Prayer for Beginners

I know that prayer can be a daunting topic for a lot of people when they're coming to faith. Things like the Lord's Prayer can seem scary and formal, and then you have other people saying to talk to God like he's your friend. So lets talk about it- is there really a right way to pray? 

Why pray? What is it? 

Lets start with a definition: prayer is a conversation and encounter with God. Just like any human relationship, in order to nurture a relationship with someone, you have to talk to them. Prayer IS our relationship with God. It's how we talk to Him, ask Him for help, and send Him our gratitude. 

Think about how you feel when you know someone wants to talk to you- when your friend stays up late because you're having such a good conversation, or when you sit in the car for an hour after you get home because you just have so much to say- now think about how happy you make God every time you come to Him in prayer. 

That being said, prayer shouldn't be something we do out of obligation, because we want God to be happy or we think it will make Him more proud or love us more, because spoiler alert: it won't. (If this is hard to grasp, think of the song Jireh - "I'll never be more loved than I am right now" God already has crazy, immeasurable, unconditional love for you. The amount of times that you do or don't pray isn't going to change that). Prayer is a response. 

My youth pastor used the phrase "duty to delight". It's a journey in every believer's life to go from "I have to pray before bed because it's the right thing to do" to "I get to talk to God and surrender my life to Him". 

Prayer is a beautiful thing. It's where you get to go to talk to the one person that will never love you less, no matter what absolutely crazy, out of pocket thing you admit to them. It's where you get to build your relationship with a God that you know is listening. 

How To

Now, is there a right way to pray? The answer may not be as simple as you'd like. In some denominations of Christianity, yes. If you consider yourself a specific denomination, or you feel pulled to their style of prayer, pray the way you feel comfortable. I personally, and most of the people in my Christian community are pretty much non-denominational, so we pray similarly to how we'd talk to each other. 

It is true that in the Bible, Jesus tells his disciples to "pray like this" and then says the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), but that doesn't mean those are the only words you're allowed to speak to Him. Lets break it down with a common acronym. 

A.C.T.S

A - adoration

C - confession 

T - thanksgiving

S - supplication

The first thing Jesus says is "Our Father", followed by "hallowed be your name". This is adoration in a very intimate way. Acknowledging that God is our Father, that He loves us like we're His own- what a thing to praise. We praise Him that He loves us and takes care of us like children, but we also acknowledge and praise His power and holiness (hallowed). This section is Jesus, praising the Father for who He is. 

Next is confession. There isn't a line of this prayer that I feel comfortable linking to this step. Why? I'm not a theologian, so I can't be sure. However, in my head I think it makes sense that Jesus doesn't do confession, because He has nothing to confess. Jesus was, as we know, the perfect spotless lamb. So maybe He doesn't do this step because He doesn't have anything to confess. I sure do though! Confession might seem like an intimidating, scary word. But confession is just us bringing our sin to God, which is a powerful tool for growth. He already knows, so you might as well admit it to yourself. 

Then comes thanksgiving. I parallel this to "your kingdom come, your will be done". That's something a lot of Christians find ourselves thanking God for- that at the end of the day, His will is going to be done. His plan is going to be fulfilled. And maybe that's what you thank God for in your prayer- that no matter what is going on now, that you know the promises He's made you, and that he's working for your good. Maybe it's something as simple as "hey God, thank you for that really good cookie I had earlier that was awesome!" or "thank you thank you thank you for that job I got today, I really wanted it!" There is no thing too big or small to thank God for. 

Last is supplication. "Give us this day our daily bread" and "deliver us from evil". Supplication can be defined as simply "the act of asking for something earnestly or humbly". Supplication is things that you need Gods help with. Jesus knows the people cannot deliver themselves, they can't sustain themselves- they need God for that. Similarly, it's important to know that you can't do things in your own strength either. You can't fight your sin yourself, or make decisions out of your own wisdom- you need God. Ask God. 

So, can you only pray the Lords Prayer? No. Do you have to choose the strongest, most formal sounding words in your vocabulary? No. Do you have to pray? No. You get to! And how great is that? :)