Personal Prayer
by Georgey Thomas
Prayer is the intimate relationship between man
and God. To be more precise, prayer happens when our spirit interacts
with the Spirit of God. Prayer can be loud, silent, occasional or
regular. Through prayer we ask God for our personal needs (Ex 32:11)
submits our heart (1 Samuel 1:15) becomes more intimate with God (Psalms
73:28) and we bow our knees before him in thanks giving (Ephesians
3:14). Prayer is like the dove that Noah sent forth, which blessed him
not only when it returned with an olive-leaf in its mouth, but when it
never returned at all.
We all may have different view points about prayer and how to pray, but
the word of God through Hebrews 10:22 clearly tells us how to pray. “Let
us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our
hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with
pure water.” Malayalam bible Sathyavedapusthakam is very clear in
explaining this.
NAAM DURMANASSAAKKSHI NEENGUMARU HRIDAYANGALIL THALIKAPPETTAVARUM SHUDHA
VELLATHAAL SHAREERAM KAZHUKAPPETTAVARUMAYI VISHWASATHINTE POORNA
NISCHAYAM POONDU PARAMARTHA HRIDAYATHODAY”.
That is, we must come to God with the knowledge that we are sinners and
submit us completely with reverence to Him. Not only that, when we pray,
pray with the faith that He listens to our prayers, and He is able to
answer our prayers and to fulfill His promises which are written in the
bible. In Matthew 7:7-8, 21:22 and Mark 11:24 we see that “whatsoever ye
shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” Again in John
14:13-14 and 16:23 we see that anything we ask in the name of Jesus will
be given to us. In short, we must always pray the prayer of FAITH not a
prayer of consecration. We all know that there is power in the name of
Jesus, in His Blood and in His Words, so make it a point to include all
three in your prayers.
There are a lot of examples in the bible which tells us how God answers
prayers. Genesis 24:10-20 we see God showing Abraham's servant, the
bride to his masters son. The believers in Jerusalem prayed, and God
opened the prison doors and set Peter at liberty, when Herod had
resolved upon his death (Acts 12:1-12). As we saw above, we must believe
and pray in faith.
In the example of the woman (Mark
5:25-32) who had an issue of blood for twelve years, it is mentioned
that:
1. she HEARD about
Jesus,
2. she BELIEVED that He is able to
heal her,
3. CAME looking for him,
4. TOUCHED the hem of His garment
in FAITH,
5. she was instantly HEALED,
6. when Jesus realized healing
power was released from Him he asked and she CONFESSED it with her
mouth.
This, I believe is one great
example of prayer. First of all we must hear about Jesus, for which we
need to read the Word of God. Secondly we must believe in Him that he is
able to answer our prayers. Third we must go looking for Him. Fourth, we
must touch Him in faith. Fifth, receive our blessings. Sixth, we must
confess with our mouth about our blessings so that it will remain in us.
By confessing the blessings we received, we not only give thanks to the
Lord but also help in strengthening the belief of another person.
I believe we must have a certain pattern in our
personal prayer. I tried this and found out to be very effective. I am
sure, if it helped me it will help you as well. Take some time or
arrange to sit in the presence of the Lord, and start your personal
prayer in this manner.
PRAISE: Think who our Lord is and what He is for you. Sit in a quiet
place and say it loud with your mouth.
WAIT on the LORD: Once you finish praising, sit quietly in his presence
and submit yourselves completely.
REPENT: Tell Him all your faults and defects. Admit you are a sinner and
ask for His forgiveness.
WORD OF GOD: Read the Bible. Look for promises written in that
particular reading portion.
MEDITATE: After bible reading, think about the promise you read and
listen how God is speaking to you.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER: Pray for others, family members, friends, higher
authorities in your work place, sick people, those who don’t have jobs,
for your country, for the place where you are, the rulers etc. and for
anything and anyone who requires prayer which you can think of. See all
those people who need prayer with your inner eye and anoint them with
the blood of Jesus.
REQUEST: Put you personal needs to Him.
THANKSGIVING: Think of all the blessings you have and thank Him.
SING UNTO THE LORD: Put everything that comes into your heart as a song
to the lord. Think of all the blessings and good things. You can include
some songs from the book also.
PRAISE: Think of all your blessings one more time and praise Him for
everything.
I believe, if you can put in 3 minutes for each item, you can have a
personal prayer of 30 minutes easily. Try practicing it and see how God
will talk to you. You will see greater blessings in your life.
Amen!
