How To Pray Longer

Prayer is our way of communing with God, and while it is how we communicate with God and talk to Him, prayer is more than just that. When we pray, we come before God’s throne of grace and speak to Him. He is our Most High God, while also our heavenly Father. We come to Him and pray with respect and reverence out of our relationship with Him.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for the presence of Christ. I can freely spend my time with, commune with You, and come before Your throne of grace with all confidence, for Christ has made me holy and righteous in Your sight. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Why Pray Longer?

We should pray for longer because we can. As mentioned above, we are already reconciled with the Father through Christ. The dividing wall of hostility that separated God and us because of our sin was broken down when Christ died and paid for the penalty of our sin (Ephesians 2:14-16). Christ’s work on the cross has brought peace between God and us. He is our source of peace. (For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. Romans 5:10) (For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. Romans 8:15).

 

If you wonder why those are reasons for us to pray longer, remember that it’s a privilege that we can come before God’s throne of grace, approach the Most High God as our Father, and pray to Him. Because of that, we can pray for as long as we want. That does not imply that we should always pray for many hours. The point is that we can pray longer whenever we want to because we have been given the privilege of accessing Christ. As we realize the value of the privilege that Christ gives us, we will maximize it.

Think of it as being given free access to one of the best hotels and resorts in the world. One person may spend shorter or longer amounts of time than another, but one thing is certain, they will maximize the privilege they’ve been given.

Another reason why we should pray for longer is because there are many things that we would like to pray for. That is a given, especially for those called by God into this kind of ministry. Every time you pray, you are not just satisfied by praying for yourself, friends, family, and church. You always want to include your nation, the government, and its people in your prayers. You should also pray for the missionaries and ministers in other nations proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to those who haven’t heard it yet. You may also want to include a specific group of people close to your heart, like marginalized populations.

People sometimes pray longer because they have so many things they want to pray for. Jesus taught us in Matthew 6:7 (But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Matthew 6:7) that when we pray, we are not to pray and heap up empty phrases. Heaping up empty phrases means praying and uttering specific phrases and things just for the sake of saying them, thinking that it will make our prayers look good before God. If we pray for longer because we truly have many things to pray for, and we mean every single thing that we are praying to God, then we are not heaping up empty phrases.

How Can I Pray Longer?

You can start to pray for a longer duration by starting small. If you are used to praying for 10 minutes daily, try to ramp it up to 15 or 20 minutes daily. Then, as you get used to it, you can gradually increase it until you can pray for an hour or more.

However, that is just an amount of time. Assuming that you can pray for an hour, how exactly should you pray to use that time wisely? Praying for a longer duration is just like any other prayer. Therefore, just as you pray to God in short durations, you should do the same for longer durations. You still present your prayer requests to God (Philippians 4:6-7), cast your cares up to Him (Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7), give thanks to Him (In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18), and worship and adore Him in prayers (Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is upon many waters.Psalm 29:1-3).

 

 

To help with that, you can think and prepare the things you want to pray for beforehand. What are the things or people you plan to pray for? What are their prayer points or the things you want to pray for them? You can note these things in your notebook, have them written on your personal bulletin board of prayer points, or through any other method of recording them. Take note that, at times, the Holy Spirit can impress certain matters, people, or prayer points upon you for which He would like you to pray. As you pray, be sensitive to what the Holy Spirit is leading you to pray.

Holy Spirit, give me the wisdom that I need as I prepare the prayer points that I will pray. Help me be sensitive to Your guidance and impressions as I pray that I may intercede and pray for those people or matters. Thank You, as it is a privilege to pray for others. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

(Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. James 5:16) James 5:16 states that our prayers in Christ, who has made us righteous, have great power and are effective. Those many minutes or even hours of prayer you offer are not in vain, as God uses your prayers to bring about His will. Most of all, we delight in prayer because we delight in communing with God. That is why, even if you offer an hour or more of prayer, you will love to do it because you are doing it for God and with God.