brendar buhl said:
Praying to God is now easier than posting to a message board on the internet! Just talk to him. You are in a relationship with him and He loves you. Just tell him how you are feeling and ask for his help. Don't worry about messing up prayer, that is impossible. God loves for us to pray and it pleases him.
Amen.
ScorchTomato,
Prayer is just talking to God. Talk to Him just like you would your closest confidant. He will not fail to listen. He will not fail to forgive you when you sincerely ask. He will forgive you every time you fall. Jesus gave us a model, but it is only a model.
Matthew 6:9-13
9"Pray, then, in this way:
Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10'Your kingdom come
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
11'Give us this day our daily bread.
12'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13'And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]'
Like I said, this is only a model. Jesus was telling us to recognize God as God and give Him the glory He deserves. Tell Him that you accept His will in your life and look forward to His kingdom. Ask for your needs and thank Him for the needs He has met. Ask forgiveness for your sins. Don't forget to forgive those that have done or do you wrong. Remember Jesus prayed on the cross, "Forgive them Father for they do not know what they are doing." Pray that God will keep temptation out of your path and keep satan and his followers from tempting you. Acknowledge that everything is His for His purpose and He deserves all the glory. Then word "Amen" just means "I believe."
Seems too simple. Prayer is not hard. Just talk to God. There is no proper order. It is good to humble yourself by finding a place you can kneel, but even that is not mandatory. It is good to find a place where you can be quiet and undisturbed. Pray whenever you want to where ever you want to. Pray especially when you feel guilt, shame, hurt, or other things and don't want to pray; that is when you really need to be in the presence of God. Be quiet before Him. Listen for His voice within you. Bask in His understanding and comfort.
I pray at night, in the morning, while driving, at work, when ever and where ever. I like to be in constant touch.
Pray for others. If someone has an "in touch" grandmother praying for them, they might as well give in and give their life to God. Grandmothers don't know how to stop praying, so if a person is running from God they might as well give up. Same with friends and family; pray for them and let them pray for you. There is power in the prayer of a righteous person.
Remember, prayer is not a shopping list of I wants. God knows what you need better than you know what you need. Not one bird falls from the sky without Him knowing it and you are far more precious to Him than birds. Also remember that wait and no are answers that God also gives.
Jesus went on to say:
Matthew 6:14-15
14"For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15"But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.
It is not easy to forgive those that hurt us. Forgive the person that molested, raped, stole from, cheated on, you? That is hard. How do you do that? Through the power of God, the Holy Spirit, within you. Forgive and you will be forgiven.
