Speaking To God

13 Aug Speaking To God

Based on Part 3 of Be Still My Soul

God lovingly longs for us to consistently draw near to Him in prayer. His son Jesus set a great example of this, and has taught us how to do so. Jesus calls on us to recognize God as our Father in heaven as we pray, and to ask Him for His kingdom to come, His will to be done, and to help us with our daily needs. He also teaches us to ask God for forgiveness of our sins and for deliverance from our temptations. And He assures us that as we forgive others, God will forgive us. 

Here is the passage in which Jesus teaches us how to pray:

 “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.’

For if you forgive others when they sin against you, your heavenly 

father will also forgive you.”  (Matt. 6:9-14) 

As we pray, we are to pour out our hearts to God not only with praise and thanks, but also with deep confidence as we seek His help.

Hundreds of years before Jesus, God chose David as a leader because he was “a man after his own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). The psalms David wrote are great examples and teachings about prayer. I have spent years studying and praying my way through them, and they have helped me to connect with God on a deeply emotional level, pouring out my needs and hurts and hopes. 

Here are a few of my favorite verses from David’s prayers. If you are looking to add some variety or emotional connection to your prayer life, try praying through these lines and the psalms from which they are drawn:

• “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1 KJV)
• “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul” (Psalm 25:1)
• “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry” (Psalm 40:1)
• “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love”  (Psalm 51:1)
• “Hear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy” (Psalm 86:1)
• “Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name” (Psalm 103:1)
• “O Lord hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy…The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground…So my spirit grows faint within me.” (Psalm 143: 1, 3, 4)

I pray these verses take your relationship with your Father to new places. James 4:8 promises, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.” The more you open your heart to God, you can be sure He will open His heart to you! 

Be Still My Soul is a book to inspire greater growth and depth in your walk with God. It can be purchased from ipibooks.com. Check out the video conversation on this article here!