Hope today finds you well.  May you be filled with God’s grace and peace.  I have been reading through many of the teachings of Paul that are found in the Bible.  He begins many of his letters with “May God’s grace and peace be with you.”  Paul was the greatest evangelist.

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Following is a short study of some of things Paul said about prayer and some of the prayers of Paul.  Paul’s teachings in the New Testament are letters that he sent to churches.  His letters are full of instruction and encouragement to the church.  Let us start with Paul and what he said about the incredible privilege of prayer.  Paul’s words were inspired by the Holy Spirit.  God spoke these words into Paul’s heart as he penned them to the church.

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Over a hundred years ago E.M. Bounds said, “Few Christians have anything but a vague idea of the power of prayer, fewer still have any experience of that power.”  And he also said, “The church seems almost wholly unaware of the power God puts into her hand.”

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We pray that as you start your journey in learning more about prayer that you will realize and believe the Bible.  You will believe that prayer is powerful.  We pray you will passionately pursue the privilege of prayer.

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Here are a few more of my favorite quotes from E.M. Bounds,

 

•     In prayer, God stoops to kiss man, to bless man, and to aid man in everything that God can devise or man can need.
•     He who does not pray, therefore robs himself of God’s help and places God where he cannot help man.

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Enjoy prayer, enjoy God.
Fall in love with Him and love the time you get to spend with your Heavenly Father in prayer.

 

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1.  Philippians 1:9-11

 

Let’s begin by personalizing these verses.  Wherever there is a blank space, please put your name into it.
 

I pray that _____’s love will overflow more and more, and
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that _____ will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding.
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For I want ______ to understand what really matters,
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so that _______ may live a pure and blameless life until the day of Christ’s return.
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May ______ always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—
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the righteous character produced in _______’s  life by Jesus Christ—
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for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

   

A.  What two things did Paul ask God to do for you in the first sentence?
   

B.  Why did Paul want this to happen?
   

C.  And what will be the outcome of this understanding?
   

D.  What God reveals here is so big.  When a believer lives this kind of life it will bring much glory and praise to God.  Think about it for a moment.  Each one of us, a tiny speck in this universe can bring much glory and praise to the Creator of the universe by the life we choose to live.
   

E.  Please pray these verses for you and for everyone you know.  What an awesome gift your prayers could bring to those you love.  Your prayers could bring God’s power into the lives of those you love.  With that these people can realize that they have value and great worth in the eyes of God.

 

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2.  PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7

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"Don’t worry about anything, pray about everything.
Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.
His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."

   

A.  To begin with, God commands us not to worry about anything.
   

B.  Instead of worrying we are commanded to pray about everything.
   

C.  In the next sentence we are given a few hints as to how to pray.  What are they?
   

D.  If we cease from worrying and pray about everything what will God do for you?
    Everyone needs peace of mind.  God wants to give it to everyone.  How awesome!

 

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3.  1 TIMOTHY 2:1-5

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"I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. 

Ask God to help them, intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. 

Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority

so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.

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This is good and pleases God our Savior,

who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. 

For there is only one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus."

   

A.  How are we told to pray for all who are in authority?
   

B.  If we are faithful to pray for them, what is the outcome?
    

C.  Who does this verse say that God wants to be saved?
   

D.  Who does this verse say is the only one who can reconcile God and humanity?

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4.  COLOSSIANS 4:2

  
"Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.  ​

Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ.  ​

That is why I am here in chains.  ​

Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should."​

   

Devotion, alertness, and thankfulness are attitudes to have in prayer.
    What two things did Paul ask the people to pray about?

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5.  2 THESSALONIANS 1:11

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"And so we keep on praying for you, that our God will make you worthy of the life to which he called you. 

And we pray that God, by his power, will fulfill all your good intentions and faithful deeds. 

Then everyone will give honor to the name of our Lord Jesus because of you, and you will be honored along with him. 

This is all made possible because of the undeserved favor of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ."

   

A.  Prayer is persistent.  We keep praying and asking until we get an answer.
   

B.  Look at these prayer requests:
   

C.  God will make you worthy.
   

D.  God will fulfill all your good intentions.
   

E.  God will fulfill your faithful deeds.

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F.  ​Have you ever considered what the favor of God is and how it affects your life?
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6.  2 THESSALONIANS 3:1-2

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"Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we ask you to pray for us.
Pray that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and be honored wherever it goes,
just as when it came to you.
Pray, too, that we will be rescued from wicked and evil people, for not everyone is a believer.
But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one."

   

A.  Paul asked the church to pray for him.  It is a good thing to have believers praying for us.
   

B.  Look at the three requests that were made:

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...the Lord’s message would spread rapidly,

...the Lord’s message would be honored wherever it went

...and we will be rescued from wicked and evil people

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7.  EPHESIANS 3:14-21 

 
                                                                     

"When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father,
the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.
I pray that from his glorious unlimited resources He will empower you
with inner strength through His Spirit.

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in Him.
Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.
And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. ​

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is to great to understand fully. 

Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. 

Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. 

Glory to Him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever!

Amen."

 

   

A.  I love these verses.  Certainly they are some of my very favorite in the entire Bible.
   

B.  What God has to give is so awesome that Paul falls to his knees and prays.  When we realize the greatness of God and the enormous love He has for us, we are humbled.  It is then an easy thing to get on our knees and worship Him.
   

C.  Paul states that God has glorious unlimited resources.  God has it all, everything, at his disposal.  Whoa!
   

D.  Paul asks that believers will be empowered with inner strength through the Holy Spirit.
   

E.  And then Christ will make his home in our heart as we TRUST in him.
   

F.  Paul asks that our roots will grow into God’s love.
   

G.  Paul asks that we will be given wisdom to grasp how enormous God’s love is for each of us.
   

H.  Paul asks that we will experience God’s love.
   

I.  And then, if that isn’t enough, we are told that God is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to do infinitely more than we might ask of Him.  People, look at what God wants to do in our lives.  He wants to give us His power, His glory living inside of us.  And when we let that power flow, God will be able to do absolutely incredible things in our life--more than we can think or imagine.  How cool is that?
   

J.  Pray these verses for your life.  Beg God to do this for you!  Believe and trust that God will do it!

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8.  EPHESIANS 1:16-21

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"I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
to give you spiritual wisdom and insight
so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand
the confident hope he has given to those he called—
His Holy People who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him.

This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.  Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come."

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A.  We are to pray constantly.  Here Paul constantly prays for others to have spiritual wisdom and insight.
   

B.  Ask God to let you understand the confident hope He wants to give you.

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9.  EPHESIANS 6:18-19

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"Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion.
Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
And pray for me, too. 

Ask God to give me the right words

so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. "

   

Praying in the Spirit, means asking God to show you how to pray and what to pray.  It means waiting for that still, small voice of God directing you in prayer.  The more you know the Bible the more you will know it is the Spirit of God directing you.  The Spirit of God always prays God’s will, which never contradicts the Bible.
   

A.  If you have prayed the Ephesians 3 verses listed above, asking God to work in you by his mighty power, be assured He will strengthen you.
    Again we are told to be persistent and alert.
   

B.  Paul again asks to have the right words to speak and to be bold to explain God's plan.

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10.  COLOSSIANS 1:9-14
                                                             
 

"So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you.
We ask God to give you complete knowledge of His will and
to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and
your lives will produce every kind of good fruit.
All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power

so you will have all the endurance and patience you need.
May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. 

He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. 

For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness

and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son,

who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins."

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Western Meadows has prayed these verses for the world of cowboys since 1999.

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We have asked God to give you:

 

•     Complete knowledge of God’s will
•     Give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.
•     That your lives would honor and please God.
•     Your life will produce good fruit.
•     You will learn to know God better and better.
•     You will be strengthened with God’s power
•     You will have endurance and patience.
•     You will be filled with joy and thankfulness.
•     That you will be rescued from the grasp of the devil.

We truly love you.  We have not weakened in our pleas to God to do this in your lives.

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11.  ROMANS 1:9

"God knows how often I pray for you.
Day and night I bring you and your needs in prayer to God,
whom I serve with all my heart
by spreading the Good News about his Son."

   

A.  If you have a hard time falling asleep, perhaps God is prompting you to pray.
 

B.  Pray often for others.
 

C.  Paul served God with ALL of his heart.  He did this by spreading the news about Jesus.

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12.  ROMANS 15:13

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"I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him.
Then you will overflow with confident hope
through the power of the Holy Spirit. "​

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A.  Another favorite verse to treasure in your heart.
   

B.  Pray that God will fill you completely with joy and peace.
   

C.  He will do this because YOU trust in Him.
   

D.  Pray that every day, every minute of your life you will grow to trust Christ more and more.
   

E.  When that trust grows and grows then we will have that confident hope.
   

F.  Tell the Lord that you want that verse to become reality in your life.
   

G.  Passionately desire to be filled with joy and peace and confident hope.
   

H.  God can and will do this by the power of the Holy Spirit working within you.

13.  1 THESSALONIANS 1:2-3

 

"We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. 

As we pray to our God and Father about you,

we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds,

and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ. "​

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A.  Thank God for others.
 

B.  Constantly pray for others.
 

C.  As you pray for others think of their faithful work, loving deeds, and enduring hope.
 

D.  If they don’t have those qualities pray that God will produce those in them.

14.  1 THESSALONIANS 5:8

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"But let us who live in the light think clearly,
protected by the body armor of faith and love,
and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation."
 

and 5:16-18

"Always be joyful.  Never stop praying. 

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

   

A.  Don’t quit, don’t quit, don’t quit.
 

B.  Be joyful, be joyful, be joyful.
 

C.  Be thankful, be thankful, be thankful.

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15.  JAMES 5:13-16

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Are any of you suffering hardships?  You should pray.
 

Are any of you happy?  You should sing praises.
 

Are any of you sick? 

You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you,

anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord.
Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and
the Lord will make you well.
 

And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other
so that you may be healed.
 

THE EARNEST PRAYER OF A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS GREAT POWER AND PRODUCES WONDERFUL RESULTS.​

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A.  Pray about hardships.
 

B.  Praise God when you are happy.

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C.  Have others pray for you when you are sick.
 

D.  True faith brings healing.  We all suffer with doubt or unbelief.  Pray as the Centurion prayed, “Lord help my unbelief.”   Repent of all unbelief and ask God to increase your faith to believe that God can heal.  God can answer prayer by yes, no, or wait.  Healing can be God’s will but with Paul God left a thorn in his side and his vision failed him.  Don’t condemn yourself if these prayers aren’t answered.  But be honest in your evaluation of your faith and be ready and transparent with God about your level of faith.  He knows exactly what is going on in your heart anyway, he just wants you to humble yourself and acknowledge your need.  PRAY, “LORD I NEED MORE FAITH, I WANT TO HAVE GREAT FAITH!”
   

E.  Confess your sins, repent and pray for each other. This brings great healing.  Be sure that you confess your sins to people that are trustworthy, love God, and love you.
   

F.  God answers the prayers of the earnest, righteous person.