I have found the easiest way to get my eyes off of issues in my life is to pray for others. When I focus on God, my issues have a way of working themselves out (God).

 

I remember praying as a young child and not really knowing how. I would just talk to God.I kept it pretty simple. As an adult, I hear other adults say all the time, “I don’t know how to talk to God,” or “I don’t know how to pray.”

 

I get that. I completely understand it. If you are new to talking to God or haven’t in a long time, it can be intimidating. It shouldn’t be, but it is.

 

I could easily respond with, “Just talk to Him!”

 

What instruction does that give? It doesn’t. I’ve developed in my prayer time with God. I’ve received revelation in His Word continually as I grow in my faith. I don’t pick and choose what I’m going to talk to God about either. I talk to Him about EVERYTHING.

 

Luke 12:6-7 (KJV) says:

Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.

 

If he cares about a bird, he cares about you. He knows the number of hairs on your head. I don’t even know the numbers of hair on my own head, though they are becoming less and less. I had a little chat with God about that…

 

So how do we pray? Some people think they aren’t worthy and go to him with their head down, beg him for something miniscule because they think they don’t deserve anything more. They pray for the very least because they feel guilty asking for more. They will pray, “Whatever be Your will, God,” thinking it’s His will that they stay sick/beat down/suffering.

 

Really? You think God wants you sick?! I know I shouldn’t use a question and exclamation point together at the end of a sentence but, really?! You think God WANTS you sick?! You think it’s His will that you be sick?! You think it’s HIs will that you be beat down or suffer?!

 

Show me the scripture that says He wants you sick or any of those other things. I can show you scripture that you are to be healed and whole. I can show you the scripture where He sent His son to sacrifice his LIFE so that you can have yours. You have to read the Word and you have to know what His will is. His people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. If you are suffering because you think it’s God’s will that you suffer, you are being destroyed for your lack of knowledge. That doesn’t mean we won’t go through trials and all that jazz, we just have to understand that it’s not His will that we suffer through anything. If we think it is His will, we then have no hope. He is always our hope. It opened an entire new world to me when I got a hold of this revelation of who He is.

 

So back to, how do we pray?

 

First, let’s look at how we should approach His throne: with BOLDNESS. What? You mean I don’t have to tiptoe up to God and peek around the corner at Him to see if He has the time to hear my silly prayer that I may or may not have the guts to ask about?

Hebrews 4:16 says: Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

 

His Word tells us to come before him with boldness. Wow. Imagine that. What is boldness though? It’s not haughtiness. It’s not arrogance. Boldness is understanding what you have access to and utilizing it.

 

I call it BOLD P.P.T.

 

PRAISE

PRAY

THANKS

 

1. PRAISE – Psalm 100:4 says: Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

 

You have to enter into His court if you want to talk to Him. Imagine this scenario. You are a king/queen sitting on your throne. You have a large court before you (big open floor space). People are allowed to enter in to your court. They can walk onto your court. Now what if in the midst of all these people shuffling back and forth, head down and moping around afraid to talk to you, one person comes busting up into your court with a smile on their face, dancing and praising your name telling you how awesome you are. They are surely going to get your attention. You may view it differently but this is how I picture myself busting up into God’s court. Sometimes I’m the “shuffler” though and then I have to remember to be bold.

 

2. PRAY – John 14:13-14 says: And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

 

ANYTHING. Jesus says ANYTHING. That means you can talk to God about ANYTHING. If you don’t know what ANYTHING means, I’ll pray for you. So once I have His attention I can put my requests before Him. The thing is, by then, my attitude is already better in regards to those situations after I’ve praised Him, maybe did a little dance before Him, sang a tune for Him, so now I can more clearly articulate what it is I am in need of because I’m not clouded with thoughts of doubt and fear any longer. All that praising got that stuff out of the way.

 

 

3. THANKS – 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says: In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

 

EVERYTHING. If we can ask him about ANYTHING we should thank Him for EVERYTHING. Do you see what that verse says? Do you see that it tells us what God’s will is? What did I talk about earlier? Get in the Word and see what His will is…He hides it FOR us, not from us. This scripture says it very plainly, “for this is the will of God…” Sometimes, I skip #2. Sometimes I praise Him and then just go on and thank Him for the things I was going to pray about. That’s called having faith. If I need healing, I praise Him first and then thank Him for my healing. He already knows and I know His will so why not thank Him for it?

 

Be bold. Have big faith. Enter into his courts and stand out amongst the crowd. Let Him hear your voice, it’s one of the sweetest sounds to Him. Dance before Him. Sing for Him. King David did. King David ugly danced before God and God loved it. Go ahead, get your ugly dance on! Get happy in the Lord!

 

 

JOHN 10:27

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: