Prayer: Requests and Answers
Through prayer, obedient children of God communicate with their Father, the creator of heaven and earth, and all that is. Our relationship with God is only as good as our communication with Him. Through prayer we fellowship with God and tell Him we love Him. Through prayer we express dependence on God and ask Him to do what only He can do. Our God is huge, beyond human comprehension. Nothing is impossible with God (Mark 10:27).
Prayer helps us discover the will of God for our lives and deepens our relationship with Him. Through prayer, we discover the depths of God's mercy and love for us.
Sylvia Gunter tells us in her book "Living in His Presence" that we should pray because God commands us to pray (Romans 12:12, Colossians 4:2, 1 Thessalonians 5:17), and Jesus provides the example (Mark 1:35, Luke 5:16). Prayer gives us power over evil (Matthew 26:41) and succeeds when other means fail. God releases His power, promises, cleansing, healing, and mercy, as we pray compassionately (Matthew 9:36), earnestly (Acts 12:5), righteously (James 5:16), and desperately (James 5:17).
God hears our prayers (Exodus 22:27, Isaiah 65:24) and promises to answer our prayers when we bring our requests to Him (Matthew 7:9-10, 18:19; Isaiah 58:9).
Prayer is to be our top priority. God commands us to devote ourselves to prayer and to pray continually (Col.ossians 4:2-4, 1 Thessalonians 5:17). Martin Luther, when asked what his plans for the following day were, answered: "Work, work, from early until late. In fact, I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer."
The Bible instructs us to pray for others. Many problems are too heavy for us to bear alone. Faced with extreme hardship, Paul wrote that he counted on the prayers of his friends for victory (2 Corinthians 1:8-11, Romans 15:30-31, Ephesians 6:18).
We want to intercede for you during your time of need and celebrate with you when the Lord answers your prayers. Please share your prayer requests and praises with us. We will pray for every request we receive and thank God for every prayer answered.
