How To Pray To God

Prayer is not a ritual that we perform to be closer to God. In Christ, we have already been adopted as God’s children. That is why in Romans 8:14-17 it is written that in Christ we did not receive the Spirit of slavery so that we still live our lives indulging in sin. Instead, we have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” That is why we pray to God—to commune with our Heavenly Father. God communicates to us primarily through the Scriptures and His Living Word (Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.), and we communicate with God through prayer.

Father in heaven, may I always delight in prayer, knowing that it is how I communicate with You. May I always be diligent and faithful in it, depending on You in prayer every step of the way as I live my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Seeking to Know How to Pray

If you ask, “How do you pray to God?”, you ask an excellent question; it’s a question like one that Jesus’ disciples asked. It is a crucial question because prayer is essential to a Christian’s life. It is where we receive grace from God. That is why the Bible tells us to come before God’s throne of grace, in which Christ is our confidence, and ask God for the grace and mercy that we need (Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.). So, if we are going through difficult times and we don’t pray at all, it is difficult to imagine having the grace that we need to persevere through challenges.

 

 

When Jesus was asked how to pray, He answered with an assumption, using the phrase “when you pray.” It shows us that prayer is something that is expected of a Christian. We are expected to pray to God always because we are always dependent on Him. In (Romans 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.), it is written that from God, through God, and to God, are all things. We pray because we abide in Christ. Prayer is a posture of humility showing that we lift our prayer requests to God (Philippians 4:6-7).

The Heart of Prayer

Knowing the heart behind prayer is essential if we want to know how to pray to God. If we know the heart and the purpose behind praying, it will guide our prayer lives. The heart behind prayer is essentially to communicate or commune with God. If we always keep that in mind and speak from such a heart, then we are already praying to God. 

Jesus taught us how to pray in Matthew 6:7-13; however, notice it is not about a word-for-word prayer that we repetitively utter to God. This verse shows us the pattern of how we are to pray. What Jesus was teaching us is the heart and not the words itself. 

The beginning of prayer starts with “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” It implies that we are to start our prayer by revering God. Next, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” teaches us about praying for His kingdom to come and acceptance of His will. For example, it is God’s will for people to be good to one another. Therefore, we pray for God’s grace upon society so that we do good to each other and are not consumed by evil. “Give us this day our daily bread” does not literally mean asking God for bread, but for the provisions that we need, since bread stands for the staples the people must have. Last, “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil” comes from a heart of being sorry or contrite before God for our sins and always praying for God to lead us in righteousness.

Even if you don’t speak these exact words, you can still essentially pray the LORD’s prayer. This is because you’ve come to understand the heart behind it—the heart to commune with God; to speak with Him and be intimate with Him. There you revere Him and pray for His will to come. Knowing that He is your Father, you pray for your needs. Also, having the desire to honor Him, you pray that you will always walk in righteousness and be contrite for your sins.

What About Other Prayers in the Bible?

The Lord’s Prayer is not the only way to pray to God when we want to commune with Him. If we look at the book of Psalms, we see many different kinds of prayers with different kinds of outlines or patterns. We see prayers that magnify the splendor and majesty of God (Psalm 104:1-2), prayers that ponder upon the goodness of God and His steadfast love (Psalm 100:4-5), and even prayers where the psalmist cries out to God with all the pain and difficulties that he is going through (Psalm 61:1-3).

The heart of prayer is communing with God in a way that we can be intimate with Him. That is basically what Christ has given us—the privilege of being able to come before God because He has already torn down the dividing wall before God and us (Ephesians 2:14-16). If before high priests couldn’t enter the holy of holies because of the gap between God and us, now we can. We can commune with God; not literally in the temple but because we are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), in which, anytime and anyplace, we can commune and spend time with God. So, a short prayer such as “LORD, help me” already echoes as a sweet cry to our Father in heaven, especially when compared to an hour-long prayer prayed in mere repetition and without any particular desire to commune with God.

We pray to God from our hearts’ desire; to communicate with Him and tell Him whatever we want to tell Him with love and reverence toward Him.

Father in heaven, thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to die for my sins on the cross and restore my standing before You as Your child. He has torn down the dividing wall between You and me so that I may be able to come before You. Thank You for the privilege of being able to commune with You and be intimate with You in prayer. May I always desire and delight in spending time with You in prayer. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Just as with any relationship, communication is important; most especially if we love someone. We communicate with God through prayer because we are in a relationship with Him. So, prayer becomes a delight because we love God. It is not something we do out of routine but out of love and joy.