Praying the Bible

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We can always come to God and seek His wisdom when we face challenges or conflicts that are above us. But instead of asking God for solutions, we should ask God for wisdom as Paul did in verse 17, that God so freely gives to us through the Holy Spirit. So that we can know God better. In doing so, we can comprehend God’s character and have a breakthrough to understand how God wants us to resolve certain conflicts or overcome situations. We can be taught about God, but unless we ask for wisdom from the Holy Spirit, we can never truly know God. Pray For A Hope That Embraces The Future Psalms 30 1 I will exalt you, LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. 2 LORD my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. 3 You, LORD, brought me up from the realm of the dead; you spared me from going down to the pit. 4 Sing the praises of the LORD, you his faithful people; praise his holy name. 5 For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. 6 When I felt secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.” Each of the four key petitions is something we need more of in our lives, and is something we can ask God for. King Hezekiah was the 13th successor of David to rule Judah. He was a remarkable king that kept great faith in God despite being ill during his reign. Even when a group of kings was plotting to battle with Hezekiah and the Israelites, he prayed for courage and deliverance. Should anyone need a reminder of what our God can do, this is one of the most powerful prayers in the Bible. The result? “It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, ‘Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you'” (1 Kings 3:10–12).

Just as Daniel prayed in verses 9 to 10, let us take comfort knowing that no depth and amount of sin can separate God’s love and mercy for us. And it is promised that when we confess and turn away from our sins, God will show us His unchanging mercy ( Proverbs 28:13-14). Ask God For Forgiveness God responded, “Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s” (verse 15). Filled with joy at this response, the people of God worshipped by singing loudly (verses 18, 19, 22). Then God gave the victory. I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers’ – this shows that Paul is continuously praying for the Ephesians daily, not whenever he chooses to. There were other accounts where Paul’s prayers in the Bible show how much he continuously pray for them. Pray For Wisdom To Know God Better I’ve found the best answer to that struggle is the practice of praying the Bible. Think of it as having a conversation with God. God starts the conversation by speaking to us through His Word. Praying the Bible is simply responding to the conversation that God our Father has already started. This is a great practical relief for me! I don’t need to wait until I’m especially inspired or sharp to approach God in prayer. I just open the Bible, read what God says in His Word, and respond. It’s that simple.And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. In verse 9, Solomon asks for a discerning heart, a heart to understand what is right and wrong. This goes beyond asking for knowing what is right and wrong. We cannot gain wisdom if we know without understanding. Solomon realizes this and thus asks God to fill him with understanding, not mere knowledge. This is how we should ask for wisdom. Asking God For What We Need, Not Want Dr. David Garland commented on this passage in the NIV Zondervan Study Bible: “Paul describes four elements of a life that is worthy of and fully pleasing to the Lord: bearing fruit, growing in knowledge of God, being strengthened for endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks. These fundamentals will fend off the harmful pressures from false teachers.” Pray these petitions to ground yourself in Christ and root yourself in sound doctrine. Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. (verses 4–5)

Ask in God’s name for the things that we need such as strength, guidance, and wisdom to overcome whatever circumstance we might be facing. Prayer of Confession and Forgiveness King David wrote many hymns and psalms in the Book of Psalms, about 73 out of the 150 books. Many of these prayers in the Bible that David wrote were personal and highly emotional. That is why many regard the Book of Psalms as anatomy to the soul. Every range of emotions from thanksgiving to forgiveness, petitions for protection and deliverance, and even anger are written in Psalms. Here, David wrote a thanksgiving prayer , one of the most comforting prayers in the Bible. We may never understand some of God’s plan for us and sometimes even wonder if God knows what is best for us. But God does. He knows what is best for us. His will and plans for us are “to prosper [us] and not to harm [us], plans to give [us] hope and a future” ( Jeremiah 29:11 ). And Jesus knows this because twice, when he asked God to ‘take this cup from [him]’, J esus reaffirmed his desire to accomplish God’s will both times. He firmly trusted God’s plan and obeyed him regardless of all his struggles. Praying for surrender and obedience is a powerful prayer we should all learn. God’s Unconditional Love For Us David closes the Psalm in a surprising way: a prayer for protection against sin. Just like nothing is hidden from the heat and light of the sun (verse 6), the Word of God shines light that exposes the dark corners of our souls (verses 7–11). David pleads for God to help him to live a God-honoring life. Father God, we praise you for making us new creations in Christ! We are grateful for the good news that you do not regard us by our flesh. We are thankful that unlike us, you know and judge us rightly by our hearts. We are sorry for the ways that we have let our shallow, worldly judgments of others become barriers to our proclamation of your gospel. Thank you for overcoming our weakness and partiality to bring life to our hearts through the Holy Spirit. Please help us to see people more like you do so that we would grow in our boldness to share the gospel with others. We pray all this in Jesus’ name, Amen. 2 Corinthians 5:18-20Father God we praise you for your absolute goodness, perfection, and holiness. We thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ, who was tempted in every way as we are and yet did not sin. We confess that in our weakness, we have shamefully enjoyed sins of the mind and body that we ought to have resisted. Please forgive us for our unholy failures. Teach us to truly mourn our offenses against you and lead us by the Holy Spirit into faithful repentance. We are grateful for the overwhelming grace that we continue to experience each day because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Thank you for giving us the power of the Holy Spirit to face future temptations. Continue to sanctify us in our frail bodies as we eagerly await the return of your glorified Son. In a world full of darkness, make us your holy lights and gospel witnesses this week. It is the name of Jesus Christ and for his sake that we pray, Amen. Genesis 39:13-23 Instead of asking for freedom from continued persecution (which is a fine prayer), they prayed for boldness in sharing the gospel (see also Ephesians 6:18–20). God responded immediately to their prayer, “And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness” (verse 31). In response to the criminal’s great faith, Jesus promised him that the criminal will be with him in paradise. In this case, we can interpret paradise as heaven. And the promise is eternal life with God and Jesus in heaven. Repentance Can Happen Anywhere, Anytime