Keep On Praying
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. (Rom 12:9-13)
1. The Command To Pray
(1 Chr 16:11) Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.
(Luke 18:1) Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.
(1 Th 5:17) pray continually;
(Phil 4:6) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
2. Some Examples of Prayer
(James 5:17) Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.
(Phil 1:3-4) I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy
(Eph 1:16) I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
(Dan 6:10) Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
(Psa 55:17) Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.
(Psa 88:9) my eyes are dim with grief. I call to you, O LORD, every day; I spread out my hands to you.
3. The Promises Associated With Prayer
(Prov 8:34-35) Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the LORD.
(Jer 33:3) 'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'
(Rom 8:26-27) In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.
4. What Should You Include In Your Prayer Time
A - Adoration - (1 Chr 29:11) Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
C - Confession - (Psa 32:5) Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"-- and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah
T - Thanksgiving - (Psa 100:4) Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
S - Supplication - (Mat 7:7) "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
5. Some Practical Suggestions
A. Meet God early & often.
·(Mark 1:35) Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.
B. Honestly confess anything that hinders your closeness with God.
·(1 John 1:9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
C. Consider nothing of too little importance for God.
D. Consider nothing as to difficult for God.
E. Keep “fresh” by using a variety of approaches.
F. If circumstances hinder you, meet Him at your earliest convenience.
G. Keep others prominent in your prayers.
