Different Kinds Of Prayer (Part 5)

THE DAILY WORD
By Jim Seekamp

Monday August 3, 2009

Although the Lord's prayer is not a Christian prayer (Jesus had not yet died and risen when He taught it to the disciples, who were under Old Testament law at the time), we can learn a lot from it:

Matthew 6:9-13 (NIV) (Jesus speaking)
9. "This, then, is how you should pray: "'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10. your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11. Give us today our daily bread. 12. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'"

The first thing Jesus wanted the disciples to do when they prayed was to praise God! (Hallowed be Your Name) Then He wanted them to pray that His Kingdom would come (It did when Jesus arose from the dead), and that His will would be done on earth as it is in Heaven. (once again proving that God's will wasn't being done on the earth; otherwise Jesus wouldn't have told them to pray that.) Then was the request for daily needs (our daily bread), forgiveness from sins (Jesus had not yet died and arisen, so the law wasn't canceled yet), and finally protection and deliverance from satan's attacks (Jesus had not yet died and arisen, so they didn't have a position of authority over satan yet.)

The thing that stands out the most is beginning with praise. We can praise God in english (or whatever native language) or in tongues:

1 Corinthians 14:15-17 (NIV)
15. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. 16. If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say "Amen" to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? 17. You may be giving thanks well [enough], but the other man is not edified.

When we pray in tongues, we praise God well! The word 'enough' in verse 17 is not in the original Greek. That's the only place in the New Testament that tells us how to praise God well!
That means that ideally, praying in tongues should be done before any requests are made. Praising God is part of worship, and in the following example from Acts, worship is tied in with prayer:

Acts 13:2,3 (NIV)
2. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3. So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

The church was worshipping the Lord and fasting when they received guidance from the Holy Spirit. In verse 3, it tells us "after they had fasted and prayed," so we know that they were worshipping and PRAYING. We can hear the Holy Spirit better and bear witness to what He is saying more easily when we're in worship; but they also had to be listening in order to hear. It is important in times of prayer and worship to spend time listening besides speaking and singing.

PRAYER
Thank You Father for Your Word, which tells me so many good things about prayer. Give me wisdom and guidance when I pray. Help me to walk in faith like You desire me to, trusting You to lead me by Your Spirit. Help me to understand You better through Your Word and to be sensitive to Your leading.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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