Step Up Your Prayers

“Lord, teach us to pray.” The disciples had this request for Jesus in Luke 11:1. Christ’s response was the now-famous “Lord’s Prayer,” which starts, “Our Father, which art in heaven…” Christians the world over can recite the rest from memory.

Jesus’ answer provides an incredible template for the basic topics we should regularly discuss with God. While we should not regurgitate these words verbatim, it is a great structure to inform our longer daily prayers.

Yet there is a paradox. If the prayer in Luke 11 is a model—a basic framework we should expand upon—why did Jesus seem to completely disregard it when praying to the Father in John 17? In fact, is there any example of one of God’s servants in the Bible using this exact model when speaking to the Father?

The answer is a surprising “No.” But why is that?

During His earthly ministry, Jesus helped expand what our relationships should look like with the Father (Matt. 11:27). Part of this included teaching His disciples how to talk to God and develop a relationship with Him. Christ had to teach His followers a basic starting point. Being babes in Christ requires us to start simple (I Pet. 2:2). However, we must not remain spiritual infants! We should be growing in our communication with God, which should naturally expand in depth over time. Christians should work to build upon and move beyond the model prayer—of course, keeping it as a foundation for how we interact with God.

Many of God’s servants in the Bible prayed without reflecting the “Lord’s Prayer.” Despite this, the Father was pleased with their requests—and responded to them in big ways! These prayers were intimate, bold, and differed greatly in content and format.

Make no mistake. The model prayer is crucial for Christians. That is why it forms the backbone for our article “The Keys to Dynamic Prayer”. Yet God wants us to grow and expand beyond these basics as we draw closer to Him.

Potential Trap

One thing to be cautious of when using the model prayer is that it can subtly lead to the vain repetitions Christ clearly condemned (Matt. 6:7). If not careful, we could get on our knees daily and follow the exact same format laid out in Matthew 6:9-13 with only slight additions: “Our Father which is in heaven”—insert a little here—“Hallowed be Your name”—add a little more—“Your kingdom come”—include a tiny amount of detail here—“Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven”—say a little more about this. You get the point.

The same approach of repeating the model prayer verbatim with modest additions continues to the final sentence, “Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.”

Done over weeks, months and years, such a format becomes stale and impersonal. Imagine following the same framework for a conversation every day with a friend or loved one. You would quickly grow tired of it.

God instead wants our prayers to move past the basics of this model. As we grow and learn to get comfortable talking to Him, we should expand our topics the way a growing child talks to his dad over time—more in-depth, open, honest and uninhibited conversation.

Ephesians 3:12 says that we should approach the Father with “boldness” and our faith allows us to access Him “with confidence.” This should drive our approach to prayer! What a privilege that we can kneel before the Almighty God—with confidence—pouring our heart out before Him and expecting an answer!

Of course, we should ensure we always have the utmost respect for the Father—to fear Him—but we should also approach Him as someone who loves us, listens to us, and deeply cares about what is on our minds. No time or place to be timid here. Humble—yes! Sheepish—no!

What follows are assorted prayers found throughout the Bible. They make clear God’s willingness to be entreated and reasoned with. This thrilling fact should make God even more real to us. We should understand that our Father is not moved by rote, robotic, unimaginative discussions—but by real, down-to-earth conversations.

Prayers that Moved God

God’s Word is brimming with prayers from faithful servants. Let’s dig into just a few. As you read, notice how open, frank and sincere the words are from these Bible figures. There is much to learn here!

Jehoshaphat (II Chronicles 20:6-12): During an attack by a great multitude of enemies, King Jehoshaphat and the nation of Judah were fearful. Yet Jehoshaphat boldly cried out to God: “O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that comes against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon You” (vs. 12).

Jehoshaphat’s prayer was short and to the point. He claimed God’s promise to protect His people. And God answered! Not only did He deliver Judah, He allowed them to spoil the attacking army.

Do not miss that this was a brief prayer. Yet it was still effective. Nowhere does God spell out how long our prayers should be, but He does say we should “pray always” (Eph. 6:18) and “without ceasing” (I Thes. 5:17). Quality is always better than quantity, but our prayers should naturally lengthen as we grow more spiritually mature.

Ezra (9:5-15): The priest Ezra was ashamed because Judah had intermingled with the surrounding heathen peoples. He took it upon himself to confess the sins of the nation—taking responsibility and including himself in being part of the problem. This is the attitude we should always find ourselves in when talking to God. (Read Psalm 51 when David came to God with a “broken and contrite heart.”)

In his prayer, Ezra reminded God what the prophets said. Ask: Would God have forgotten what He had inspired in His Word? The answer is obvious. Now, do you “remind” God of something that He had done previously? Do you boldly remind Him of clear Bible promises? Do you then expect Him to deliver? You have every right to do this as His sons and daughters! So get started!

Jonah (2:2-9): The prayer of Jonah is unlike any of the others we will study. It is safe to say that there has never again been a prayer like this one—from inside the fish that swallowed him! If you have ever wondered about where you were praying and whether it was appropriate, you can now be confident that anywhere is OK to pray if there is a need. (Of course, most spontaneous, emergency prayers should be done silently.)

Jonah recounted his trial while in the belly of the fish and talked about his change of heart. To most, this would seem unnecessary—would God have forgotten Jonah’s trial? Does God not say He knows what we are thinking before we speak (Psa. 139:4)? Yet, after this prayer, God had the fish spit Jonah out, and the prophet was then ready to do what God had assigned him to do in the first place.

Jabez (I Chronicles 4:10): This case is rather curious. It is placed in the middle of a genealogy. It is only one verse long, yet very direct: “Oh that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!”

Have you ever just told God how you were feeling? Have you ever just asked God for something you needed at the moment? Have you ever been too afraid to ask, thinking maybe the request was too direct, or too big, or too something else?

The example of Jabez reveals the answer. He asked broadly for God to bless Him. He also asked that his land holdings be expanded. Think of all the miracles and intervention required for God to fulfill these requests!

Again, note the brevity of the recorded prayer. Likely, Jabez entreated God on many occasions with more specific blessings he desired. Yet the point is clear: Never hold back asking God for things you desire within the confines of His Law. All you need to remember is what God requires from us: “He has showed you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Mic. 6:8).

One of the definitions of the word “walk” used here is “conversant.” When you pray, God says to not put any self-imposed requirements on discussions with Him.

God granted Jabez’ petition, and a big reason was likely that God favored his directness. Can we talk to the Father like that? We should—because He requires us to do so!

Hezekiah (II Kings 19:14-19 and 20:1-7): The first of Hezekiah’s two prayers involved him taking a letter from his enemy and spreading it out before God. This shows that we should sometimes approach God in an organized, business-like manner when circumstances dictate.

Make your time with God real! Hezekiah laid out the letter to show God the problem he was dealing with at that moment: “Look and see the words of Sennacherib [an Assyrian general]” (vs. 16). The king then made a direct, urgent request: “Save us!” (vs. 19).

Consider that God already knew the words of Sennacherib. Did He really need Hezekiah to lay the letter before Him? No, but our Father wants us to put our hearts into our petitions. Such organized prayers can help us draw close to God just as much as shorter, spontaneous ones.

There is nothing wrong with bringing your Bible to quote promises God has made, a notebook to record thoughts that come to you during prayer and even a calendar to discuss various plans you have.

Hezekiah also gave a moving prayer as he lay dying from sickness. He reminded God, “Remember that I did right” (20:3). This straightforward plea of stating a fact changed God’s mind—the king was granted 15 more years of life!

Nehemiah (1:4-11): Nehemiah was troubled by the people’s conduct and asked for repentance. He said the following things to God:

• “Let Your ear now be attentive, and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant” (vs. 6). Did God need this instruction? Was He distracted? No! But He wants to see such earnestness from His children.
• “Remember…the word that You commanded Your servant Moses…” (vs. 8). Would God have forgotten? I repeat: NO! But coming with specificity—such as recounting miracles in the Old Testament—brings weight to your requests.

Be Fervent!

God’s servants over the millennia were bold as a lion (Prov. 28:1) and were able to speak to God through prayer as if He was right next to them (including in a fish). You should do the same! Bold means being confident, sure of yourself. Do you have boldness before God? Having boldness shows you really believe you are talking to God instead of just going through the motions.

Learn to engage with the Father and reveal to Him your deepest thoughts and emotions. We are His children.

We covered just a scant few of the prayers recorded in Scripture. From now on, as you read your Bible, consider how these petitions were delivered—and the results of those conversations with God. Note the heartfelt boldness, sincerity and humility. Mine these accounts to help you more effectively communicate with God as you mature as a Christian.

Approaching the God of the universe can seem intimidating because of His vastness and greatness. While this is true, we must never forget He is like any father—someone who created us and wants to know us at a deeper level.

We are not robots—God knows that—He designed us to be like Him! He does not want rehearsed, monotonous drivel—He wants our uniqueness.

The mother of Samuel, Hannah, said she “poured out my soul before the Lord” (I Sam. 1:15) because she was “in bitterness of soul and prayed…and wept sore” (vs. 10). Hannah was deeply troubled, and she did not hide it from God.

We can approach God when we are troubled, inquisitive, happy, frustrated—any emotion we may be experiencing—because He wants us to be honest about our feelings.

Jesus displayed raw emotion in an extremely short prayer while being crucified: “Why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:46). Christ knew that He had to be separated from the Father for a short time to become our Savior. Yet that did not make Jesus’ feelings any less true—He felt utterly alone and prayed to God about it. Although this is a unique example, the point is obvious: We should be sharing how we are feeling with our God.

Expect Big Results!

James 5:16 states that the fervent prayer of a righteous man or woman avails much. This includes more structured, daily prayers as well as intimate, heartfelt talks with our Father.

As we grow, so should the depth and richness of our prayers. Yes, we should follow the basics of the model prayer, but we can expand into a much more intimate realm as we get to know our Father more deeply. God wants us to share our life with Him—and life is not always neat and clean.

Just as parents long to be involved in their children’s lives, we need to have a comfort level that allows us to approach God’s throne boldly (Heb. 4:16) and talk about everything and anything to Him (Phil. 4:6-7).

Can we get to the point that we can share the good, the bad and the ugly with God? Can we share with God exactly how we feel—whether joy, sadness, anger, guilt or fear? Make this a major goal for your prayers so you can move beyond the basics. Being transparent and genuine with our Father opens our minds to fully receive His response.

God is completely familiar with us already, and He wants us to be just as familiar with Him. We do that by learning about Him (studying His Word) and talking to Him (prayer), as a King, a Father, and even a friend. God called David a friend (Acts 13:22). It should not be a surprise that He did this—just look at the Psalms and how David spoke to God! He displayed every emotion imaginable and God loved David for that. Friends are open and sincere when they talk to each other. We can have that type of relationship as well.

As long as we are following God’s Way, we can be sure we will be heard (I John 5:14; 3:22; I Pet. 3:12; Prov. 15:29; Psa. 34:17).

There is nothing that is “off the table” when it comes to going before our Father. We have permission anytime, anywhere, to walk into God’s throne room and boldly start a conversation with Him. We know we can—because many others have gone before us and showed us how!