If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:7)
What if I could tell you the secret to prayer? What if I could peel back the spiritual curtain and expose how prayer works, why it works, and how you can be confident in your prayers?
What if I could give you a system that would ensure that every prayer your pray would be answered exactly as you wanted it to be? Would that be of interest to you?
Unfortunately, no one can provide such answers. Prayer doesn’t work that way. There is no trick or hidden system to it. In many ways, prayer doesn’t always make sense.
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Of course, this doesn’t mean that Scripture has nothing to say about prayer. Prayer is essential to the Christian life; thus, a myriad of verses highlight the subtle nuances of this spiritual activity.
There is a faithful, biblical way we are called to pray, which undoubtedly unlocks the Spirit’s power in our intercessions. Here are three things to keep in mind if we wish to empower our prayers.
1. Ask the Right Way
We sometimes think that the effectiveness of prayer relates to what we pray for or what we say. Yet Scripture speaks more prominently about how we pray.
James writes, “You want something but don’t get it, so you kill. You covet, but you cannot have what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive because you ask wrongly” (James 4:3).
James is writing to Christian people who pray for the satisfaction of their needs or wants. While what they prayed for may have been good, holy even, James is clear that how they prayed was wrong in some way.
Prayer is more than the words we say. We can not empower our prayers simply by saying the right words, even if those words are “in Jesus’ name.” Nor are longer prayers more effective prayers. In fact, Jesus speaks about how hypocritical prayer is based solely on the multiplicity of words.
He says, “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him (Matthew 6:7-8).
At its heart, prayer must be about connecting to the Holy Spirit and the work of the Kingdom.
Asking the right way is not about finding the right string of words to say in our petitions. We can use the right words and still be self-focused in our petitions. True prayer occurs when our words flow out of a faithful response to God.
Ultimately, prayer is rooted in our longing for God. We ask rightly when we ask out of a desire for God’s presence and power to be revealed.
This is why the petition “thy will be done” occurs before the petition for “our daily bread” (Matthew 6:10-11). Desiring the furthering of God’s kingdom before all things is the first step in empowering our prayers.
2. Live the Right Way
We cannot pray one way but live another. Prayer flows from a life lived in devotion to God, one that is responsive to the Holy Spirit. As Christian people, the direction and focus of our lives are directed toward following the way of Jesus and not in vainly seeking our own greatness.
In his critique of the Pharisees, Jesus describes how they love to “stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others” (Matthew 6:5). Self-focused prayers are rarely infused with the Spirit’s power.
Although we often pray for our needs and wants, prayer isn’t actually about getting what we want — it is about living out a connection with Jesus. The true aim of all prayer is to have God’s power revealed in our lives.
A life that believes God’s role is to maximize our pleasures and our wants completely contradicts the very ethic in prayer.
We may use the right words, but we will never experience the full power of God in prayer because our life is fundamentally lived in the opposite direction. God also desires that our lives move in the direction of the Spirit, and whenever we pray, we open ourselves to that movement.
A life grounded in a faithful relationship with Christ is fundamentally different from a life focused solely on our pleasures.
James describes this life as one “from above that is pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive, reasonable, and filled with good fruit” (James 3:17).
In fact, James uses the same word as John in John 3:16. Living the right way is equal to living the born-again life. A born-again life is lived in the power of the Holy Spirit and an active relationship with Jesus.
3. Have the Right Heart
When we think about “asking the right way” or “living the right way,” it can be easy to reduce such things to a system of religion. This is what the Pharisees and Sadducees did.
Asking the right way was seen to be nothing more than using the correct phrases and terms; living the right way was about adhering as closely to the law as possible.
Yet in their desire to follow the system they had created, they failed to have a heart drawn in love with their Lord. As the old saying goes, the heart of the matter is the matter of the heart.
As Christian people, we are to be connected to God with a heart of devotion, service, and praise. Behind every prayer is a spirit that says, “Here I am. I receive your will and purpose.”
Prayer doesn’t pull God close to us; prayer pulls us to God. All prayer, therefore, is to be a longing for a deeper experience of Christ’s Lordship. This is how Paul can write that we are to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:16).
Rather than describing an endless shopping list presented to God, Paul highlights a heart constantly reaching out for Jesus. The surest way to have our prayers empowered by the Spirit is to have our hearts enflamed with the Spirit’s presence. We live our lives prayerfully.
Why Does This Matter?
There is nothing that delights God more than being able to flow through our petitions. Of course, asking the right way, living the right way, and having a heart directed to Jesus, don’t ensure that God will grant every single petition.
Every Christian will have to wrestle with unanswered prayer. We are imperfect people living in an imperfect world. And, despite our best efforts and sincere faith, our prayers are never the magic wand that makes life adhere to our wishes.
But this doesn’t mean we can’t pray. In fact, we are called to be bold in our prayers. God is the one who hears us and answers us before we call (Isaiah 65:24).
Furthermore, unyielding grace surrounds our prayers. There is no need, passion, or desire that we cannot lift to God in prayer.
So, pray faithfully and biblically, but pray boldly. You may just find yourself experiencing the Spirit’s power in a magnificent way.
For further reading:
4 Reasons Why Prayer Time Is Unique to Christians
What Is Prayer? Why Do We Pray?
5 Tools for Growing Your Prayer Life
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/MangoStar_Studio
The Reverend Dr. Kyle Norman is the Rector of St. Paul’s Cathedral, located in Kamloops BC, Canada. He holds a doctorate in Spiritual formation and is a sought-after writer, speaker, and retreat leader. His writing can be found at Christianity.com, crosswalk.com, ibelieve.com, Renovare Canada, and many others. He also maintains his own blog revkylenorman.ca. He has 20 years of pastoral experience, and his ministry focuses on helping people overcome times of spiritual discouragement.
This article is part of our prayer resources meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us, and God knows your heart even if you can't find the words to pray.
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