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For a Quick Summary of the Keys to Prayer, Scroll Down to
Points 16 & 17 on This Page |
The Art of
Prayer The plan of God is to end evil and suffering forever (Exodus 34:6-7; Matthew 13:37-43; I Corinthians 15:24-28; 1 Timothy 1:5; Revelation 21-22). The ultimate purpose of God in all His present dealings with man is to bring him back to the place where he was before the fall (beloved fellowship) and purge him of all possibility of failing in the future. “The object and purpose of our instruction and charge is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, and a clear conscience, and genuine faith.” —1 Timothy 1:5 Prayer
is a real art that must be learned before we can get anything that we want
from God. It is simply the art of a child getting things from its
perfect, unconditionally loving father. This
takes in the idea of true relationship between God and the one who prays
(Matt. 7:7-11). We must learn to draw nigh to God and rely wholly
upon Him for needed grace for body, soul, and spirit (James
4:7-10). We must become skilled in faith and prayer and
cease all doubting, as we have seen in other pages, and then prayer will
become a simple transaction of love-business between God the perfect Father
and His child. In
learning to pray, we must practice prayer until we become
accomplished. It is like learning to do any other
thing. ‘Practice makes perfect’ and without this it will not be
accomplished. We can learn all about prayer and if we do not
practice much and often the art of praying will not be
learned. Concentrate upon prayer whenever time
permits. Even learn to pray while at work. This can be
done with great profit. We can work better or do anything much
better if we will learn to pray at
all times. Prayer is being in intimate union and harmony with God and naturally those in
intimate harmony can do things so much better. We will succeed in
life to the extent we harmonize with God and His creation. Make
prayers as simple and definite as possible. Turn all your problems
over to Him. Depend upon Him to help you and He
will. Do not be afraid to take the least problem to Him for He
cares and is pleased when we have simple child-like faith in Him. He
has revealed to us that even the very hairs of our head are numbered and that
not one sparrow falls to the ground without His knowledge (Matt.
10:21-31). Let God be your friend in every area of your heart and phase
of life. “Prayer is our declaration of dependence on the
Lord.” ("Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain
in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do
nothing.” —Y’shua Messiah (Jesus the Christ) @
John 15:5) —Philip
Yancey He is interested in your salvation
(your freedom, your health, your finances, your relationships, your business,
your recovery) and in all things you are concerned about. Do all you can and then
leave the rest with God. GROUND FOR
ASKING AND RECEIVING The
true ground for prayer and its answer is to accept His gift of freedom
and have the right relationship to God. Only those persons who
truly believe in, trust in, cling to,
rely on, in relationship with Him have the right to ask and receive
anything that they want from God. (Many refer to these as the
“saved.”) Those who rebel and refuse to surrender their lives to God and
become reconciled to Him have no true ground of approach to God except to repent. They
have no foundation for their faith except promises of
forgiveness. (This is why many refer to these as the “unsaved.”)
God, many times in His mercy, helps the unsaved and hears their cry of
despair, but He is not obligated to do for them what He has promised His children
until they obey Him. It is merely because He wants to prove to the
unsaved His love and mercy even though s/he is a rebel that God sometimes
hears an unsaved person. Paul said, "the goodness of God
leads us to change [repentance]" and "God commends His love toward
us, in that, while we were yet missing the mark (sinners) Christ died for
us" (Rom. 2:4; Rom 5:8). WHAT THE
UNSAVED CAN LEGALLY CLAIM The
first promise that the unsaved can legally claim through the death of Christ
is that of forgiveness and cleansing from all sin (Acts 2:38;Acts
3:19; 1 John 1:9). If an unsaved person will truly repent and turn
from sin to hating it [righteousness] and accept His gift of freedom, s/he is
immediately on praying grounds for anything else that God has promised to
man. So a right relationship with God is the true ground of asking
and receiving (Matt. 7:7-11; Luke 11:1-13; John 14:12-15; John 15:7,16; John
16:23-26; 1 John 3:20-24;1 John 5:13-15). ASKING AND
RECEIVING ARE PERSONAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN With
the proper relationship to God it becomes our family right, our legal right,
our redemptive right, our gospel right, our needful right and our creative
right to ask and receive anything and everything that the perfect Father has promised His own
children. There should be no question as to personal rights or the
outcome of prayer according to those rights, for all things belong to God and
His children, and His sons will inherit all things in the end when rebellion
is put down (Rom. 8:17-18; 1 Peter 1:2-5). If all things belong to
us and we will finally inherit them, why should it not be our right to get
what God has promised we can have in this life?! Y’shua
the Messiah (Jesus the Christ) taught us that children of God have a right to
get all their prayers answered. Some argue that it is not God's
will to answer every prayer; but we answer, it is always God's will to answer any
prayer that is prayed in faith
for any thing that is covered by the promises of God. (See Point 13 below.) When
the Gentile woman came to Jesus to get her daughter healed, Jesus answered,
"It is not meet [fair/good] to take the children's bread, and cast it to
the dogs" (Matt. 15:21-26). She answered wisely and asked for
only the "crumbs" that are the right of a dog. He could
not resist her faith and said, "O woman, great is thy faith:
be it unto thee even as thou wilt; and her daughter was made whole from that
very hour." This certainly teaches that children of God have certain
rights in the heavenly family. They have just as much right to
expect good things from God as any child in an earthly family has a right to
expect things from his wealthy and loving parents. At least one
has the rights of a dog if not the rights of a child, so let us have at least
the faith of a dog if not the faith of a child.
Crafted Prayer, a Master Key in Asking and Receiving
Prayer
is not meant to be used like a fisherman’s net to trawl for the will of God.
Instead, we use prayer to pray the will of God, and that brings us into a
place of faith and proclamation. We grow in confidence in the will of God, as
our prayers change us to be more like Him. We have decided to follow the
process that God has ordained in the circumstances He has allowed to unfold. “For
whom he foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His
Son,” Paul wrote in Romans 8:29 In
every situation, there is a pathway that enables you to become more like
Jesus. A part of your prayer initiative is to find what it is that God wants
you to do to become more like Him. There is always an area of our life where
we need to become more like Christ, and the Lord is saying to us: “If you
will follow the way that I want to pray, you will not only have the answer to
that prayer, but you will grow in Me. There is a predestined, predetermined
thing I want to become in every situation. I want to give you more of
Myself.” God
can utilize every obstacle, every problem, every attack to teach you to
become more like Jesus. That’s why every problem comes with a provision
attached to it. As Christians, we must stand in the midst
of the problem, knowing God’s promise, and expect a provision. All
things work together for good in the economy of God. There are no Great
Depressions or stock market crashes. “Who
shall separate us from the Love of Christ?” Paul asked in Romans 8:35. Nothing,
he answers a few verses later: “Neither death nor life, nor angels nor
principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height
nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the
love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Be strongly encouraged to
consider that all of the things Paul mentioned are
actually designed to reveal God’s love for us. When
we craft a prayer, our crisis becomes an opportunity for God to work.
Everything is useful to our growth in the spirit because God is for us in every
situation. Look at the list of what cannot separate us from the love of God:
accusation, condemnation, tribulation, distress, persecution, famine,
exposure, peril, the sword, death, life, angels, principalities, things
present, things to come, height, and depth. It doesn’t matter how big and
powerful the thing against us is — God has made us more than conquerors.
Prayer is about certainty. There should be boldness in our hearts when we
pray. Heaven is listening to our prayers. Everything in God’s heart wants to
tell you, “This is what I want to do. Pray like this.” Jesus said in Mark
11:24, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things
you ask when you pray, believe that you have received them, and they
will be granted you.” When
we pray in faith the will of God, whatever we ask will be given. There is no
difference between an anointed prayer and an unanointed prayer. Prayer is
prayer to God. [Source] Be
strongly encouraged to consider this
concise video lesson. Prayer, the Keys of Asking and Receiving 1. LEARN TO PRAY PEOPERLY. This is one of the greatest lessons to
learn about prayer. We cannot get an answer unless we pray properly. In Luke
11:1 we have a record of the disciples observing how J’shua
the Messiah (Jesus the Christ) prayed. They knew that God always heard Him.
There was such absolute simplicity and assurance when He prayed, and there
came a hunger to them to know how to pray as He could. They asked Him
"Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples." This
should be the daily longing of every true child of God. The need of knowing
how to pray properly is the need of the hour. Christ
is the greatest teacher of prayer. He practiced it Himself. We must learn to
pray like Jesus, and God will always hear us, for He always heard Him and God
is no respecter of persons (Rom. 2:11). The following points will enable
anyone to learn the art of prayer as far as knowing what to do is concerned.
They never will give a practical experience of prayer. That remains for much
practice in following doggedly the lessons learned by us concerning what to
do to get answers to prayer. Knowing what to do and doing it are two
different things. There must be not only a knowledge, but there must be
obedient yielding to the light we have concerning prayer if we are to get an
answer to prayer. Since we know our need of knowing how to pray, and since we
have the greatest teacher to help us to pray—and who is already interceding
for us—let us apply ourselves until prayer becomes second nature to us as it
was with Him. 2. THE MODEL PRAYER. (Luke 11:2-4). The so-called Lord's Prayer
is really a prayer for disciples or learners of how to pray. It was given on
the occasion when the disciples asked, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John
also taught his disciples" (Luke 11:1-4). All of us believers can
consider ourselves mere learners and model after this prayer until we have
graduated from the school of prayer. At least, until the time comes when we
get every prayer answered that we pray. With this as the goal, we can all
consider ourselves in the same school learning the same lessons on prayer.
There are several lessons we need to learn about this prayer: (1)
OUR FATHER. This teaches a new and right relationship to God by the new birth
(John 3:1-8; 2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 5:24; John 15:7; 1 John 2:29; 3:7-10; 5:1-4,
13-18). It is generally taught that people in the Old Testament days never
dared address God as "Father," because they were not born again,
but a search for scriptures to prove this point only proves the contrary.
People of all ages past were born again by faith in the coming
Redeemer and His blood that was to be shed, just as we today are born again
by faith in the blood that has been shed. This is clear from Deut. 14:1;
32:18; 2 Sam. 7:14; 2 Chron. 28:6; Isa. 1:2; 63:16; Hosea 1:10; Ps. 82:6;
Gal. 4:28-30; Starting us off
with “Our Father” is also to awaken in us: - Child-like trust and faith - Child-like dependence - Child-like submission - Child-like awe and reverence - Father-child relationship Not
only should we have the new and right relationship to God, but we must learn
to whom prayer should be addressed. God the perfect Father—our Father, is the
one that should be addressed in prayer. J’shua
(Jesus) taught us that in John 16:23-26, "In that day [when I go back to
the Father] you shall ASK ME NOTHING.... Whatsoever you shall ASK THE FATHER
in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have you asked nothing in my name: ASK, AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE, that your joy may be full.... At that
day you shall ASK IN
MY NAME." God the
Father is the head of Christ and the Holy Spirit, and therefore He should be
the one directly addressed in prayer (1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 3:14-16). The
habit of praying either to Jesus or to the Holy Spirit personally is best to
be broken, for we have no authority for any such praying. It is true that God
overlooks ignorance of this fact as well as of other facts but if we want to
learn to pray, we should learn right and always practice what we learn. God's
Word should not be ignored on this point any more than on other points.
Children of God sometimes, because of the freedom that they have found in
Christ, willfully ignore certain ‘technical’ facts of truth and never seem
concerned to obey to the letter. This may be the cause of so much unanswered
prayer, for we are told that "to him that knoweth
to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). People
sometimes take the attitude that we are not going to pay any attention to
little details like this, but we warn that it would be best to keep the
letter of the Word at least, since an attitude which disregards things
written is certainly not the spirit of the Word. God commands obediently yielding
to the Word, not to what we think is right. It will not be a sin to obey the
letter. When we transgress the letter of the Word, we do not obey the spirit
or the letter of the Word. To do the will of God will not make us formal. If
it does, to maintain a form is much better than to disobey God and His Word.
Saul learned that, and his lesson was recorded for our profit (1 Sam.
15:22-30). We are
not trying to teach that one should not recognize Christ or the Holy Spirit
in prayer and communion. Give them their proper scriptural place and worship
all three persons in the Godhead and commune with all three in the proper
way, but address all petitions to the Father in the name of Jesus by the
power of the Holy Spirit. Praying in the name of Jesus to Jesus is
foolish, and praying to God and not in the name of Jesus has no promise of
reward. All prayer that ignores Jesus or the Holy Spirit in their proper
place is not a true biblical prayer and has no assurance of being heard by
God. (2)
"WHICH ART IN HEAVEN." This teaches that people are associated with
God in Heaven itself, and states the place where God dwells. Paul said,
"our conversation [citizenship] is in heaven; from whence we look for
the Saviour" (Phil. 3:20-21). The child of God
should constantly recognize the source of his blessings and the place of his
citizenship, which guarantees to him certain rights just as much as any
citizen of any other country. (3)
"HALLOWED BE THY NAME." This teaches the new manner of approach to
God. Worship, adoration, and praise should precede petitions and go along
with them (Phil. 4:6; Heb. 13:15-16). This procedure abounds in all the
psalms. If our praise of God balanced our asking, we would receive more.
Praise demonstrates faith, and faith brings the answer to prayer. If we do
not seem to have faith, let us praise God much for what we have received and
what we are going to receive, and faith will grow that will dare believe God
for anything. (4)
"THY KINGDOM COME." This puts the interests of God and the kingdom
first—the needs of others before our own desires. This is loving our
neighbors as ourselves. The (5)
"THY WILL BE DONE, AS IN HEAVEN, SO IN EARTH." This accepts and
agrees with the Father's will in all things. It is submission in prayer to
the will of God, yet refuses to be denied concerning all that is promised as God's
will. If we would be just as dogged in refusing failure in prayer as we are
in accepting failure, there would be very little failure. In the
sermon on the (6)
"GIVE US DAY BY DAY OUR DAILY BREAD." After we have followed the
above instructions, we have the proper relationship to God; we have directed
our prayer to the right source; we have worshipped God, not to get from Him,
but because we love Him; we have put the interests of the kingdom first; we
have the definite promises
before us that definitely cover our needs; and we accept what we are to pray
for as the will of God; then we are ready to make our petition known to God.
It is sad to say that the majority of us who pray have our own interests
first and always. All we know about prayer is "Give me, give me, give
me," and that is about all God hears. This is all right in its proper
place, but we must show God we have His interests at heart as well as those
of others and that we love Him and long to bless others regardless of
personal needs. When Solomon took this attitude he was heard of God (1 Kings
4:4-15). When
Charles Page, a multi-millionaire of (7)
"AND FORGIVE US OUR SINS; FOR WE ALSO FORGIVE EVERY ONE THAT IS INDEBTED
TO US." Confession of sins and personal wrongs to others goes far in
getting answers to prayers. We cannot expect to keep sinning or have the
wrong attitude toward others and still be heard of God. If we would quit the
sin business and live in peace, and love all others as the gospel teaches,
answers from God could be expected without going through a long process of
building up faith again.
In Matt. 6:14, Jesus based answer to prayer upon mercy shown to others. When
we forgive we can expect God to forgive. When we are kind and good and
merciful we can expect the same consideration from God. (8)
"LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL." Guidance
and deliverance from God should be part of our prayer life, and it can be
expected when we have faithfully met all the conditions mentioned above of
asking and receiving. Remember, God’s love for us is unconditional and
benefits of God’s promises are conditional. 3. THE BOLDNESS OF GOD'S FRIENDS (Luke 11:5-8; Heb. 4:14-16;
10:19-23.) One of the greatest secrets of asking and receiving is that of
being bold to come to the throne of grace. This shows immediate need as well
as friendship with God. When we are afraid to come boldly to God this fear
indicates lack of faith and trust, and this in turn, indicates that either
our heart is not right or that we are under direct attack from demons. When we live clean and
holy before God, there is a natural confidence in God which is a result of a
close walk with God. If we are living a true Christian life and we still feel
fear of God and are timid about coming to God, we may be under attack by demons.
In that case he should resist the devil and ignore such feelings and approach
God in all confidence. We can always tell whether we have missed the mark
[sinned] and are being convicted by the Holy Spirit or condemned by the
opposing spirits. If there has been no known sin, then without doubt evil
spirits are trying to counterfeit convictions (condemn) of sin where no sin
has been committed. Jesus
gives an illustration of this boldness in friendship in Luke 11:5-8. One
friend went to another for bread at midnight because he had to have it at
that time and not on the morrow. He got it, not because of friendship, but
because of boldness in importunity. Friendship creates boldness to make
demands on a friend. The greater the friendship the greater the boldness in
times of need. In
Heb. 4:14-16 we are commanded to come boldly to the throne of grace to obtain
mercy to help in time of need. This boldness is based upon the fact that we
have a great high priest who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities
and who has been tempted in all points as we are. With such a mediator
between God and man and with such a friend representing us before the Father
we cannot fail to get answers to our prayers (Rom. 8:34; 1 Tim. 2:4-6). The
basis of coming to God in Heb. 10:19-23 is the blood of Jesus Christ, which
gives us a new way of approach to God so that all of us can "draw near
to God with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience.... Let us hold fast the profession of our
faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promised." 4. FAITH
IN THE CERTAINTY OF ANSWERED PRAYER AND THE INFINITE FATHERHOOD OF GOD (Luke
11:9-13). 5. The ALL-COMPREHENSIVE GIFT (Luke 11:9-13). Jesus promised that
children of God had a greater gift that was due them than what they had
received in the new birth. The gift of the Holy Spirit is here promised to
every child of God. His help is one of the secrets of successful praying. The
fact that this gift is promised only to children of God proves that it is not
the reception of the Holy Spirit in a measure at the new birth, which
experience comes to every child of God when born again (Rom. 8:9,14-16). This
all-inclusive gift refers to the fullness of the Holy Spirit in the life of
the believer after the new birth. We must be a child of God before we can
receive the fullness of the Spirit. This was the case with Jesus (Matt.
3:16-17; Luke 4:18-21; John 3:34); the disciples (Acts 2); the Samaritans
(Acts 9:5-25); Paul (Acts 9:1-17); and the Ephesians (Acts 19:1-7). In the
case of Cornelius, God saved and gave them the Spirit baptism all at once
(Acts 10:43-48; 11:14-18; 15:7-11); so we can receive the Spirit baptism at
the time we receive the new birth if we believe. If we do not, which is true
of many, then we should ask God for it, as Jesus taught in Luke 11:13, "HOW MUCH MORE shall your heavenly Father give the
Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" This whole passage (Luke 11:9-13)
proves that gifts for people who are already children is the subject. God
gave this gift to Cornelius and his house when they were saved to prove that
there is not necessarily a time element between the various blessings of God.
If there is a time between any blessings of God it is because of the
individual knowledge and faith limiting God to work in a certain way. The
Holy Spirit is one of our great helpers in prayer: "Likewise the Spirit
also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what
we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit himself maketh intercession
for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." With both Christ and the
Holy Spirit as our helpers how could there be a failure in prayer? ( 6. THE POWER OF PERSEVERING PRAYER (Luke 18:1-8). One chief
secret of answered prayer is that of perseverance. "Men ought always to
pray and not to lose heart." Jesus illustrated this truth by showing how
a widow was avenged of her adversary by pestering a judge until he said in
himself, "Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth [pestereth] me, I
will avenge her lest by her continual coming she weary [pester] me."
Jesus added, "And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry DAY AND NIGHT unto him, though he bear long with
them? I tell you he will avenge them speedily." If Elijah had become
discouraged in praying for rain every time his servant reported no rain, he
never would have got rain. He prayed seven times with his face between his
knees and the seventh time rain came (1 Kings 18:42-46). 7. HUMILITY IN PRAYER (Luke 18:9-14). Jesus here gives us a
parable of the publican and the Pharisee who prayed together in the temple.
By this He showed very clearly that humility was one of the secrets of
successful praying. One humbled himself and smote upon his breast and would
not so much as look up to Heaven, saying, "God be merciful to me a
sinner." Jesus said that man went down to his house justified rather
than the Pharisee who was so proud of himself and his good life that he took
all his prayer period to brag about himself to God. He was self-righteous and
despised others, and these kinds of people who pray are never heard of God.
He ended this story by saying, "For every one that exalteth
himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth
himself shall be exalted." If we want to be heard of God we must take an
humble attitude, not depending upon our own merits in the least. One of
the greatest faults of old Christians is to depend more upon how long we have
been saved, how good we have lived, how much better Christians we are than
others, and how much more experienced and advanced in grace we are than
others. We seem to think prayer and its answer are based upon these things.
We think that God ought to jump at the chance to hear our prayers. We seem to
think that we are special pets of God because of long service and faithful
lives in holiness. We often complain because God will not heal us or
otherwise answer our prayers, and because He does answer prayers and heal and
bless some old sinner that knows that he has no merits to base a single
prayer upon. This is the reason some are heard and some are not. God does not
care for one good thing we have done or how long one we have been saved when
it comes to the answer to prayer. He does not judge or answer on these
grounds. He answers solely according to the attitude of humility and faith on the part of the
one praying. It is to the discredit of many old believers that we have not
learned more about God and His Word than to expect God to answer on any other
basis. 8. GET ALONE WITH GOD (Matt. 6:5-8). This secret of answered
prayer must be learned well by the believer. Jesus taught that answers to
prayer would be given when men learn to get alone with God and pray to be
heard of God and not men. Private prayer in secret has the greatest chance of
an answer because of the fact that there is no temptation to pray to be heard
of men. One does not search for flowery words to use in prayer when alone. He
simply gets down in earnest and pours out his soul to God and voices his
needs in the most simple terms. One secret of asking and receiving then is to
"pray to thy Father in secret; and thy Father which seeth
in secret shall reward thee openly." No believer ever learns to pray
right unless he spends much time alone with God in sweet personal communion.
This does not forbid public prayer, but it does forbid all public praying to
be seen of men. We can pray in secret, yet in public, if we will shut out all
thoughts of people and pray to be heard of God alone. We would be guilty of
praying a public prayer in private, if we try to pray loud enough to attract
attention of people to our praying. 9. THE WORD OF GOD AND PRAYER (Matt. 8:8; John 15:7). If we want
to get answers to prayer let us first get the promises of God that cover
our need and accept the answers as already being God's will by His Word. Let
us have faith in the
Word as the basis of God's will and the assurance of the answer. The
centurion said, "speak the word only, and my servant shall be
healed." He told the Lord that he believed that His word was
all-sufficient to cast out the demons in His servant, just as his own word
was sufficient to get action on the part of the hundred soldiers under his
authority. Jesus marveled at this faith. So if this is what faith is, we can
all have faith if we want to have it. Faith is simply taking God at His Word. So
much praying is done without any regard to whether God has promised the thing
that is asked for, or without any thought of believing the promise or
accepting the answer as a fact if the promise is known. There is no real,
tangible connection between prayer and the Word of God, and hence prayer goes
unanswered. If we cannot believe what God has said, we make God a liar; and
He then is not under obligation to answer at all. If we want to obligate God
to an answer we must take God at His word and count it a settled fact that we
have the thing prayed for according to the Word. All praying should be done
on the basis of the Word of God, and the promises should be quoted and used
in prayer. God knows what He has promised, but He wants us also to know it
and ask accordingly in faith, nothing wavering (James 1:5-9). "If you abide
in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall
be done unto you" (John 15:7). 10. THE FAITH
THAT TAKES. This secret of answered prayer is very clear in Scripture. Note
how simple the Bible is on this point: "Have faith in God For verily I
say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed,
and cast into the sea; and SHALL
NOT DOUBT IN HIS HEART, BUT SHALL BELIEVE THAT THOSE THINGS WHICH HE SAITH
SHALL COME TO PASS, HE SHALL HAVE WHATSOEVER HE SAITH. Therefore I say unto you, WHAT THINGS SOEVER YOU DESIRE, WHEN YOU
PRAY, BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE RECEIVED THEM, AND
YOU SHALL HAVE THEM" (Mark 11:22-24); "But without faith it is impossible
to please him: for he who comes to God MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS, AND THAT HE IS A REWARDER OF THOSE WHO
DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM"
(Heb. 11:6); "If any of you lack wisdom [or any thing
else], let him ask of God, WHO
GIVES TO ALL MEN LIBERALLY, AND WITHOUT FINDING FAULT; AND IT SHALL BE GIVEN
HIM. BUT LET HIM ASK IN FAITH NOTHING WAVERING. For he who wavers is like a wave of the sea
driven with the wind and tossed. FOR LET NOT THAT MAN THINK THAT HE SHALL RECEIVE ANY THING OF THE
LORD" (James 1:5-9). The
central thought in all these passages is: "BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE GOT IT AND YOU
SHALL HAVE IT."
Believe that it is already yours. See yourself with it. Believe that you have
got it already whether you literally see it or not. "Faith is the
substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Heb.
11:1). Faith laughs
at impossibilities and counts all things possible. It "calleth those
things that be not as though they were" (Rom. 4:17-22). One cannot have
faith for something that he already has, for "hope that is seen is not
hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope
for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for
it" (Romans 8:24-25). Whoever
uses faith can master all; have all he desires; and there are no bounds to
what he can get. Faith will break through all barriers of reasonings,
questionings, doubts, and thoughts of unbelief. It will take hold of what
is wanted by an unshakable determination and will refuse to be denied. Faith
will do all the Bible says it will do. Work what faith you have and refuse to
be discouraged. Every impossible thing has finally yielded to pounding and
increased pressure. What we do not Use we lose is a divine law that never
fails. Likewise it is a divine law that whatever we Use increases (Luke 8:18;
Rom. 10:17; Gal. 6:7-8). The
Scriptures cited above also prove the unlimited possibilities of prayer if
one will use the faith that takes. Jesus said, "If thou canst believe,
all things are possible to him that believeth" (Mark 9:23) and "All
things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall
receive" (Matt. 17:20; 21:21-22). This is how people got answers in
Bible days (Matt. 9:2, 27-29; Heb. 11). This is the only way we will get
answers today; so we might as well stop deceiving ourselves that God might
answer apart from firm, unwavering faith. He will not, for He said He will
not, and He cannot lie (Heb. 11:6; James 1:5-9). Faith and prayer will move
mountains, but faithless prayer will not move an anthill. 11. FASTING AND PRAYER-THE CURE FOR UNBELIEF. The disciples
asked the Lord why they could not heal the lunatic boy. Jesus said,
"Because of your unbelief.... Howbeit this kind goeth
not out but by prayer and fasting" (Matt; 17:14-21). Faith needs prayer for
its development and full growth, and prayer needs fasting for its development
and full growth. Fasting is a biblical doctrine and has done wonders when
used in combination with prayer and faith. To fast means to abstain from
food, which was very involved in the cause of the fall of man. It is humbling
the soul before God (Ps. 35:13); chastening of the soul (Ps. 69:10); and
crucifying the appetites and denying them so as to give entire time to prayer
(2 Sam. 12:16-23; Matt. 4:1-11). It manifests earnestness before God to the
exclusion of all else (1 Cor. 7:5). It manifests obedience and gives the
digestive system a rest (Matt. 6:16-18; 9:15, Luke 5:33). It demonstrates the
mastery of man over appetites; aids in temptation; helps give power over
demons; develops faith; crucifies unbelief; and aids in prayer (Matt. 4:1-11;
17:14-21). All
believers are supposed to fast but no regulations or set rules are ever given
as to how long or how often. That part is left up to the individual desire
and needs (Matt. 9:14-15; 1 Cor. 7:5; Acts 13:1-5). Men should fast when
under chastening (2 Sam. 12:16-23); when under judgment (1 Kings 21:27); when
in need (Ezra 8:21); when in danger (Esther 4); when worried (Dan. 6:18);
when in trouble (Acts 27:9, 33; when in spiritual conflict (Matt. 4:1-11);
and when desperate in prayer (Acts 9). If
fasting and prayer are so prominent in the Bible, modern Christians should do
more of them until we get power with God over all the powers of the devil.
Many things about fasting and its benefits are not known to modern people,
but people through the ages who have been people of great prayer have also
fasted much. 12. THE POWER OF UNITED PRAYER. When other things fail to produce
answers to prayer try the secret of united prayer: "If two of you shall
agree on earth as touching any thing that they
shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For
where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst
of them" (Matt. 18:18-20). There is nothing as powerful as united
prayer. When the church at 13. THE ALL-INCLUSIVE CONDITION OF ASKING AND RECEIVING. "If
ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and
it shall be done unto you" (John 15:7). When we have met the
all-inclusive condition of this verse we do not even have to think of any
other condition. Many times we hinder our own prayers by manufacturing
conditions. Once in a classroom each student gave a different condition of
what they thought people had to do in order to get prayers answered. So many
conditions were required to get a single prayer answered that it would have
been impossible for anyone to get one prayer answered by God. Finis Dake said, "Away with
all these conditions. It is no wonder that God can seldom get to answer a
prayer for us. We manufacture so many conditions that hinder our faith that
God cannot work." He then showed them the all-inclusive condition, and
told them that when this is met we can forget all others. Some argue that it is not God's will to answer every prayer;
but we answer, it is always God's will to answer any prayer that is prayed in
faith for any thing that is covered by the promises of God. It is
God's will for you to get what you will if you are in Christ and His words
are in you. You will not ask one thing that the Word of God forbids as long
as you are in harmony with it. Such statements as: "nothing shall be
impossible to you . . . all things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer.
believing, you shall receive.... What things so ever you desire.... ask what
you will" and like statements prove that it is always God's will for you
to get what you want and desire (Matt. 17:20; 21:22; Mark 11:22-24; John
14:12-15; 15:7, 16; 16:23-26). The human will then is free to ask what it
wills, and what it wills is always God's will as long as it is in harmony
with the Word of God. God
has chosen you to ask what you will that much fruit can be produced for God
and that the world may see the greatness of God's power (John 14:12-15; 15:7,
16; 1 John 5:14-15). 14. THE ALL-PREVAILING PLEA. Jesus said, "in my name"
we were to ask God for what we want. He gave the assurance that God will
always honor His name in prayer (John 14:12-15; 15:7, 16; 16:23-26). When we
plead the name of Jesus in prayer God is bound to answer prayer, for He
always hears His own beloved Son (Rom . 8: 32). 15. THE CHILDREN'S RIGHT. Jesus taught us that children of God
have a right to get all their prayers answered. When the Gentile woman came
to Jesus to get her daughter healed, Jesus answered "It is not meet to
take the children's bread, and cast it to the dogs" (Matt. 15:21-28).
She answered wisely and asked for only the "crumbs" that are the
right of a dog. He could not resist her faith and said, "O woman, great
is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt; and her daughter was made
whole from that very hour." This certainly teaches that children of God
have certain rights in the heavenly family. They have just as much right to
expect good things from God as any child in an earthly family has a right to
expect things from his parents. At least one has the rights of a dog if not
the rights of a child. With this kind of faith we cannot fail to
get what we want from God. 16. FIVE STEPS TO ANSWERED PRAYER. If we will follow faithfully the following steps
in prayer we can be sure of an answer: (1)
Decide what you want from God and get the Scriptures that definitely promise you these
things. Get these promises firmly fixed in the heart and not only in the
mind. Be ready to use them against demons
who will try to make you doubt God and rob you of what you want. (2)
Ask God for the things you want and believe that you have got them. Believe
God, not Satan; the truth, not
a lie. Let every single thought and desire affirm that you have got what you
asked. Never permit a mental picture of a failure to be in your mind. Never
doubt for one minute that you have the answer. If doubts persist, rebuke them
and get your mind on the answer and constantly affirm that the promises are true and
that prayer has been answered. Eradicate every suggestion, image, vision,
dream, impression, feeling; in fact, extirpate all thoughts that do not
contribute to your faith that you have what you have asked. (3)
Thoughts are governed by observations, associations, and teachings. Guard
against every evil thought that
comes into the mind. Stay away from all places and things that will not
support your affirmation that God has answered prayer. Meditate constantly on
the promises upon
which you base the answer to your prayer. See yourself with what you have
asked for and make plans accordingly as if it were already a reality. Do not
forget what you have asked of God and hold on until the full answer
materializes. (4)
Pray constantly and look heavenward. In your waking moments think on the
greatness of God and His goodness. Count your blessings and faith will increase.
Breathe deeply the life of God in your inner spirit. Lift your heart to God
constantly in gratitude and increasing praise for what He has done and for
what He is doing for you now. Maintain that all things are possible to the
believer. (5)
Make every prayer relative to what you have asked a statement of faith
instead of unbelief. You can say "I do have faith" or "I do
believe that I have what I have prayed for" just as easily as you can
make statements of unbelief. You can think thoughts of faith as easily as you
can think thoughts of doubt
and unbelief. Do not accept no as an answer. Do not be denied. It is your
family right, your redemptive right, your gospel right, and your creative
right to have what God has promised. It will
come. It is yours now, so accept it and it will become a reality. 17. To
sum up the keys of prayer
we may state briefly the essential elements of prevailing prayer: (1) RIGHT RELATIONSHIP-with both God and man (Matt.
5:23; 6:9, 15; 18:15; 1 John 3:20-22; 5:14-15). (2) ADORATION-worship God and love all men (Matt. 6:9;
1 John 3:18-22; Phil. 4:6; Heb. 13:15). (3) UNSELFISHNESS-put the interests of God and others
first (Matt. 6:10). (4) RESTITUTION-where possible (Matt. 5:23; 18:15). (5) FORGIVENESS-be merciful to others (Matt. 6:14-15;
18:21; Eph. 5:32). (6) BOLDNESS-be free from fear and doubt (Heb.
10:19-23). (7) UNMERITORIOUS-base the right to an answer upon the
work of Christ only, not upon personal merits (John 14:12-15; 15:7). (8) FAITH-believe
in the certainty of answered prayer (Luke 11:9-13). (9) SPIRITUALITY-live in the Spirit ( (10) PERSEVERANCE-don't lose heart (Luke 18:1-8). (11) HUMILITY-realize you are nothing (Luke 18:9-14;
Gal. 6:3). (12) UNPRETENTIOUS-make no outward show before others
(Matt. 6:5-8; Luke 18:9-14). (13) SACRIFICIAL-deny personal pleasure and feelings
and concentrate upon the answer until it comes (1 Cor. 7: 5; Matt. 4:1-11). (14) UNITY-oneness with both God and man (Matt.
18:15-20; Acts 2:1-4, 42-47, 4:23-33, 1 Cor. 1:10; Eph. 4). (15) CONSECRATION-be all and all for God (John 15:7; 2
Cor. 5:17). (16) CONFESSION-acknowledge own faults (James
5:14-16). (17) HOLINESS-have a pure life and motives (Ps.
66:18). (18) INSPIRATION-depend upon the Holy Spirit (Rom.
8:26-27). (19) PETITION - make requests known (Phil 4:6; 1 John
5:14-16). (20) WHOLE-HEARTEDNESS-put whole life into worship
(Matt. 22:37). (21) EARNESTNESS-be sincere (1 Thess. 3:10; James
5:17). (22) IMPORTUNITY-press claims before God (Luke
11:5-8). (23) STUBBORNNESS-refuse to be denied (Luke 18:1-8;
Matt. 15:21-28). (24) CONFIDENCE-never doubt (1 John 3:21-22; 5:14-15). (25) JOY-be happy that you are going to receive (Luke
24:52-53). (26) TRUST-be anxious about nothing (Phil. 4:6).
Your own portable
document of The Five Steps to Answered Prayer and this Summary of Its
Keys. "Prayer isn't a time to give orders, but a
time to report for duty." (“Don’t fret or worry about anything; but in every
thing by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known to God.” —Philippians 4:6) A Lesson on Unanswered
Prayer At Deuteronomy 3:23-26 is Moses' last plea to enter the Promised
Land and not be denied because of the one sin of striking the rock twice
(Deut. 3:23-25; 4:21-22; Num. 20:8-13). (Speaking to the rock was all that was required of
Moses, and it would have been effective in proving to Israel the benefits of
the Messiah who was typified by the rock (2Cor. 10:4). The rock had already
been struck once, typifying Christ's crucifixion which was only to happen
once for all men (Ex. 17:6; Rom. 10; Heb. 9:25-28). Merely speaking to the
rock would have brought the same benefits as striking it before. The same is
true now of Christ: all one must do is ask and receive (Mt. 7:7-11; 21:22;
Mk. 11:22-24; Jn. 15:7,16; 16:23-26). Speaking harshly to Israel was
unbecoming to Moses; not speaking to the rock as commanded was an act of
unbelief (Num. 20:12). This was a significant failure in light of the great
work entrusted to Moses in the development of the spiritual and typical
program God was revealing to the whole world through Israel. Thus, Moses did
not set God apart as sacred and to be revered by all the people (Num. 20:12).
Aaron could have checked this rash and disobedient act, for he was given the
instructions along with Moses (Num. 20:6-8), but he failed as well. Hence, he
was an accomplice in unbelief and sin, and both were cut off from entering
the promised land (Num. 20:12-13). The "we"
at Num. 20:10 called attention to Moses and Aaron as the source of supply,
not God. Striking the rock (Num. 20:11) was a serious sin because this was
the spiritual rock of Israel, identified with the Messiah; striking it
typified His crucifixion. To strike it twice meant crucifying Christ afresh.
Therefore, God punished for transgression in type the same as He will punish
for it in reality, though not as severely as He will punish one who actually
crucifies to himself the Son of God and puts Him to an open shame (Heb.
6:4-9; 10:26-29). Water came out abundantly (Num 20:11) as it did
when the rock was first struck (Ex. 17:6; 2Cor. 10:4), typifying that the
benefits of the crucifixion are abundant to all men, even hardened rebels.
However, men must accept and use the provision made for them or it will be in
vain as far as they are concerned. Unbelief: This is the official reason
Moses and Aaron were not permitted to enter the promised land (Num. 20:12,24;
Dt. 3:18-29).) This refusal to answer Moses is not an example of God saying no
to those persons who pray according to His will and the Word of God. Some
accidentally say that God always answers prayer, but sometimes says “no.”
This is a deceptive excuse of unbelief. God never has and never will say no
to any child of His—anyone who is in Christ and is sincerely asking according
to the promises given. God may say it to persons who live in unbelief and use
this and every other kind of excuse of unbelief in prayer, but He will surely
not say it to persons of faith who ask in faith in the name of Jesus Christ,
and according to His promises. God cannot and will not refuse to fulfill His
own Word. He will meet His own obligations as plainly stated (Numbers 23:10;
Psalm 89:34; Psalm 119:89,90,160; Isaiah 46:11; Isaiah 55:10-11; 2 Cor. 1:20;
Titus 1:2; Hebrews 10:28). See John 14:12-15; John 15:7,16; John 16:23-26;
Hebrews 11:6; James 1:4-8. When prayer is not answered, sin and judgment are
plainly involved (as in the case of Moses in this section), or it is the
result of unbelief (Matthew 17:20; Matthew 21:22). The will of God is not a
question where one is truly a child of God, and asking according to the
promises, for it is the revealed will of God for His children to ask what they
will and desire (Mark 11:22-24; John 15:7).
[Source] Links Consider Protocols of Prayer here “For His divine power has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who has called us to glory and goodness. And by that same mighty power, He has given to us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these you all might be partakers of the Divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter1:3-4) There are 750 promises in the New Testament alone. The Prayer That Unlocks All
Promises “This Good News tells us how God
makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures
say, ‘The just shall live by faith.’” (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Habakkuk 2:4) “So we see that they could not
enter in because of unbelief.”
(Hebrews 3:19) See Doubt and Unbelief
concerning God’s Word “He personally bore our sins in His own body on the
tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose
stripes you were healed.” (1
Peter 2:24) How to access
God’s healing and keep it.
“For we wrestle not against flesh and
blood [ourselves; peoples], but against principalities, against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Ephesians 6:12) See the reality of evil, Satan, or the devil “Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health,
even as your soul prospers.” (3 John 1:2) Link to God's Plan for
Humankind Thank you Finis Jennings Dake and Dake Publishing
Thank you Derek Prince Ministries and his book Foundational Truths for Christian Living
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