| Prayer is humbly speaking to God. You should pray to God regularly. Thus you can feel close to him as to a dear friend. Jehovah is so great and powerful, yet he listens to our prayers! Do you pray to God regularly? (Psalm 65:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:17) |
Psalm 65:2 O you who hear prayer, to you all men will come. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ...pray continually... |
Prayer is ... speaking to God. ... Thus you can feel close to him as to a dear friend. How is speaking to someone going to generate the feeling of closeness that you get with a friend? To feel close to a friend, you talk to the person, but they also respond. |
| Prayer is part of our worship. Thus, we should pray only to God, Jehovah. When Jesus was on earth, he always prayed to his Father, not to anyone else. We should do the same. (Matthew 4:10; 6:9) However, all our prayers should be said in the name of Jesus. This shows that we respect Jesus' position and that we have faith in his ransom sacrifice. (John 14:6; 1 John 2:1, 2) |
Matthew 4:10; 6:9 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" ... "This, then, is how you should pray: "’Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name...’" John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 1 John 2:1, 2 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. |
We should only pray to God, Jehovah. Since the Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the Trinity, this statement implies that we should only pray to God the Father. In typical Christian belief, however, the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are all "God" and are therefore all available for prayer. Praying to one of them is the same as praying simply to the Trinity. This shows that we respect Jesus' position... Praying "in Jesus’ name" is not an act of respect. It is necessary in order for our prayers to reach the Father in an acceptable form. Jesus is our mediator. His sacrifice for us puts Him in a position where He can purify our prayers before handing them on to the Father. If we were to pray without going through Jesus, our prayers would not be purified and would not be acceptable to God. |
| When we pray we should speak to God from our heart. We should not say our prayers from memory or read them from a prayer book. (Matthew 6:7, 8) We can pray in any respectful position, at any time, and at any place. God can hear even silent prayers said in our heart. (1 Samuel 1:12, 13) It is good to find a quiet place away from other people to say our personal prayers. (Mark 1:35) |
Matthew 6:7, 8 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 1 Samuel 1:12, 13 As she kept on praying to the LORD, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk... Mark 1:35 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. |
We should not say our prayers from memory or read them from a prayer book. The scripture passage does not say anything about this type of prayer. Prayers from books or memorized prayers are not evil, if the person truly believes and means the prayer that he utters. Furthermore, it is a common practice to "pray the scripture" - when we pray the words that God has spoken (and mean them), we are aligning ourselves with the will of God. Finally, Jesus taught us to pray with the "Lord’s Prayer". While this prayer is an important model to use for personal prayers, it is also a perfect prayer, since it came from the mouth of Jesus. Praying this prayer is not evil. We can pray in any respectful position, at any time, and at any place. As quoted above, we should pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17). The idea of respectful position implies that you have to assume a posture in order to speak to God. However, if you are praying continually, you will be praying as you walk down the street, drive your car, play games with friends or fight fires. |
| What subjects can you pray about? Anything that might affect your friendship with him. (Philippians 4:6, 7) The model prayer shows that we should pray about Jehovah's name and purpose. We can also ask for our material needs to be provided, for our sins to be forgiven, and for help to resist temptation. (Matthew 6:9-13) Our prayers should not be selfish. We should only pray for things that harmonize with God's will. (1 John 5:14) |
Philippians 4:6, 7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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. Matthew 6:9-13 "This, then, is how you should pray: "'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'" 1 John 5:14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. |
Anything that might affect your friendship with him. I think this can be summarized with the word "everything". There is nothing in this world - no action, no thought, no item - that does not relate to God. The scripture reference say in everything. ...we should pray about Jehovah’s name... "hallowed be your name" is a statement of praise. ...about ... Jehovah’s purpose... "your kingdom come, your will be done" is a phrase denoting submission of our own wills to His will. We can also ask for our material needs to be provided... "Give us today our daily bread" is also a statement of our trust in God to provide for our needs. ...for our sins to be forgiven... We must be confessing and repenting when we ask for forgiveness - it is not something to be taken lightly. ...for help to resist temptation. Between "give us this day our daily bread" and "deliver us from the evil one", we are asking for God’s strength to sustain us. We aren’t asking for help, we’re asking for deliverance, since we can’t help ourselves. We should only pray for things that harmonize with God’s will. We cannot always see what God’s will is for a situation. This is why we pray, "your will be done." While we may make petitions in our prayers, we also need to acknowledge that the things we ask for are not necessarily the best things for us - God knows what is best and that is what we need to ask for. |
| You may pray whenever your heart moves you to thank or praise God. (1 Chronicles 29:10-13) You should pray when you have problems and your faith is being tested. (Psalm 55:22; 120:1) It is appropriate to pray before you eat your meals. (Matthew 14:19) Jehovah invites us to pray "on every occasion." (Ephesians 6:18) |
1 Chronicles 29:10-13 David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, "Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name. Psalm 55:22; 120:1 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. ... I call on the LORD in my distress, and he answers me. Matthew 14:19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. Ephesians 6:18 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 saints. |
You may... You should... It is appropriate... Pray continually. Listing times when you should, or may pray implies that there are times when you shouldn’t or may not. Also, there are not appropriate times for prayer - we are to pray continually. Pray in the Spirit on all occasions will all kinds of prayers and requests. ...Always keep on praying... |
| We especially need to pray if we have committed a serious sin. At such times we should beg for Jehovah's mercy and forgiveness. If we confess our sins to him and do our very best not to repeat them, God is "ready to forgive." (Psalm 86:5; Proverbs 28:13) |
Psalm 86:5 You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you. Proverbs 28:13 He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy. |
...especially... If we are praying continually, there is no time that is more appropriate to pray than other times. ...serious sin... Any sin is serious, because it is an act of self-pride and rebellion against God. If we ... do our very best not to repeat them, God is "ready to forgive." First, our very best not to repeat them is not very good at all - we fall short of the glory of God. It is only through God’s work to deliver us from the evil one that we have any chance to not repeat them. Secondly, God is always ready to forgive, not contingent on our ability to restrain ourselves from future action. |
| Jehovah listens only to the prayers of righteous people. For your prayers to be heard by God, you must be trying your best to live by his laws. (Proverbs 15:29; 28:9) You must be humble when you pray. (Luke 18:9-14) You need to work at what you pray for. You will thus prove that you have faith and that you really mean what you say. Only then will Jehovah answer your prayers. (Hebrews 11:6) |
Proverbs 15:29; 28:9 The LORD is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous. ... If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable. Luke 18:9-14 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. |
For your prayers to be heard by God, you must be trying your best to live by his laws. In order for our prayers to be heard by God, we must be praying in Jesus’ name. Only His perfection can transform our inability to live by his laws into something acceptable to God. This statement implies that we can live by his laws, or that the fact that we are trying [our] best to live by his laws makes us worthy of His listening. You will thus prove that you have faith and that you really mean what you say. We can’t prove our intentions to God - we are too fallen and sinful to do that successfully! Furthermore, God knows the hearts of men (1 Kings 8:39, 2 Chronicles 6:30, Luke 16:15). He knows whether we have faith in Him or not. Our actions, however, may not be based on faith. They may just be attempts to get something from God because we think our actions and appearances will justify us with God. Only then will Jehovah answer your prayers. God has His plans already set in place. If our prayers happen to align with those plans, then those prayers will be answered even if we do not have faith. Furthermore, prayers prayed with true faith may not be answered in the way we expect or desire. All we can do at that point is acknowledge that God is sovereign and that His will has been done. |
