Principles of Effective Petitionary Prayer

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Berserk

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If prayer makes a decisive difference and if there is a right and a wrong way to pray, then needy people have paid the price for our failure to pray for them or even for failing to pray for them correctly, following biblical principles. This thread is intended to raise awareness about petitionary prayer principles under 4 categories. Only God knows how important it is to scrupulously apply them. God just wants the prayerless to learn by doing and can be gracious even to those who fail to honor these principles. This overview will be followed by a detailed discussion of each principle. To promote an orderly discussion, please postpone your response to specific principles listed until they are addressed in sequence. But feel free to comment on my overview of the important principles of effective petitionary prayer.

I. Preparations for Petitionary Prayer: Don't begin prayer by launching into your petitions. Rather begin prayer with this 5-fold focus:
(1) by delighting in God's presence (Psalm 37:4).and seeking God's face (Psalm 27:7-9; Hosea 5:15), that is, an intimate encounter with God for the sheer delight of experiencing it
(2) by thanking and praising God for His goodness (Philippians 4:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
(3) by experiencing awe and reverence to experience God's presence (Matthew 6:9)
(4) by purging your mind of negative and resentful thoughts towards others (Mk 11:24-25)
(5) by confessing sins to each other (James 5:14-16).

II. Praying in God's Will
(1) Pray for God's will to be done for those who are the subjects of your petitions (1 John 5:14; Matthew 6:10).
(2) Ask God to respond to the true needs behind your requests (Philippians 4:19; Romans 8:26; Matthew 7:7-11).
(3) Bless those you pray for even apart from more specific petitions (Numbers 6:23-27; Luke 6:28).
(4) Pray long enough to begin praying in the Spirit in a high state of alertness, so the Holy Spirit can direct your petitions to conform with God's will (Eph 6:18; Jude 20; Rom 8:26).

(5) Don't use praying for God's will as a substitute for specific petitions. If you don't ask, don't expect to receive (James 4:3).

III. The Need to Pray with Faith
(1) Meditate on God's promises to answer prayer and learn how to claim these promises.
(2) Petitions require faith that God will respond in a recognizable way (Hebrews 11:6).
(3) Pray with single-minded faith that is not sabotaged by doubt (James 1:6-8).
(4) Boldly act on the assumption that you already possess all the faith you need
because you can't "try" to increase your faith that your prayer will be answered (Luke 17:5-6).​
(5) Use "valves" to release faith (e. g. laying on hands and anointing with oil--James 5:14).
(6) Join a weekly small prayer group. Small groups of believers who know how to pray are more effective in creating faith than praying individuals (Matthew 18:19-20).
(7) During prayer, imagine that God has already granted your petitions (Mk 11:25-26).

IV. You get out of prayer what you invest in it.
(1) Long prayer sessions are generally more effective than short prayer sessions (Isaiah 40:30-31; Acts 1:14).
(2) Meditate on the fact that God does not need the information your petitions provide (Matthew 6:7-8). So repeatedly offer up your petitions (Matthew 7:7) and persevere when you are first tempted to stop praying not to clue God in, but to establish an intimate connection with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 6:18).
(3) In your imagination create a mental "Watchtower" to listen for God's approach, input, and response (Habakkuk 2:1).
(4) It can be very helpful to identify a special sacred space for your prayer to help you focus your prayer discipline. Jesus liked to isolate Himself outdoors for greater privacy during His extended prayer vigils (Mark 1:45; 6:46; 14:39; Luke 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 28; 11:1).

 
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Berserk

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A "correct" way to pray??? LOL
It is shocking that WillieT would want to ridicule Jesus for teaching the right way to pray: "Pray then in this way (Matthew 6:9)."
Jesus offers the Lord's prayer as a model for how to pray and my OP outlines in detail the path to fleshing out this model.
Jesus can introduce other teaching on how to pray with the phrase, "When you pray (6:6-8)," and so, the disciples understandably ask Jesus, "Lord, teach us how to pray, as John taught his disciples" after observing the passionate way He prays (Luke 11:1-2).
Of course, Jesus teaches the essential role of faith in effective petitionary prayer, and so, His disciples, experiencing occasional failure in praying for others (Mark 9:18, 28), feel promoted to ask Jesus, "Lord, increase our faith (Luke 17:5-6).""
"Ask in faith, never doubting (James 1:6)." The Bible often identifies the preparatory acts and attitudes that help make petitionary prayer effective: e. g. "In everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known to God with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6)." "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)."

The Bible is not a book of systematic theology. This means that its divine promises and principles often presuppose suppressed assumptions that are made clear elsewhere in Scripture. So an integrated approach to texts on petitionary prayer is essential for a proper understanding of the prerequisite mindset, a mindset rendered all the more important bv the often woeful discrepancy between the rosy biblical portrayal of the power of prayer and the anemic results of the inadequate prayer lives of many Christians.
 
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CoreIssue

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It is shocking that WillieT would want to ridicule Jesus for teaching the right way to pray: "Pray then in this way (Matthew 6:9)."
Jesus offers the Lord's prayer as a model for how to pray and my OP outlines in detail the path to fleshing out this model.
Jesus can introduce other teaching on how to pray with phrase, "When you pray (6:6-8)," and so, the disciples understandably ask Jesus, "Lord, teach us how to pray, as John taught his disciples" after observing the passionate way He prays (Luke 11:1-2).
Of course, Jesus teaches the essential role of faith in effective petitionary prayer, and so, His disciples, experiencing occasional failure in praying for others (Mark 9:18, 28), feel promoted to ask Jesus, "Lord, increase our faith (Luke 17:5-6).""
"Ask in faith, never doubting (James 1:6)." The Bible often identifies the preparatory acts and attitudes that help make petitionary prayer effective: e. g. "In everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known to God with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6)." "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)."

The Bible is not a book of systematic theology. This means that its divine promises and principles often presuppose suppressed assumptions that are made clear elsewhere in Scripture. So an integrated approach to texts on petitionary prayer is essential for a proper understanding of the prerequisite mindset, a mindset rendered all the more important bv the often woeful discrepancy between the rosy biblical portrayal of the power of prayer and the anemic results of the inadequate prayer lives of many Christians.
The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times.

In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God.

As far as systematic theology goes, it depends on how you defined.

God wants us to pray in earnest. He hates repetitious.

Just be honest because he already knows what you want and need.
 

Berserk

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CoreIssue: "The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times."

An absurd cultic statement which ALL modern academic commentaries on the Lord's Prayer would reject. The NT church regularly recited the Lord's Prayer during corporate worship (see. e. g. The Didache).

CoreIssue: "In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God."

The statement is irrelevant unless you are actually making the claim that Christians should pray directly to Jesus. Wrong! The Lord's Prayer teaches us to address God as our heavenly "Father" and Jesus taught us to pray not to Himself, but to the Father with the understanding that we have access to the Father through Jesus (John 16:23)..
 
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CoreIssue

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CoreIssue: "The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times."

An absurd cultic statement which ALL modern academic commentaries on the Lord's Prayer would reject. The NT church regularly recited the Lord's Prayer during corporate worship (see. e. g. The Didache).

CoreIssue: "In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God."

The statement is irrelevant unless you a re actually making the claim that Christians should pray directly to Jesus. Wrong! The Lord's Prayer teaches us to address God as our heavenly "Father" and Jesus taught us to pray not to Himself, but to the Father with the understanding that we have access to the Father through Jesus (John 16:23)..
What they did does not make it right.

We pray to Jesus, no one else.
 

CoreIssue

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1 Timothy 2:5 New International Version (NIV)
5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,
 

Berserk

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What they did does not make it right.
We pray to Jesus, no one else.

Chapter and verse, please! As I said, Jesus repeatedly taught us to pray to "the Father," but I guess you don't care what Jesus taught. And why do you think you know better than the NT church who were taught by the apostles?
 
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amadeus

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God wants us to pray in earnest. He hates repetition.
Rather than hating repetition per se I would say that he does not hear vain prayers... which at times may include repetition, but all repetition is not necessarily vain:

"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." Matt 26:39

"He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done." Matt 26:42

"And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words." Matt 26:44

Three times Jesus prayed the same prayer. It was repetitious, but NOT vain.
 

CoreIssue

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Rather than hating repetition per se I would say that he does not hear vain prayers... which at times may include repetition, but all repetition is not necessarily vain:

"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." Matt 26:39

"He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done." Matt 26:42

"And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words." Matt 26:44

Three times Jesus prayed the same prayer. It was repetitious, but NOT vain.
Not repetitious in the manner which I am referencing.

I'm talking about the prewritten prayers that are repeated endlessly.

In our prayer life we all repeat certain issues. But we do not do it by formula.
 

amadeus

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Not repetitious in the manner which I am referencing.

I'm talking about the prewritten prayers that are repeated endlessly.

In our prayer life we all repeat certain issues. But we do not do it by formula.
I don't disagree with you. However even a prayer written out before when declared from the heart of a person can be heard by God. Has anyone ever "prayed" a psalm as he read it in the scriptures? Has anyone ever prayed the words of a known song as he sang it?
 

CoreIssue

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I don't disagree with you. However even a prayer written out before when declared from the heart of a person can be heard by God. Has anyone ever "prayed" a psalm as he read it in the scriptures? Has anyone ever prayed the words of a known song as he sang it?
I said a written prayer that is repeated over and over and over.
 

Berserk

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CoreIssue: "In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God."

You cite this as a reason for the heresy of praying directly to Jesus, but in fact that text is precisely a reason for praying directly to the Father through Jesus and thereby acknowledging Christ's mediation role. That is precisely Jesus' point in John 16:23:

"On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, He will give it to you "
I repeat: you can cite no New Testament text that instructs believers to offer up their petitions directly to Jesus. So doing so is cultic invention!

CoreIssue: "The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times."

The context OF John 16:23 is dealing with the disciples' future joy after Jesus' resurrection. The verb "will ask" is in the future tense and is spoken of the day of Jesus' arrest in Gethsemane. Therefore, Jesus extends the teaching in the model of the Lord's Prayer to the post-Easter age and this fact refutes your claim that "the Lord's Prayer was for Old Testament times." As already noted, that is precisely the reason why the New Testament church follows Jesus' instructions (Luke 11:2-4) and regularly recites the Lord's Prayer during corporate worship (as Didache teaches).
 

CoreIssue

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CoreIssue: "In the church Christ is a single mediator between us and God."

You cite this as a reason for the heresy of praying directly to Jesus, but in fact that text is precisely a reason for praying directly to the Father through Jesus and thereby acknowledging Christ's mediation role. That is precisely Jesus' point in John 16:23:

"On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, He will give it to you "
I repeat: you can cite no New Testament text that instructs believers to offer up their petitions directly to Jesus. So doing so is cultic invention!

CoreIssue: "The Lord's prayer was for Old Testament times."

The context OF John 16:23 is dealing with the disciples' future joy after Jesus' resurrection. The verb "will ask" is in the future tense and is spoken of the day of Jesus' arrest in Gethsemane. Therefore, Jesus extends the teaching in the model of the Lord's Prayer to the post-Easter age and this fact refutes your claim that "the Lord's Prayer was for Old Testament times." As already noted, that is precisely the reason why the New Testament church follows Jesus' instructions (Luke 11:2-4) and regularly recites the Lord's Prayer during corporate worship (as Didache teaches).

Jesus said that before the crucifixion.

Afterwords praying to the father is never mentioned again.

The context is not future. It was immediate.

Biblically speaking there is no Easter. That is a Catholic invention.

I have never been with believers that pray as you claim. They all pray to Jesus.
 

Berserk

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CoreIssue: "Jesus said that before the crucifixion.
Afterwords praying to the father is never mentioned again."

In the 3 days between crucifixion and resurrection, the disillusioned disciples' only concern is to hide from arrest. They have no confidence that their prayers will be effective, let along pray a new way--to the Father in Jesus' name.


Core Issue: "The context is not future. It was immediate."

Duh, you obviously don't know Greek; the verb" will ask" is future. Oh, if you had only read the preceding verse, you would see that the context is Jesus' reassurance about their joy after His resurrection.
"I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice (16:22)."

CoreIssue: "Biblically speaking there is no Easter. That is a Catholic invention."

I am simply using "Easter" here the way modern scholars do--as a reference to the time of Jesus' resurrection appearances. I hope you don't dismiss Jesus' appearances as a "Catholic invention."

Core Issue: "I have never been with believers that pray as you claim. They all pray to Jesus."

That's because of the cultic mentality and biblical Ignorance of your church community. The cultic nature of your belief is eloquently illustrated by your inability to find a single academic Bible commentary that supports addressing Jesus in petitionary prayer. My experience is just the opposite--and when some do address Jesus in petitionary prayers, I help them see that they have no grounds for defending their address to Jesus as biblical grounded.
 
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Berserk

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The Lord's Prayer is offered as a structural model on how to pray ("Pray then like this.") and is provided in response to the disciples' question about "how to pray." So what this structure teach us? Well, notice that the first 3 petitions deal with God's status and realm "Thy, Thy, Thy") and the 2nd 3 petitions deal with human needs ("Give us," "Lead us not," "But deliver us"). This structure is based on the assumption that prayer is a primary way we nurture our relationship with God. Because of that, prayer can lose its effect when it gets reduced to a "gimme" session in which God is in effect treated like a cosmic slot machine.

The phrase "Hallowed be thy name" encourages us to long for and experience fear in the sense of awe and wonder in the presence of a holy God:
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7)."
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:13)."
Such awe, reverence, and wonder is needed because God's ways and thoughts are higher and different from our ways and thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9); so we must be alert to the possibility that God is displeased with both the way we pray and the way we act on our prayers.

Put differently, the experience of awe, reverence, and wonder that should precede out petitions is a way of taking delight in the mystery of God's presence and such delight makes our petitions more effective: "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)."

Similarly, Jesus' model prayer implies the need for petitions to be preceded by praise and thanksgiving:
"In everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known to God with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6)."
"In all circumstances give thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:19)."
Too many Christians spend little prayer time outside of church praising and thanking God, and when they do, praise and thanksgiving can function as a form of flattery or an unconscious means of bending God's will to conform with our requests and desires. God must praised and thanked for His own sake because He is good. The Psalmist's way of expressing this idea is embedded in his expression "seek God's face (e. g. Psalm 24:6; 27:8)." These spiritual principles underline the fact that is a primary vehicle for establishing and deepening an intimate relationship with God.

My next planned post will take up the next petition, "Thy kingdom come." Have you ever seriously contemplated what this petitions is seeking? Suppose God replied, "OK, I'll give you the kingdom." How would you ever know He answered that request?