Christian Living

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Various Approaches in Prayer


The most fundamental characteristic in prayer is talking honestly and with ease to our Father, as one would with a best friend. Below are simply some different routes to take in our communing, in our journey through various life events, and as we develop our relationship with God.


1. Praising God's Beauty

God is a holy, unbelievably loving, perfectly wise and infinitely strong Lord. He deserves our praise, and He loves to hear our adoration. During praise we acknowledge and focus on the beauty of God. We thank Him for who He is, and we thank Him for specific things He has done in our personal lives. We medititate on His wonders and we breathe in His joyful Spirit. We can also consider the specific promises He has made to us, and thank Him that He has already accomplished them (even if they haven't been physically manifested yet). I know He must smile on us in a special way, during these times with Him.

And there are times when something special happens to us as we praise God. We feel more joy in our inner being, and perhaps we open the doors for a new move of God in our lives. When trying to take over Jericho, the Isrealites got special instruction on how they would get through the enormous wall that surrounded the city. They were told to march around it six days and on the seventh day, they were meant simply to praise God for giving them the city (though technically they hadn't gotten it yet). When they did these things, it worked. On the seventh day the wall fell while they were praising God (Joshua 6:1-27).

We may have tried everything else, but let us not forget to honor God and to invite His beauty into ourselves; sometimes it is here that new things take place.


2. Communing in Silence

Our minds are often going a hundred miles per minute. We are accustomed to running from one task to another. When we go to God, perhaps we only spill out all of our thoughts, make petition for our needs, and then run off to the next thing. But besides talking, we can also learn to quiet ourselves and connect with God in a deep way that sometimes can only occur in the silence and stillness. Though it can be difficult, especially if we are not used to it, taking a breather and making ourselves still is a wonderful habit to cultivate. Even if we are taking a minute in the morning, it can create a calm that travels with us. And we can increase the time with practice. Here we are able to find peace and feel His tenderness. I know from personal experience that the quiet times are hard to get used to at first, but after a bit it becomes a rich place of feeling God and being equipped for the day (I like to do it in the morning). This is also a place for God's voice. Perhaps He will make something known that we can only perceive in the silence. Or perhaps we will be made ready to hear it later.

There is also a silence that we can enter when we want to commune with God, and we are tired of using words or we don't know what to say exactly. I remember times when I just fell on my knees and stayed there for quite a while, considering that God knew exactly what I was feeling, and He knew what I needed. I considered giving my heart to Him; showing my need for Him. And I knew He felt with me in that deep place, exactly what I was feeling, while giving me His heart as well. It was a wonderful, inner experience of sharing my soul with my Father and Counselor.


3. Surrendering to God's will

There are times when we have been resistant to God, and we are invited again to surrender. In these moments we can make the choice to follow our limited views or God's greater one's. And it is a matter of how much we trust that He is loving enough to be trusted, and powerful enough to take care of us. It is in these moments we can, with the help of God, acknowledge that we are not Lord of our lives and that God is great enough to deserve our following Him. We also remind ourselves that God's will is always what we will be happy about in the end; what is really good and brings joy. And we ask for the help to believe that truth.

There are also prayers we make when we are searching for what to do. Perhaps we are interviewing for a few jobs and we need to know what God wants for us. We ask for God to show us His plan and for His will to be done. There are also those times when we want a certain job, for example, but we are not sure if God also wants it for us. In times like these we can be honest and say, "Lord, I would really like this job. If it is your will, please make sure it happens for me. But if it is not your will, may you bring me something better instead."


4. Being Bold with what's Right

Oftentimes we don't realize how bold we can be with God. What I mean here specifically, is we may not truly consider the fact that Jesus lives in us, and is meant to pray through us; claiming what is right to take place on this earth.

There are certain matters that we need not ask about being the will of God. If we know the Bible and God's character, we can have certain expectations about what He would want. For example, we can know that God wants all men to discover Him and be saved by Christ. When we are praying for someone in this way, we can tell God that it must take place. Take another example, we know God wants to bring peace to those who have anxiety. We can pray with strength for that person to receieve the peace of the Holy Spirit. We use the authority of the Holy Spirit in us, to be serious with God and to fight for this person. In the spiritual realm, there are times we must be strong and take a real stance for a needed change. There is real power when we do that.

Of course, on many matters we must quiet ourselves and ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit so we can really know if God wants us to pray boldly for certain, more specific matters to take place. We must be careful that we are not speaking out of our own thinking and our need for control. But if we are self aware, we can notice these things. And fortunately, we need not be perfect in our feelings or approach because God refines our prayers and answers them in a way that is good and perfect.


5. Longing for Your Father

While the above makes us feel like we are partners with God to create change in this world, there are other times we must simply experience the comfort of our tender Father. It is here in His arms, that we can find rest when we are in turmoil, by asking with our hearts until it comes. It is here that we can admit our fears and know we are safe to be understood, and to be met in our need.

There are times I have admitted my desire to trust God and my difficulty in doing it. I feel able to be vulnerable, knowing He sees it in me and He understands. There have been other times when I am longing for a touch of comfort and/or hope, and I am not getting it anywhere else. Have you ever been there? You share your heart with another person, for example, and they say something that only makes you feel worse? I remember a specific moment like that, during my severe depression, when I reached out and was only more hurt after sharing. I was quickly reminded in that moment that God is the only One who knows exactly what I need right now. And He is the only one whose heart feels for mine in this moment, the way I long for. So, I literally hung up the phone after talking with this person, and I turned all of my focus to God. I cried out in pain and I called, "Daddy!" Over and over. And I began to feel His gentleness, His care, His compassion. And He calmed me in His arms. That is the safety of our Perfect Father.

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After we make all sorts of prayers, however we feel led at the time, we can rest; "Be still and know He is God." (Psalm 46"10). We can remember that He hears every word, takes seriously every heart request, and promises to answer what we ask in His will (1 John 5:14-15). After our petitions, it is time to leave it up to Him to do the hard stuff; knowing He is trustworthy to do it. Remembering that He is a truly loving and powerful God.

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