who you are, reveal Yourself to me so I can learn who you are and transform me Father so I can become more like you.
Thank you Father, I love you. I praise your Name and seek to serve You and only You.
I Love You the Most High, in Yahushuah's Name, Amen.
Praying isn't a science but there is a wrong way and a right way. Pray from the heart and seek the things of Him. Learn how to talk to Him as you would a friend, yet reverence His sovereignty. And remember, any relationship is a two-way road. Be still and listen for His small voice in your spirit as you pray. Allow Him to speak to you, don't shut Him out. He doesn't speak to your head, He speaks to your heart. So listen to His voice in your heart and rebuke any you hear in your head.
Love Him. That is all He wants. Everything else falls into place after that. Ask Him daily to walk with you and be with you. You will get to the point you don't even have to ask Him anymore because you will have learned to recognize He is already with you.
Ask Him to teach you how to pray.
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