The Lord Jesus regularly, often in the pre-dawn hours of the day, enjoyed private and personal communion with His Father. The disciples witnessed the Lord’s inspiring prayer life, and they too desired a meaningful experience with God. They earnestly asked the Savior, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Lk. 11:1). And the Lord did just that, but not by teaching them a prayer to be repeated; He taught them in what “manner” to pray, or how to pray (Mt. 6:7-9). The Lord began His instruction by addressing His Father: “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name” (Mt. 6:9 kjv). Prayer is a great privilege of each child of God. When we talk to God, let’s remember to whom we speak, because God, His name and His dwelling place transcend all that is common and earthly. God is holy!

What Does Prayer Accomplish?
There are two wonderful benefits of prayer. First, prayer moves the hand of God. Acknowledging this fact, Watchman Nee once said, “Prayer can do anything that God can do.” Warren Wiersbe put it this way, “Prayer is not an escape from responsibility; it is our response to God’s ability. True prayer energizes us for service and battle.”

Second, prayer moves the believer Godward. Right praying expresses two things: our dependence upon and submission to God. Missing one or both of these attitudes will be at the core of a fruitless prayer-life. Prayer molds and shapes us to be like Christ. Charles Spurgeon wrote, “All the Christian virtues are locked up in the word ‘prayer’.”

What Are Some Hindrances?
James writes “The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (Jas. 5:16). Here are seven hindrances to an effective prayer life.

1. “Ye have not, because ye ask not” (Jas.4:2). Prayer is perhaps the most fruitful human exercise, but the easiest one to neglect. Prayer requires effort, so be sure to leave strength for praying. In reality, we often do not pray, because we believe we can do what God cannot.

2. “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss” (Jas. 4:3). Petitions which are lust motivated cost us dearly, because we have lost sight of both the humility and simplicity of Christ. We have lost sight of His desires for us.

3. We pray for show, for the praise of men, not the help of God (Mt. 6:5). The fact that we are conscious of what others think of our prayers, verifies to whom we are actually speaking. Effective prayer is communicating with God, not performing for men.

4. We pray vainly without thinking, or by rote (Mt. 6:7). Children often do this when young, because it’s easier to say a familiar prayer than speak from the heart. But how would our spouse, children and other believers respond if all of our speech was robotic noise? True communication gives evidence of life.

5. We don’t pray to God sincerely and persistently (Mt. 7:7). “Without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Heb. 11:6). Amy Carmichael understood this and said, “God always answers us in the deeps, never in the shallows of our soul.”

6. We don’t pray in God’s will (1 Jn. 5:14; Jn. 14:13-15). We are out of touch with the mind of Christ or want to force God to do what we think is best, rather than casting the whole matter before Him at the throne of grace. Concerning this hindrance to prayer, Andrew Murray said, “In your prayer, above everything, beware of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but also by fancying that you know what He can do.” Prayer is not a name-it-and-claim-it practice which ignores the will of God.

7. We petition God while continuing in sin. James says that the prayers of a “righteous man” accomplish much. It is a mockery of God’s holy character to approach Him in prayer, while at the same time pretending to be in good fellowship with Him. We know when we are not in communion with Him, and He feels it all the more. Just as the priests of old stopped at the laver to wash their hands and feet before entering the tabernacle, each believer should confess and repent of his sin before entering God’s presence (1 Jn. 1:9). Our sensitivity to sin is a good measure of our spiritual maturity.

When Should We Pray?
There should be regular times throughout the day to pray. “Don’t pray,” Corrie Ten Boom once said, “only when you feel like it. Have an appointment with the Lord and keep it. A man is powerful on his knees.” Our whole life should be characterized by ongoing prayer. If we are worried about the need to be in God’s presence to pray, there is a problem. The believer’s life should be one in which we are always conscious of being in the Lord’s presence. And being there, we are to “pray without ceasing” (1 Th. 5:17).

There may be periods in which we do not audibly speak to the Lord, but that’s different from cold silence. If we went on a long road trip with a good friend, we might later tell someone else about it by saying, “We talked the whole way.” In fact, there were periods of silence, yet we were never conscious of being estranged from our friend; there was no break in fellowship.

Keeping an ongoing prayer list or journal may prove helpful for noting both our requests and how God answers them. Some use note cards or “sticky notes” at various locations around the house to remind them to pray.

D. L. Moody concisely summarized what a believer’s prayer attitude should be: “Careful for nothing, prayerful for everything, thankful for anything.”

The Lord’s Example
On the night before He died, John recorded that our Lord told His disciples six times to pray to the Father in His name (Jn. 14:13,14; 15:16; 16:23,24,26). Prayer would be their resource for seeing the glory of God in their lives. Are you seeing the glory of God manifested through your prayers both individually and as a family?

How often do we surge ahead of the perfect plan of God? Waiting is often harder than working. We feel compelled to do something, but often it is not to pray. Prayer demonstrates complete faith in the Lord to initiate, direct, and complete each matter of our lives according to His will (1 Jn. 5:14). Besides moving the hand of God to affect His glory, prayer transforms our hearts by conforming our thoughts to the mind of Christ.

Before choosing His disciples, the Lord spent an entire night in prayer (Lk. 6:12). The Lord prayed before feeding the 5000, just prior to Peter’s pronouncement that He was “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” and before raising Lazarus from the dead (Lk. 9:16; Jn. 11:41-43). The Lord’s final hours before Calvary were spent in prayer (Jn. 17:1-26; Lk. 22:39-46). The prayer life of the Lord Jesus was so intense and so fruitful that, on one occasion, the disciples asked the Savior to teach them how to pray. They wanted in on the blessings of prayer.

You And Your Family
How is your prayer life personally? How is your family’s prayer life? We should follow the Lord’s example. Prayer preceded service and followed accomplishments. Prayer preceded crisis and followed achievements. “And He spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint” (Lk. 18:1).

By Warren Henderson