“How do I pray for more than just a minute or two? What would I say?’

An honest question asked by a young woman inmate in the county jail where I teach a Bible study.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to pray, she wanted to know how to pray. And her questions caught me off guard. For you see, having grown up in church, prayer has been a constant in my life. Having been raised in a Christian home where my parent lived their faith, I heard the words of their prayers. I listened to how they prayed and witnessed the power of prayer.

So when this inmate asked her question about prayer, not only did I realize how blessed I have been, but also the necessity of teaching people how to pray.

After all, that is what Jesus did.

When his disciples wanted to know how to pray the way he prayed, Jesus mentored them by responding with what we call the “Lord’s Prayer.” We can still pray using the exact words of this prayer, but we can also use the pattern found in this prayer.

The Lord’s Prayer begins and ends with words of worship acknowledging the sovereignty of God. Our prayers can do the same by simply praising God with our own words – praising Him for who He is and thanking Him for what He has done for us.

The middle of the Lord’s Prayer is filled with these instructions:

• to make our requests known to God (our daily needs)
• to ask forgiveness for our sins and to examine our hearts to ensure that we have forgiven others
• to ask the Lord to guide and protect us.

By using the pattern of the Lord’s Prayer, we personalize these powerful “prayer words” of Jesus.

Then the Apostle Paul continues to teach us how to pray as we look closely at his prayers for the First Century churches. Look at his prayer for the Colossians:

“For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, . . . “ (Col.1:9-10)

 I grant you that Paul packed a lot in this two sentence prayer, but when we dissect it we discover yet another powerful model for prayer.

We can pray,

• To be filled with the knowledge of God’s will
• To receive spiritual wisdom and understanding
• To live a life pleasing to God
• To bear the “fruit” of good works
• To grow in the knowledge of God
• To be strengthened with His power to have endurance and patience

We can pray these truths for ourselves, our loved ones, our friends, or for anyone whom God puts on our hearts.  God isn’t looking for perfect people who can pray perfectly.   What pleases the Lord is when we carve out time to pray – to talk to Him and open our hearts to His response. And, these prayers of Jesus and Paul can help us do just that!

Is there something you have learned about prayer that you could share? Would love for you to post a reply!

Also, for those reading “A Hand on My Shoulder,” in the next two chapters, M.D. Beall affirms once again the significance and power of prayer.