A. What is prayer?

1. Prayer is an act of humble worship in which we seek God with all our heart.

2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, l will hear from heaven.

2. Prayer often begins with a confession of sin.

Psalm 38:18. I confess my sins, l am deeply sorry for what l have done.

1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.

3. Prayer is asking God for guidance and waiting for his direction and leading.

1 Samuel 14:16. The priest said, “Let’s ask God first.”

2 Samuel 5:19. David asked the LORD, “Should l go out to fight the Philistines?”

4. Prayer is an expression of an intimate relationship with our heavenly Father, who makes his own love and resources available to us.

Mark 1:35. The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray.

5. Through prayer we praise our mighty God.

Psalm 9:1-2. I will thank you, LORD, with all my heart. … I will sing praises to your name, O Most High.

B. Does the Bible teach a “right way” to pray?

1. Throughout the Bible effective prayer includes elements of adoration, confession, and commitment, as well as requests.

Nehemiah 1:4. For days l mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven.

2. Jesus taught his disciples that prayer is an intimate relationship with the Father that includes a dependency for daily needs, commitment to obedience, and forgiveness of sin.

Matthew 6:9. Pray like this.

3. Prayer is to be consistent and persistent.

Luke 18:1. One day Jesus told his disciples a story to illustrate their need for constant prayer and to show them that they must never give up.

4. Prayer can be spontaneous.

Nehemiah 2:4-5. The king asked, “Well, how can l help out?” With a prayer to the God of heaven, l replied …

C. Does God always answer prayer?

1. We can be confident of God’s response to our prayer when we submit first to his will.

1 John 5:14. We can be confident that he will listen to us whenever we ask him for anything in line with his will.

2. Sometimes, like Paul, we find that God answers prayer by giving us not what we ask for but something better.

2 Corinthians 12:8-9. Three different times l begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My power works best in your weakness.”

3. Our prayer must be accompanied by a willingness to obey with our actions.

Exodus 14:15. The LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving!”

1 Peter 3:12. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers.

Amen?