Tips on Prayer
Colossians 4:2-4 – “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison – that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”
Recently, I have been struggling with my prayer life. I could not understand why my prayer life has been so down recently. It felt as if all I was doing was just sitting and reiterating words to God without a conscious thought. I was praying just like I was told not to in Matthew 6:7 – “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” All I seemed to be doing was making repetitive statements for God to speak in my life, for God to work in my life, for Him to change my life; but the truth is, there was no thought to it, there was no power to it, there was no faith. It was just what the verse says, “vain repetitions.” We as disciples of Jesus Christ can occasionally get into this rut, because we so quickly and easily take for granted what the Lord has done for us and forget that He is consciously working in our lives. Thankfully, the Lord today shared with me what I need to do to have a strengthened prayer life with Him.
Paul must have been concerned about the church in Colossae specifically about this topic, because he made sure to address it as one of his last words of encouragement to the church. He gave four little tips on prayer to the church that we can definitely apply to our prayer life as well.
- Continue steadfastly in prayer.
If we are seeking to improve our prayer life, we must never stop praying. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 states, “Pray without ceasing.” Just like in any relationship, to cultivate and grow the relationship, both sides have to communicate. Prayer is a time for us to communicate with God. It is a time for us to speak to Him about what we know that He already knows and to get to know it the way He does. We must continue in prayer even when it does not seem like He is listening and our prayers are unanswered. The point of prayer is to get to know God, so let us continue to seek God in prayer steadfastly, never wavering even when it becomes difficult to pray.
2. Being watchful
When I thought about why my prayer life was struggling recently, I realized that it was because of this reason – I was not being watchful in my prayer. The word watchful here means “to be awake.” Now, this does not mean that if you sometimes fall asleep during prayer meetings that your prayers are all for naught. No way! What this phrase means is that when you pray, you are not praying laxed and lazily, but seriously seeking the Lord in prayer. When I thought about my prayer life and reflected on this verse, I noticed that my prayer life has been laxed and lazy. All I was doing was asking God for things to voice it out so I’d feel better not to seriously seek Him in those issues and it brought me to recognize what needed to change – I needed to be watchful. When I asked for God to show me His will for my life, I needed to actively seek His will in my life, not just say it randomly and then not think about it any longer. That is not praying with watchfulness, it was me making vain repetitions.
3. With Thanksgiving
In every prayer, we make to the Lord, we should always think of something to thank Him for. Too often our prayers are like Christmas lists that we want the Lord to give us. “Lord, give me a house.” “Lord, give me a new job.” “Lord, provide for me a relationship.” Our prayers are not concerned about seeking the Lord’s will but are just ways for us to tell God what He needs to do for us. That is not what prayer is about in any way shape or form. Like stated before, it is about getting to know God’s will on a subject by telling Him what we know He already knows. One of the best ways to get to know God is to meditate on Him and what He has done and that comes with thanking Him for the blessings and even the hardships that He has brought into our life. Let us always pray with thanksgiving in mind, for how much more can we ask of God? I love what my uncle says whenever he prays, “What more can we ask you to give us then you already gave us? Your Son dying for our sins so that we can spend eternity with you.” That is a heart looking in the right perspective.
4. Pray also for us
Just the other day at a Bible study I attended, one person’s prayer request was that he would be able to pray for others, so that his prayers would no longer be about himself all the time but for those around him as well. I think that is an important attitude that we need to develop in our own hearts. With too many disciples of Jesus Christ, our only concern is ourselves and not necessarily for bad things. I find many Christians so absorbed with their spiritual walk and the fire in their hearts and the needs they have to grow in Christ, that they forget to pour out their lives for other believers as well. This self-absorbed attitude can most easily be seen in our prayer lives, where we are doing well in asking the Lord to help us grow and to show us His will, but we are doing wrong in not praying for others as well. We are called to be intercessors for our other brothers and sisters in Christ, so in prayer, we must (I will say it again for emphasis, WE MUST) pray for our fellow Christians. Pray that boldness will be in their hearts to share the Word. Pray that the Lord will work in them and give them strength in their difficulties. Pray that they may grow closer and closer to Him. Pray also for unbelievers you know to come to a saving knowledge of Him. Pray for His kingdom to grow ever more.
With these four tips, our prayer lives can be overhauled completely and better reflect what Christ wanted prayer to look like between Him and His disciples. I will definitely be applying these to my prayer life, will you?
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