640 Sermon Illustrations on Prayer

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. — Ephesians 6:11.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit. — Ephesians 6:18.

The habit of secret prayer, when joined to the other habit of daily reverent Bible study, puts a helmet on the head and a breastplate on the bosom; in fact, clothes the disciple in the whole armour of God, and makes him proof against the wiles of the devil. — A. T. Pierson.

O fight the good fight like a soldier,

Put on the whole armour of God,

The belt and the breastplate and helmet,

The shoes and the shield and the sword;

Then pray as you fight ‘neath His banner

And stand ‘gainst the wiles of the foe,

The Saviour the vict’ry will give you,

And be with you wherever you go. — A. P. Gibbs.

Two went to pray: or rather say

One went to bray, the other to pray;

One stands up close, and treads on high,

Where th’other dares not send his eye.

One nearer to the altar trod,

The other to the altar’s God.

After two senators argued fiercely about religion, the one said, “I’ll bet you $10 you can’t even say the Lord’s Prayer correctly.” The other guy started out, “And now I lay me down to sleep… “ — and while finishing that child’s prayer, the first senator said, “Here’s your $10 bucks — I didn’t think you knew it.

This E-Cheer is longer than normal — sorry! One day last week I spoke about prayer and probably worded poorly what I was trying to say, which was: SOME people use the prayer phrase, “If it be Thy will,” as a copout just in case God doesn’t answer their prayer when they feel obligated to pray when they really don’t expect an answer, like an apparent terminal situation. I certainly did not mean that we shouldn’t want God’s will to be done. Of course we do, but that’s up to Him — not us. If we constantly wonder whether what we are praying for is in the will of God, we’ll soon be hesitant to pray at all for fear of praying amiss.

Prayer is a wonderful release that God provides for us to pour out our deepest feelings. Ours is to ask — His is to answer. Don’t try to outguess God.

Our prayer patterns are something that we learn from others, and they get passed down from one generation to another. It seems no one ever stops to ask “is this right?” Here in FL I hear people in prayer meetings pray with the same phrases and cliches I heard when I was a kid in PA. We pray for others to hear instead of praying out of the depth of our heart for God to hear. We are often guilty of just mouthing words. I sometimes wonder, doesn’t anyone think independently and pray from the heart anymore.

James 4:3 & 4 (nlt) offers some valuable information: “And yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don’t get it because your whole motive is wrong — you want only what will give you pleasure.” We do have the privilege to bring our honest requests to God, but with it goes the obligation to pray responsibly.

When we pray, remember — be specific, be expectant and be thankful!

”O, God, for another day, for another morning, for another hour, for another minute, for another chance to live and serve Thee, I am truly grateful.

Do Thou this day free me

from all fear of the future,

from all anxiety about tomorrow,

from all bitterness toward any one,

from all cowardice in face of danger,

from all laziness in the face of work,

from all failure before opportunity,

from all weakness when Thy power is at hand.

But fill me

with Love that knows no barrier,

with Sympathy that reaches to all,

with Courage that cannot be shaken,

with Faith strong enough for the darkness,

with Strength sufficient for my tasks,

with Loyalty to Thy Kingdom’s goal,

with Wisdom to meet life’s complexities,

with Power to lift me to Thee.

Be Thou with me for another day, and use me as Thou wilt.

For Christ’s sake, I pray. Amen.

James 4:2: when you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.’

1. simple addition: wrong motives=no answer to our prayers

2. motives are reasons for praying as we do.

3. praying for a certain thing can make it a ‘wrong prayers; ‘those prayed to ‘consume them upon your own lusts’.

4. ‘pleasures’ can mean something good and positive

• this word is negative & off-limits for Christians

• Greek trans: ‘the gratification of natural desire or sinful desires’. Ie ‘lusts’ better understanding.

5. much broader than sexual lusts: ie some common, everyday motives that creep into our prayer: praise, fame, love of power , love of display, love of preeminence, status over others, ease, comfort, personal satisfaction, self-pleasing, self-vindication, gratification of sinful desires, and revenge.

• this spells failure in prayer

• prayer: dear Father, help me to examine my motives when I come before you in prayer.

6. ‘when you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives… Lord, look at that new car, house, wardrobe, can i be a little jealous?

• maybe we’re a little bit touch, we wi\himper and complain

• ‘Lord she rubs me the wrong way’

• but God’s word says, ‘love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy’ — 1 Cor 13:5 (tlb)

7. Stay away from things that are off limit. — Proverbs 28:9 one who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer [is] an abomination. (Detestible) wrong motives

8. Cf John 15:17 “these things I command you, that you love one another.

John 14:12 “most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to my Father.

John 14:13 “and whatever you ask in my name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

John 14:14 “if you ask anything in my name, I will do it.

So complete and final was Adam’s authority over the earth that he, not just God, had the ability to give it away. And that’s what happened in the fall: Adam gave over his authority on earth to Satan. Jesus himself acknowledged this three times by calling Satan “the prince of this world” (John 12:31, John 14:30, John 16:11). . . .

God chose, from the time of the creation, to work on the earth through humans, not independent of them. He always has and always will, even at the cost of becoming human. Though God is sovereign and all-powerful, the Scriptures clearly show He chose to limit Himself (concerning the affairs of earth) to working through human beings. . . .

In 1 Kings 18, we find the account of Elijah’s prayers for rain after three years of drought. God told Elijah, “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land” (1 Kings 18:1). At the end of chapter 18, Elijah prays seven times, and the rain comes. But according to verse one, whose idea was it to send rain? Whose will? At whose initiation? It was God’s not Elijah’s!

Why, then, if it was God’s idea and timing, did Elijah’s prayers bring the rain? The only logical answer is that God chose to work through a human. Even when the Lord Himself initiates something and earnestly desires to do it, He needs us to ask. …

God’s need of our prayers is shown again in Ezekiel 22:30-31: “And I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none. So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger, bringing down on their own head all they have done.” … The passage clearly says, “While My justice demanded judgment, My love wanted forgiveness . Had I been able to find a human to ask Me to spare this people, I could have done it. It would have allowed Me to show mercy. Because I found no one, however, I had to destroy them.”

A father was reading Bible stories to his young son. He read, “The man named Lot was warned to take his wife and flee out of the city, but his wife looked back and was turned into salt.” His son asked, “What happened to the flea?”

It’s been said, “When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.” That’s a pleasant cliche, but it may not always work. We do get to the end of our rope sometimes and feel like we’re slipping off the end because the knot slipped. That’s pretty desperate, but I’m sure that some of you have “been there, done that.”

It’s easy to say that we should have turned to the Lord before things got out of hand, but it is never too late to ask Him for help. Psalm 120:1-2 (nlt) has this to say: “I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer. Rescue me, O Lord, from the liars and from all deceitful people.” We can testify to the truth of those verses in this past year. I challenge you to put those verses to the test. Don’t be embarrassed to cry out to the Lord in your times of distress. He’s waiting!

Have you ever wondered when was the best time to pray? Christians ought to pray every day, and read the Bible daily. These two exercises are essential. It came as quite a shock to me when I discovered that not every Christian practiced this.

Dr. R. A. Torrey in his book, HOW TO PRAY, deals with, ‘When to pray’. He lists seven times and I am going to pass these on to you with a brief comment on each. He uses the example of Jesus Himself.

1. In Mark 1:35 it says, “And in the morning , rising up a great while before day, He went out and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” Some may find it difficult to do this, but the early morning hour has some distinct advantages. Your mind is clear and you are alone without distractions – a perfect time.

2. In Luke 6:12 we read, “And it came to pass in those days, that He went out into a mountain to pray, and continued there all night in prayer to God.” Jesus sometimes prayed at night. This ought not to be done with the thought of gaining merit points with God, but because you know it’s time to pray and feel the urgency of it.

3 He prayed before all the great crises in His life – His entrance into ministry, choosing the twelve, the sermon on the mount, the night before His crucifixion and other times too. If ever there was a time to pray it is before making a major decision in life.

4. Christ prayed not only before great events, but after, for example after He fed the 5,000 He went up into the mountain apart to pray.

5. Contrary to what may be our habit, Jesus took time to pray when he was especially busy. He withdrew from the multitude and went into the wilderness to pray. There are times for public prayer, but even Jesus made special time for solitary prayer.

6. Jesus prayed before times of great temptation and testing as He did in the Garden of Gethsemane, preparing Himself to meet the angry multitudes, the Roman Governor and the sufferings of the cross.

7. In 1Thessalonians 5:17 it says, “Pray without ceasing”. And Ephesians 6:18 “Praying at all seasons”.All good illustrations of when to pray.

In a particular church, one of the elders had a prayer phrase he always used at the communion table. In that prayer, he never failed to say, “And God, please clear away the cobwebs of sin that have come between us and thee.”

This went on for years. It really bugged one of his fellow elders. The other elder waited for the Lord’s day when he would be sharing duties at the communion table with his friend and be able to give the offering prayer. Finally the fateful Sunday arrived when these two men were scheduled together at the table. Sure enough, the first elder prayed, “And God, please clear away the cobwebs of sin that have come between us and thee.”

Later, when it came time for the offering prayer, the other elder made sure to ask a blessing on the ‘gift and the giver’ and then in a loud voice implored, “And God, PLEASE KILL THAT SPIDER!”

”Whose heart the Lord opened.” –Acts 16:14 Spurgeon

In Lydia’s conversion there are many points of interest. It was brought about by providential circumstances. She was a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, but just at the right time for hearing Paul we find her at Philippi; providence, which is the handmaid of grace, led her to the right spot. Again, grace was preparing her soul for the blessing –grace preparing for grace. She did not know the Saviour, but as a Jewess, she knew many truths which were excellent stepping stones to a knowledge of Jesus. Her conversion took place in the use of the means. On the Sabbath she went when prayer was wont to be made, and there prayer was heard.

Never neglect the means of grace; God may bless us when we are not in his house, but we have the greater reason to hope that he will when we are in communion with his saints. Observe the words, “Whose heart the Lord opened.” She did not open her own heart. Her prayers did not do it; Paul did not do it. The Lord himself must open the heart, to receive the things which make for our peace. He alone can put the key into the hole of the door and open it, and get admittance for himself. He is the heart’s master as he is the heart’s maker.

The first outward evidence of the opened heart was obedience. As soon as Lydia had believed in Jesus, she was baptized. It is a sweet sign of a humble and broken heart, when the child of God is willing to obey a command which is not essential to his salvation, which is not forced upon him by a selfish fear of condemnation, but is a simple act of obedience and of communion with his Master.

The next evidence was love, manifesting itself in acts of grateful kindness to the apostles. Love to the saints has ever been a mark of the true convert. Those who do nothing for Christ or his church, give but sorry evidence of an “opened” heart. Lord, evermore give me an opened heart.

Edward McKendree Bounds was born in northeastern Missouri on August 15, 1835, served as a confederate chaplain in the Civil War and experienced something of the mighty work of God in the ranks of that army. He became a minister and retired at 60 to spend the last nineteen years of his life praying and writing about prayer. He arose at 4 a.m. each day. He completed eight books but only two were published during his lifetime, his most famous, “Power through Prayer” was one of those, published in 1907.

Bounds’ great insistence is upon the place of man in prayer. He famously wrote these words:

“The trend of the day has a tendency to lose sight of man or sink the

man in the plan or organization. God’s plan is to make much of the man,

far more of him than of anything else. Men are God’s method. The

church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men.

‘There was a man sent from God whose name was John’... What the church

needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations, or

more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy Spirit can use - men of

prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Spirit does not flow through

methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men.

He does not anoint plans, but men - men of prayer.”[1]

________

1. “The Complete Works of E. M. Bounds on Prayer” (Baker, 1990), p.447

“He faileth not.” Zephaniah 3:5

Priceless gems have often been found in unlikely places. Many a choice flower has been found blooming in a rocky crevice. Rainbow artistries have suddenly lit up the darkest skies. Beauty spots have charmed the traveler at surprise turns on the least promising road.

It is even so with this word in Zephaniah 3:5: “He faileth not.” In a context laden with rebukes to a perverse people, this expression of the divine faithfulness shines like a solitary star on a dark night. “He faileth not!” How much this assurance means to the Lord’s own. It suggests a comforting threefold homily.

First, “He faileth not” in His power, which is pledged in Christ to work on our behalf. Child of God, what is that big thing that you would have Him do for you? Has faith begun to fail? Has the heart been looking at circumstances instead of to God? Think on this again, that if an answer seems unduly delayed, it is not through any collapse of His power towards us. Perhaps faith is being tested for the sake of your spiritual profit and progress.

Unanswered yet, the prayer your lips have uttered

In agony of heart these many years?

Does faith begin to fail, is hope departed?

And do you think in vain are all your tears?

Say not the Father has not heard your prayer;

Your prayer shall answered be, sometime, somewhere.

But further, “He faileth not” in His wisdom. What comfort this is for the perplexed believer. Why is this disappointment, this loneliness, this dark experience permitted? Why is that thing for which the heart has yearned still left ungranted? We don’t know — not yet; but we do know that our Father’s wisdom never errs.

I know not by what methods rare, but this I know, God answers prayer.

I know He gives His promised word which tells me prayer is always heard.

And will be answered soon or late, though often it is hard to wait.

I know not if the blessing sought will come in just the way I thought;

I leave my prayer with Him alone, whose will is wiser than my own,

Assured that He will grant my quest or send an answer far more blest.

Best of all, “He faileth not” in His love. If He did not love us, His power and wisdom would mean little to us, but to know they are employed in the service of His unfailing love gives us a triple guarantee of His faithfulness. “Love never faileth.” “God is love.” Tried and troubled believer, take heart! “He faileth not.”

Without warning, and often through unforeseeable circumstances, He “overturns” our comfortable state of spiritual or moral compromise and urges us to “cast out” the things we hold and love more than Him: trust in money, pleasure, unforgiveness, fear of man, ambition, wrong relationships, and so forth. Once the Holy Spirit identifies these unauthorized “money changers” and “tables” controlling our hearts, we must see to it that they go. And quickly. We do this by humbly confessing our sins and choosing to let them go in order to lay hold of Christ and His will for our lives.

Why is His cleansing so persistent? The more He cleanses us, the more He uses us and glorifies Himself.

Increasingly, our prayers will cause spiritually blind people to “see” — their divine gifts and callings, sin’s true nature, the personal application of Bible truths, God’s true character, His hand working in circumstances, Satan’s deceptions and distractions, the right way at crossroads, fulfillments of prophecy, and the greatest, brightest goal, Jesus’ Appearing. Increasingly, the truths, warnings, and encouragements we share will “heal” spiritually lame people, and they will “walk” — close to God, in His ways, on stormy water, through the valley of Baca, through the darkness, through the fire — and not faint, all the way to the shining, pearly gates of New Jerusalem.

And the more He thus uses us, the more honor we yield to Him. Increasingly, people will praise not us but the Lord, who has purged and used our humble “courts” for His highest purposes.

Has the Purifier unexpectedly disturbed the serenity of your life again? Has He suddenly overturned your way of thinking? Or disrupted your emotions? Or challenged you to cast out some thing or desire? Yield, and let Him have His way, knowing that your deep cleaning will lead to more usefulness for Him; and more praise!

Prayer is a powerful evangelistic tool. It not only changes others, but it changes you. Prayer shapes the attitudes that motivate you.

Jesus told us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. Why do you think He told us to do this? Could it be our hearts are in need of change?

When we pray for people, it changes our thoughts and actions toward them. If we allow God to direct our prayers, we see even our enemies from God’s perspective. We become open to sharing the Gospel with anyone because we know God’s overarching desire is for the world to be saved.

Donna Taylor prayed for her husband, Ancil, for years before he came to faith in Christ. In her mind, even though she prayed for him, she couldn’t picture him actually in church. It just was not a part of who he was.

Ancil wasn’t opposed to his family attending church. In fact, when their three children would come home from worship, he would ask about what they learned that day.

As a newer member of Calvary Baptist in New Orleans, Donna joined a women’s Bible study group for fellowship and personal growth. In sharing prayer requests, the women found out five of them had husbands who were not believers.

The women began an intentional time of prayer for their husbands and for themselves. The wives prayed that they would be the kind of wives that honor Christ and cause their husbands to desire a relationship with Jesus.

For two years, Donna prayed with her friends before Ancil finally surrendered his life to Christ. In fact, all five of the husbands who the women prayed for were saved.

Just as Donna prayed for her husband, you can pray for your friend or family member who is not a believer. To remember how to pray for someone who is not a believer, you can use the acrostic HEARTS. Pray for:

• Hearts to be receptive. The Bible says God shines on people’s hearts to give light to the knowledge of God’s glory (2 Corinthians 4:6).

• Ears to be open. Paul told his Jewish brothers that the saving work of God was sent to the Gentiles -– they also will listen (Acts 28:28). We need to pray that our friends and family will listen to the Gospel.

• Attitudes to be changed. The mind set on the Spirit is life and peace (Romans 8:6). Your unbelieving friend or family member’s attitude toward sin and the Savior must change to receive God’s salvation. Pray for it.

• Repentance to occur. God calls people to repentance so that times of refreshing may come from the Lord (Acts 3:19). Jesus told people to repent and believe in the Good News (Mark 1:15). This step is the surrendering of one’s life to Jesus as Savior and Lord.

• Transformation to begin. Transformation comes by the renewing of the mind so that someone can discern the will of God (Romans 12:2). Your prayer should be for your friend to experience God’s transforming power so that he or she can become a committed follower of Christ.

• Servants to be obedient. God’s plan is for His followers to be witnesses all over the world (Acts 1:8). When praying for your friend or family member, pray for Christians to be obedient to Jesus’ call. Pray that Christians will share the Gospel and live an authentic Christian life before an unbelieving world.

Prayer is a powerful tool. Who knows, it may be that God is trying to change you in the process.

________

Keith Manuel is an evangelism associate on the Louisiana Baptist Convention’s evangelism & church growth team.

“Casting all your cares upon Him, for He careth for you.” I Peter 5:7.

There are two kinds of care in this text. There is anxious care, in the words, “Casting all your care upon Him”; and there is affectionate care, in the words, “He careth for you.” Over against all our own anxious care is our Saviour’s never-failing affectionate care.

Take the first part of the text: “Casting all your care upon Him.” That word, “casting”, is in the aorist tense in the Greek, which means once for all. In fact, the Greek aorist participle here might well be rendered, “once for all having cast.” There is one sense, of course, in which we cannot cast upon Him all the anxieties of days yet to come, for we do not know what a day may bring forth; yet we can say, “Lord, whatever cares may be coming, I cast them all in advance on Thee.” Yes, we can do that once for all, if we will; and, oh, what mental relief it brings!

Notice next that we are to cast “all” our care upon Him; not only the larger but the lesser; not only the spiritual but the material; not only in general but in par- ticular; not only part of the time but all the time. He Himself invites us to do this.

Look again at that word, “care”. Perhaps a better translation would be “anxiety”. Nowadays there is more than a shade of difference between care and anxiety. None of us can escape cares, but we may be free from anxiety. We cannot hand over our cares to Jesus in the sense of exemption from them; but we can transfer the weight of them to Him; so that if we must still carry them, He will carry us. Weymouth aptly renders the clause, “Throw the whole weight of your anxiety upon Him.”

And now take the further clause: “For He careth for you.” How per- suasively it invites us to lay our anxiety upon Him! Think again how powerful He is: “HE (who upholds the very universe) careth for you.” Think again how sympathetic He is. Instead of “He careth for you”, we might render the Greek more idiomatically, “It really matters to Him about you.” Think again how near to us He is. He is not only with us, He actually indwells us by His Spirit. Think again how constant He is. The verb is in the present and continuous tense — “He careth”, every day and every hour. Oh, what encouragements these are to us, to roll the burden of our anxiety upon Him!

During the terrible days of the “Indian Mutiny”, when the beleaguered refugees in Lucknow were almost starved into surrender to the rebel sepoys, one morning a Scottish girl put her ear to the ground, and then sprang up shouting, “The Campbells are coming!” She had caught the sound of the bagpipes. Soon after, the city was saved. Careworn Christian, put your ear to this text again, and hear the dear Saviour coming to your rescue! “Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you.”

“We proclaim him [Jesus Christ], admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect [mature, complete] in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1: 28-29, NIV).

The following poem was written by John Newton, who lived quite a colorful life as a slave trader before his conversion to Jesus Christ.

I asked the Lord that I might grow

In faith and love and every grace,

Might more of his salvation know,

And seek more earnestly his face.

‘Twas he who taught me thus to pray,

And he, I trust, has answered prayer,

But it has been in such a way,

As almost drove me to despair,

I thought that in some favored hour,

At once he’d answer my request,

And by his love’s constraining power,

Subdue my soul and give me rest.

Instead of that he made me feel

The hidden evils of my heart,

And bade the angry powers of hell

Assault my soul in every part.

Nay, more that that –

With his own hand he seemed

Intent to aggravate my woe,

Blasted my gourds and laid me low.

Lord, “Why is this?” I trembling cried.

“Wilt thou pursue this worm to death?”

“This is the way,” the Lord replied,

“I answer prayer for grace and faith.”

“These inward trials I employ

From sin and self to set you free,

And take away your earthly joy

That you might find your all in me.”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank you that one of your goals for my life is that I grow in faith, and love and every grace … might more of your salvation know, and seek more earnestly your face. Please help me to do this. Gratefully in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

A funny story tells about an old lady who was living in the village. She had never owned nor even been in a car before. One day, she was returning home from the market carrying a big heavy basket on her head, when a rich man riding his car passed by. Kindly, he offered to drive the lady to her home. She thanked him and got into the car with her basket. On the way, the man glanced at the lady in the mirror, still holding her basket over her head. Astonished, he asked her to lay the basket down in the car and rest. The old lady naively replied, “Oh my son, your car is carrying me; this is enough, I should not burden it carrying my basket too!”

What an innocently funny response! We sometimes do the same with God. Everyday, God carries us during the day. Still, do we insist in carrying our heavy baskets of worries and fear of the future, for family, kids, spouse, money, job, etc? We are carried by Almighty Hands, watched over by Sleepless Eyes and God plans our future. Let us then relax and lay down everything in God’s Hands.

The old lady, if she agreed to lay down the basket, would have to carry it again when back home. But the beautiful thing about God is that once we cast our heavy basket in His Hands, we do not need to think about it anymore.

“Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

Have a wonderful blessed week – free of “baskets.”

Jesus is the only “expert” in prayer. When we read the Gospels, we see how important prayer was to Him.

There is only one thing recorded in the Gospels that Jesus’ disciples specifically wanted Him to teach them. They said, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

As we read in Luke 11:1, “It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples’” (NAU).

How did Jesus pray?

Jesus prayed early in the morning.

The Bible says in Mark 1:35, “In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.”

Jesus had just completed a busy day teaching in a synagogue, casting out demons, healing people and having dinner with friends. Yet, in spite of His demanding schedule, He rose early the next morning and prayed.

Every Christian should start his day in prayer (Psalm 5:1-3; 143:8; Matthew 6:11). Before you communicate with others, talk with God.

Jesus took prayer retreats.

Jesus was busy but never stressed. Wherever He went, He walked in peace. That’s because He prayed. Luke 5:16 says, “But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”

You’ll never have time to do everything you want to do, or do all that others want you to do. But you will have time to do what God wants you to do, and God wants you to pray. Time spent in prayer is never wasted time.

Jesus prayed before making important decisions.

The Bible says in Luke 6:12, “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.”

After a night alone with God, Jesus chose His twelve disciples. The Father directed Jesus in that decision because He prayed.

We often make “common sense” decisions, not prayerful decisions. A night spent in prayer and making the right decision is better than years spent in regret because you didn’t pray and made the wrong decision.

Jesus prayed when He was tempted.

Everyone has been tempted to sin, even Jesus (Hebrews 4:15). He overcame temptation through prayer, fasting and quoting Scripture (Matthew 4:1-11).

Jesus warned His disciples, “Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41). Jesus Himself overcame temptation in Gethsemane because He prayed “fervently” (Luke 22:44).

If we pray, we too can overcome temptation.

Jesus prayed while He suffered.

In the darkest hours of His life, Jesus prayed. Of seven utterances that Jesus spoke on the cross, three were prayers. Twice Jesus prayed Scripture (Psalms 22:1; 31:5). He also prayed and forgave those who crucified Him.

You too can overcome the trials you face if, like Jesus, you pray prayers based on the promises of God’s Word.

Jesus prayed with thanksgiving.

The Bible says in Luke 10:21, “At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, ‘O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way’” (NLT).

Jesus thanked God for His blessings. Even in His resurrected state, our Lord refused to put a morsel of food into His mouth without first thanking the Father for it (cf. Luke 24:30).

Similarly, you and I should thank God for all He has done for us.

Jesus is praying now in heaven.

Jesus is in heaven preparing a place for His followers, pardoning lost people who repent and preparing to come again. He is also praying.

Hebrews 7:25 says, “Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Christians should never get discouraged. Jesus is praying for us right now.

If Jesus, the Son of God, needed to pray while He was on earth, don’t we? A great place to start is to pray, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

May we pray and not lose heart (Luke 18:1).

It’s easy to get so wrapped up in the process of crafting sermons that we neglect what’s most important. Prayer. Asking God to empower our feeble ramblings and through the Holy Spirit to somehow use it to touch people for eternity. I remember hearing someone say, “Sometimes prayer changes things, but usually prayer changes us.” When we stand in the pulpit we can feel very unworthy to try and open up God’s word and explain it to others, mainly because we know ourselves and we know our sins. Prayer helps me relax and realize that as Dwight Moody said, “God can strike a mighty blow with a crooked stick.”

While preparing to speak at a conference, I went into a small Sunday School classroom to pray. Sitting there in meditation, I noticed numerous prayer requests listed on a white board. I thought it was interesting that all the prayer requests on the board were focused on upcoming health tests and various physical needs in people’s lives. In fact, not one was focused on spiritual issues or the Father and His work in these peoples’ lives.

We spend much of our time praying toward temporal issues that are focused on our circumstances and desires. But if North America is to be penetrated with the Gospel, our prayers must focus on our Father and His purposes and desires. In His High Priestly prayer during the last week of Jesus’ earthly ministry, Jesus shows us how to pray toward the Father (John 17). Despite the intense circumstances of what is historically called “passion week,” His prayer was focused on the Father and the fulfillment of His mission.

FATHER-FOCUSED

The God-centeredness of Jesus’ prayer is evident in the opening word of the prayer as He addresses God as “Father.” He repeats this endearing term six times in this poignant prayer -- verses 1, 5, 11, 21, 24, and 24 -- addressing God as “Holy Father” and “Righteous Father” in two of those instances. This term represents intimacy and relationship. Jesus teaches believers that prayer is relational and is not just something we do, like a ritual or task. As Christians, we are not praying to some impersonal deity in the heavens. He is our Father and our access to come boldly into His presence cost Him greatly (see Hebrews 10:19-20).

MISSION-DRIVEN

The phrase “the hour has come,” points to Jesus’ awareness of the significant times that were near. He was sensitive to the Father’s hour and was praying with a view toward what the Father was accomplishing in His world. What hour of the Father’s is it today in your life, your family, your city, your nation, your world? How is the Father’s hour impacting the way you pray? Are you praying toward the Father’s hour?

CHRIST-EXALTING

Jesus’ prayer “Glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You” demonstrates selfless praying. His desire was that all would recognize who the Father was through the glory that would be revealed through the Son’s righteous act of obedience. This act of obedience is linked to the three “lifted up” sayings in John’s Gospel -- John 3:14, John 8:28 and John 12:32. The Father is glorified as the Son is lifted up on the cross, out of the grave, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, where He ever lives to make intercession for those who believe (see Hebrews 7:25). The Father is thus made known (glorified) as Jesus obeyed and was lifted up. Surrendering to the cross was the first step toward the completion of the work of the Christ that continues beyond that historical event.

KINGDOM-BUILDING

As Jesus is glorified, the lost world is redeemed and the Father is made known as His followers tell the story of the Christ down through the ages (see John 17:20). Warren Wiersbe correctly comments, “We glorify our Father in heaven by being what Jesus told us to be: salt in a decaying world and light in a dark world (Matthew 5:13-16).”[1]

God-centered praying produces passionate and effective witnesses. It did then and it will now! How then shall we pray?

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[1] Warren Wiersbe, "On Earth As it is in Heaven" (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2010), 27.

[It is often reported that Christian couples have the same divorce rate as non-Christians. (For example, see .) The truth is that the commitment level of the Christians makes all the difference.]

"The Couple that Prays Together," by Dr. David Stoop, Marriage and Family Matters, August 6, 2012.

I want to report the results of a fascinating research project led by Christopher Ellison at the University of Texas, San Antonio. and reported in the “Journal of Marriage and Family.” But first, I want to look back to the late l980’s when the Gallup people did a similar study on how personal faith impacted marital satisfaction. The results of that study were reported in a book written by a priest named Andrew Greeley. It was titled, Faithful Attraction.

One of the outcomes of that study led to the National Association of Marriage Enhancement, in Phoenix, Arizona (www.nameonline.net) to report that when couples prayed together on a daily basis, less than 1% of those couples would end up getting a divorce. The numbers were 1 out of 1156. Pretty amazing when the divorce rate in the general population is reportedly around 50%.

Now there is this new study that goes even further than just looking at couples praying together. Ellison and his associates included race and ethnicity as factors, and focused on working-age adults. And they looked at four things: 1.) The effect of a couple belonging to the same denomination; 2.) Their attending religious services together; 3.) Shared beliefs and values; and 4.) What they did at home in the way of worship activities.

The study looked at 1387 couples with an over representation of ethnic minorities. The results were stated in terms of marital satisfaction. Some of their findings were to be expected. Those couples who shared the same faith, and who regularly attended church services together, reported a higher level of marital satisfaction. Those who were involved in activities at the church also reported an even higher level of marital satisfaction.

The most interesting finding to me was that when couples shared religious practices at home, which included reading the Bible together and praying together, the level of marital satisfaction was even significantly higher. Those shared behaviors in the home had a strong impact on how satisfied each was with their marriage. The strength of those statistics on shared religious practices were strong enough that the researchers also believed that if couples would share these practices in their home, those behaviors could be seen as predictors of a strong marriage, and obviously a higher degree of marital satisfaction.

Unfortunately, not very many Christian couples read the Bible together or pray together. The number I’ve heard is that only about 4% of Christian couples pray together on a daily basis. The reason might be related to the fact that not many Pastoral couples pray together daily. Their percentage is only about 6%. But the important take-away from both this study, and the Gallup study, is that if you want to strengthen your marriage and even “divorce-proof” your marriage – develop a consistent pattern of reading the Bible together and praying together in your home.

Ready to begin?

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“Pastors: That Divorce Rate Stat You Quoted Was Probably Wrong," by Ed Stetzer, September 27, 2012.

Since I have written quite extensively about the abuse of stats by evangelicals and the media in the past, it was refreshing to see a recent article at the Gospel Coalition show some new data that corrects some erroneous divorce rate statistics which seem to get thrown around the Internet, in the media, and, unfortunately, in the pulpit. The stat in question was that Christians divorce at roughly the same rate as the world.

But what did the actual research show -- particularly when research practicing Christians?

People who seriously practice a traditional religious faith -- whether Christian or other -- have a divorce rate markedly lower than the general population.

The factor making the most difference is religious commitment and practice.

What appears intuitive is true. Couples who regularly practice any combination of serious religious behaviors and attitudes---attend church nearly every week, read their bibles and spiritual materials regularly; pray privately and together; generally take their faith seriously, living not as perfect disciples, but serious disciples---enjoy significantly lower divorce rates than mere church members, the general public, and unbelievers.

The article draws from research found in Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites... and Other Lies You’ve Been Told, the 2010 book by Bradley Wright (and for which I wrote the foreword), as well as an article by W. Bradford Wilcox and Elizabeth Williamson in American Religions and the Family.

Specifically, the research shows that couples who are active in their faith are much less likely to divorce. Catholic couples were 31% less likely to divorce; Protestant couples 35% less likely; and Jewish couples 97% less likely, which in itself is quite impressive, I must say.

So what does this mean for you, for me, and for our churches? I see three takeaways: There will unfortunately still be divorce; discipleship is an integral part of marriage; and we must be careful when quoting statistics.

Divorce Isn’t Going Away

This is an unfortunate reality, but a reality nonetheless. I, like many of you, am a child of divorced parents (as is Donna, my wife). My children have had friends whose parents have divorced. I’ve had friends in the ministry who have divorced. And while we sometimes have a tendency to think of it as just another part of our culture, it should break our hearts to see marriages end.

Erwin Lutzer correctly stated “in marriage, the goal is holiness, not happiness.” Marriage was intended to be a God-ordained commitment between one husband and one wife for one lifetime as one flesh. Sin has broken that, and we see those effects all around us. However, we have the Power in us to overcome. Christ is faithful to hold marriages together when they are centered on Him and His redemptive work on the cross. If our marriage is focused on holiness, happiness will inevitably follow. I’ve never met a couple who has divorced because they were pursuing God too much.

Discipleship Is Integral to a Healthy Marriage

Our spiritual growth affects everything about us. To build on the previous point, holiness does not just happen. Sanctification and holiness are the products of work. Marriage is like a muscle. It does not become stronger unless it is exercised.

This is partly on my mind because of my Sunday message at Grace Church -- I’ll be preaching on adultery and divorce the next two weeks as we work through the Sermon on the Mount. Divorce is a scourge and part of the answer is well-discipled Christians.

Be Careful When Quoting Stats

Christians aren’t the only group to be misrepresented. Parents of special needs children are victims of this as well. But as pastors who are charged with proclaiming Truth (with a big T), we must also commit to proclaiming truth (with a little t). I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard a speaker or pastor misquote a stat or tell a story that was actually not true. For that matter, I’ve done it myself at times -- but that does not mean we cannot all do better.

I’ve been in the audience or backstage at conferences when a stat that came out of my office was quoted incorrectly by another speaker. And as for your little stories, Snopes.com exists for a reason, pastors. Please, I beg of you, use it. Stories and stats may help you make your point, but please research, confirm, and cite them.

One reason this is so important in this area is that when we say things like “the divorce rate for Christian couples and non-Christian couples is the same,” we give the impression that Christ makes no difference in our lives and in our marriages. That is offensive to the work of the Spirit in us and simply not true. We must not give Satan a foothold in our marriage, and bad stats can do just that.

So, do couples who say they are “Christians” divorce often? Sure. Almost 8 of 10 Americans say they are Christians and they, well, look like the other 2 out of 10 who don’t claim to be Christians. But, when a pastor says, “Christians and non-Christians divorce at the same rate,” that is not what they people hear. If you are a pastor, they think that you should know what a Christian is, and that you must be saying that Christians (people who follow Christ) divorce at the same rate as the rest -- and that’s not true.

Marriage is a gift from God. One for which I am extremely grateful. So, pastors, please don’t undermine it with inaccurate stats or misleading citations of those stats.