Prayer: Just Do It. ~ Day 1

In our desire to grow in relationship with the Lord, prayer becomes an essential component. It is a time to both speak to with God and to listen, especially drawing on His Word. With that in mind, each day in this series, we will focus on prayer in two ways: looking at the Scripture and considering practices that focus on deepening our relationship with the Lord.

Here are some Scriptures that describe how, when, and where we should pray:

• Matt 6:9-13 ~ "This, then, is how you should pray:" 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
• 1 Thes 5:17 ~ “pray continually…”
• Rom12:12 ~ faithful in prayer.
• Luke 6:12 ~ [The Twelve Apostles ] One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.
• Luke 9:18 ~ [Peter's Confession of Christ ] Once when Jesus was praying in private
• Ephesians 6:18 ~ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints
• Matthew 6:5–6 ~ "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men…But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.
• Mark 1:35 ~ [Jesus Prays in a Solitary Place ] Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.
• Ephesians 3:17-18 ~ …And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
• 1 Thessalonians 3:10 ~ Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.
• 2 Thessalonians 1:11 ~ With this in mind, we constantly pray for you,

Here is one style for practicing prayer:

ACTS • Adoration | Confession | Thanksgiving | Supplication
This acronym takes you through each stage of prayer as you reflect on the meaning behind each letter. Adoration is telling the Lord what you love about Him and what you know about Him to be true. Confession is “fessing” up to the Lord about your sins and commit to walk away from wrong living. Thanksgiving is when you give praise to the Lord for Him, His love, grace, mercy, and all the blessings in your life. And Supplication is when you present your needs and desires before the Lord.

Come back tomorrow to see some profound Scriptures that describe what the attitude of our heart and state of our relationships ought to be like before we enter into prayer.

Thanks for joining me! Feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts about prayer and if any of these Scriptures spoke to you today!