Why Prayer Is Important- Life Is Hard, But God Is Good.
This post is all about why prayer is important in the Christian life. We will discuss the reasons for prayer and the power of prayer.
My prayer is that you can see Jesus for who He is, not a God that you worship just on Sundays or on a holiday or a God you pray to when life gets hard, but a God who changes everything in your daily life. If you believe, have faith, and put your trust in Jesus Christ, and truly believe the importance of prayer, would you pray more? How would your prayers change?
Come with me and let's talk about prayer in the Christian life.
Every fiber of my body was weak. I felt like someone punched me in the stomach. I could barely walk to get down the stairs. I was not physically hurt, but had just been told something that rocked my world, and I had no idea what I was to do.
As soon as the sun rose, I called one of my best friends from my childhood. She advised me to call my pastor. I took her advice even though I barely knew him, and as soon as the church office opened, I began calling. I would call and couldn't get any words out, so I would hang up. This was in the early 2000's, so before caller ID. Finally, I was able to spit out what had transpired. My pastor was so kind, and we set up a time to meet.
I began counseling with him. His guidance changed my life. He would listen and not judge. He kept pointing me back to Jesus. I am forever grateful for his guidance and counsel.
I grew up in a Christian church and a Christian home. I was blessed with an amazing, loving family and married my best friend. Until I walked through this season, I believed I was a Christian. When I look back, I think I was just going through the motions of a so-called ‘Christian life'. If you knew me, you would have called me a Christian girl. Church every Sunday, prayer times were basically before meals, or when there was a crisis, but looking back, from my perspective, for me, it was all rituals, something we did. It was as if the God I prayed to was on a shelf, and I would talk to Him at my convenience or when I needed God's help.
This devastating season I would not want to walk through again, but because life was hard, I learned the most life-altering lesson. God is real, faithful, and so good! This season made an eternal impact on my life. If you want to know about my story, I wrote my testimony. ‘When the Lord Carried Me.'
This personal struggle changed everything for me. It changed my perspective on the Word of God, the Holy Bible. Instead of something on my shelf, it is my guide, a handbook for life. It changed my purpose of prayer from something I said before meals to short prayers throughout the day, talking to God, daily prayer for the good things, the hard things, everything. Having a ‘personal relationship' with Jesus has changed my life, and I pray it has, or will, change your life, too.
Before I walked through this season, if someone had told me that I would have a faith-based blog, I would have thought it impossible, not this girl.
Because life got so hard, I learned that God is not just the guy upstairs, but a living God who loves His children, and who loves me.
I learned to put my complete trust in the Lord, what faith is, and that prayer changes everything.
When I look back on this time, I can see God's fingerprints all over my situation. I know that He was walking through it with me. If I were walking on a beach, I would see a set of footprints of Him walking beside me, and then one set of footprints, which was when He was carrying me. Hence my testimony, ‘When the Lord Carried Me.' Life was so hard, but He was always faithful. He never left me.
There are so many reasons why people pray.
Many people pray like I prayed before I walked through my difficult season. It was how you grew up, what you did, a way of life, or the standard prayer before meals.
Prayer may be part of your daily life, and you pray for all things. You might pray with heartfelt prayers when you have an urgent need, when you have big problems, you might pray for the needs of others, for family members, for God's protection, recovery of a sick person, for wisdom, peace, the list can go on and on.
There are many important reasons why we pray, but let's break down and talk about why prayer is important in more detail.
Prayer is a way to communicate with God.
We serve an Almighty God, and it is by prayer that we communicate with Him.
James 4:8 (NIV), “Come near to God and he will come near to you…”
Jesus has already paid the price for you and made a way for you, but the choice is yours if you want to have a personal relationship with Him. You will find that when you pray, you will feel His presence.
When you pray, you have a personal relationship with God.
From the very first heartfelt prayer you pray. The salvation prayer. This prayer is when you ask Jesus into your heart and believe that He is the Son of God who died on the cross for you and rose from the grave. You ask for forgiveness and thank Him for all He has done. In that very first prayer alone, there is great power when you put your complete trust in Him, believe, have faith, and pray.
John 14:6 (NIV), Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Romans 10:9-10 (NIV), “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
James 1:6 (NLT), “But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.”
Matthew 21:22 (NIV), “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
Prayer is a gift.
Prayer is a gift from God, a privilege to be treasured. To be able to speak directly to the Creator. Wow!
Jeremiah 29:12 (NIV), “Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.”
You were not built to carry the burdens of this world, so go to the Lord in prayer.
The world system in which we live here on earth is a broken world where Satan currently reigns. We were not created for all the burdens of this world.
John 12:31 (NLT), “The time for judging this world has come, when Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out.”
1 Peter 5:7 (NLT), “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”
Psalms 55:22 (NIV), “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.”
The Lord wants you to come to him and give all your burdens to Him. He will carry your burden.
Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV), “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Philippians 3:20 (NLT), “But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.”
When you really think about this, you are not a citizen of this world. How exciting it is when you look at all of creation and how incredibly beautiful it is. Our minds can not even comprehend how incredible heaven will be. You are only passing through this life. Go to the Lord in prayer and talk to Him! He is preparing a place for you to live someday for eternity!
Prayer is so important that when we don't have the words, the Holy Spirit will intercede for us.
Romans 8:26 (NIV), “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”
Sometimes in life, you might feel so broken or so overwhelmed that you do not even have the words to pray or know how to pray about a situation. But the Lord knows your heart, and when you have Him as your personal Savior, the Holy Spirit lives in you and is your helper. The Holy Spirit will even help you pray to the Lord and intercede for you!
Prayer is an act of obedience.
Throughout scripture, we are told to pray.
Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV), “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NIV), “pray continually.”
Deuteronomy 5:33 (NIV), “Walk in obedience to all that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.”
Earnest prayer makes it possible to receive good gifts from the Lord.
Because of a personal relationship with Jesus, you have access to supernatural help from the Holy Spirit. You are a daughter or son of Jesus Christ, the King. He wants to bless you and help you just as a parent would want for their children here on earth.
Romans 8:11 (NIV), “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.”
Jeremiah 33:3 (ESV), “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”
The Lord will help when you are feeling tempted and give you a way out.
Matthew 26:41 (NIV), “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
You can pray to ask for forgiveness.
He is a God of forgiveness and will forgive you. It is important to remember too that you are to forgive others.
1 John 1:9 (NKJV), “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Matthew 6:15 (NIV), “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
When you pray and talk to God in truth, He is near.
Psalms 145:18 (NIV), “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”
Luke 11:9 (NIV), “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
This world is not easy. There are times when your heart will be broken, and your spirit will be crushed.
The Lord knows this and is close to you, so talk to Him, pray.
Psalms 34:18 (NIV), “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
The Lord will help you when you are in trouble.
Psalms 34:17 (NIV), “The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.”
Psalms 118:5 (NLT), “In my distress I prayed to the LORD, and the LORD answered me and set me free.”
If you need wisdom. Ask the Lord in prayer.
James 1:5 (NIV), “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”
Prayer is important, and what a gift to pray for others.
James 5:16 (NIV), “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
Colossians 1:9 (NIV), “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives”
The Lord will give you comfort.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV), “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”
Prayer was important to Jesus.
If prayer was important to Jesus, then it should be important to you and me. Jesus' example of prayer was daily while He was here on earth, and He also went to the heavenly Father in prayer before big things were about to take place.
Here are some examples of Jesus praying.
Mark 1:35 (NIV), “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”
Luke 3:21 (NIV), “When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened”
Luke 6:12 (NIV), “One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.”
Matthew 26:36 (NIV), “Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, ‘Sit here while I go over there and pray.”
Matthew 26:39 (NIV), “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Not only did Jesus pray while he was here on earth, but He continues to intercede on behalf of all believers in heaven to God the Father.
Romans 8:34 (NIV), “Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”
Hebrews 7:25 (NIV), “Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Because prayer was important to Jesus, the disciples wanted the Lord to teach them how to pray.
Luke 11:1 (NIV), “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus gave us an example of how to pray with ‘the Lord's Prayer.'
Matthew 6:9-13 (KJV), “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
During your prayer time, it is also important to listen.
Prayer time is a personal relationship between you and God. In a personal relationship, listening is an essential part of communication. So don't forget to listen and not just talk to the Lord.
Psalm 46:10 (NIV), “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Prayer is important to keep Satan away.
Satan is the ruler of this world, and prayer is our line of defense against the unseen world. The Apostle Paul instructs us each day to put on the whole armor of God.
Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV), “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
There are many more reasons why prayer is important.
Throughout scripture, there are examples of answered prayers, the importance of prayer, and the power of prayer.
The good news is that you do not need a cell phone tower because you always have a strong signal connecting to God.
The Lord is always there and ready to listen.
You must be intentional about your prayers. It requires Spiritual discipline and obedience.
No right words. Prayer is from your heart through faith.
The pastor who walked through my devastating season with me encouraged me to pray as soon as I woke. By doing this, my focus is immediately on Jesus. To begin my day with this, the first thing I think about is Jesus. This has changed my life.
Don't forget that Jesus is always with you. Be sure to go to Jesus before your friend. He is the One who is all-powerful, who holds the day, who knows you, and made you. Jesus loves you more than you can imagine. So go to Him in prayer and talk to Him.
God's presence is real. I have experienced the peace of God and joy that no man can take from me. God's love is something I cannot put into words. A real personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Holy Spirit lives inside of me and helps guide me and directs my steps. Some days, I have no idea what the next step is, but the Holy Spirit always seems to give me just enough light for my next step.
For this, the goodness of God, I want everyone to know that life is hard, but GOD IS GOOD, and WHY PRAYER IS IMPORTANT.
If you do not know who Jesus is and want Him as your personal Savior. The first step that will change your life is talking to God and asking Him to live in your heart. If life is not working for you now, what do you have to lose? Take a step of faith and put your trust in Him alone. Watch how your life will be transformed from the inside out. Life is messy. Come as you are, but you will not stay as you are. It is a personal relationship between you and Jesus. So talk to Him as you would a friend.
Salvation Prayer for you.
You can say this as it is or make it your own.
Dear Lord, I know I am a sinner, and I come as I am. Please forgive me of my sins. I want to know You, and I invite You to live in my heart. I believe that you came to earth and were born of a virgin. You lived a blameless life and were crucified on the cross. I believe you rose three days later, and the grave could not hold you, and you defeated death. You ascended to heaven, and I believe You are preparing a place for me for eternity. Thank you for being my Lord and Savior and for loving me. Please guide my steps as I begin my new life with You. In Jesus name, Amen.
If you just accept Christ into your heart, we are celebrating with you!
That was the most important decision of your life, and you just made a decision that will make an eternal difference. WOW!
Please visit my Grow Your Faith page, where you will find free resources to help you with your next steps in faith.
Also, we would love to pray for you! We would love for you to visit my Rooted In Prayer page and share the decision you have made so we can be praying for you and celebrating with you!
A prayer for you.
Lord, I love You and want to grow into a deeper relationship with You. Please help guide me in my daily walk. I want to be obedient and to rest only in You. Help me to trust You more when I fall short and to go to You first before anyone else. Wash over me with Your presence, peace, comfort, and love that only comes from You. Fill me up with your Spirit. I do not want to miss out on a single blessing You have for me today. I love You, Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV), “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”
Ask yourself again: if you really believe in prayer and that prayer is powerful, will it change your prayer life? How will you pray differently today and going forward?
Life is hard, but God is good. Be intentional and put prayer as a priority in your daily life. Let today be the start of a new prayer life for you! Watch how the Lord will work in your life.
Worship songs are powerful, Don't Stop Praying by Matthew West is a great reminder not to stop praying.
Hope For You- Bible Verses About The Power Of Prayer is another blog you might find of interest and helpful.
If you are still unsure about prayer and who Jesus is, I encourage you to do your own research.
In this post, you gained a better understanding that life is hard, but God is good, and why prayer is important. Prayer is powerful, and the Lord gave us the gift of prayer to grow in a personal relationship with Him.
“FAITH CRUSHES FEAR BY KEEPING YOUR EYES ON THE HOPE AND LOVE OF JESUS.”
