Prayer
Why is prayer so important?
Prayer is our way of communicating with God. It's an intimate conversation with our creator and He wants to hear from us! In Matthew 6:5-13, Jesus talks to us about what our prayer lives should look like. Prayer was never meant to be a repetition of empty words or a ritual to prove ourselves to God. What Jesus is getting at is that God wants a relationship with you. How do we build and maintain relationships? Through communication and quality time! Prayer is so important because it is a bridge of connection with our Heavenly Father who wants to spend time with and pour into His kids.
How do I pray?
Let's go back to Matthew 6:5-13. In Jesus' time, there were people who would make praying a show. There were people who thought that the way to be heard by God was to repeat themselves over and over, to babble meaningless things. The truth is, Jesus tells us that prayer should look like intentional, quiet time away from others. That private time with God is a time of intimate connection with Him! God doesn't hear us because of anything we do or don't do- God hears us because He loves us and longs for relationship with us. Jesus then follows with the famous "Lord's Prayer". Jesus gives us a basic outline of how to pray:
- Praise God and ask for His will to be done.
- Ask Him to provide for you what you need for the day and trust that He will do so.
- Share with Him where you're struggling and ask for forgiveness.
- Ask Him to help you resist temptation and rescue you from the enemy.
- Allow Him to work in your heart so that you can forgive others just as He has forgiven you.
Most of all, don't lose sight of the purpose behind the prayer: to connect with and share your life with the One who loves you more than you can even comprehend. Prayer is intended to be a regular rhythm of our lives. He is always within arms reach. You just have to reach for Him.