What are the Elements of Prayer?

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What are the Elements of Prayer?
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Elements of Prayer

• Since prayer is our only method of communicating
  to God, knowing what to include in our prayers is
  essential to the most effective communication.
• The Bible mentions at least six purposes for
  speaking to God.

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Elements of Prayer

• All of these are necessary for the fullest
  expression of our deepest thoughts, needs and
  desires.
• Learning more about the diversity of prayer will
  also help us to better understand the importance
  of conversing with our Heavenly Father on a
  regular basis.

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Praise

• Praise is speaking to God about Godrelating to
  Him the effects that His character and acts have
  had upon us.

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Praise

• He is marvelous, therefore we marvel at Him.
• He is magnificent therefore we magnify Him.
• He is glorious therefore we glorify Him.

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Praise

• The prayer of praise gives to God both honor and
  glory for the greatness of His
• Creation
• Blessings
• Attributes
• Justice

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Psalm 1471

• Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises
  to our God For it is pleasant, and praise is
  beautiful.

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Revelation 48

• The four living creatures, each having six wings,
  were full of eyes around and within. And they do
  not rest day or night, saying "Holy, holy, holy,
  Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!"

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Revelation 49-10

• Whenever the living creatures give glory and
  honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne,
  who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four
  elders fall down before Him who sits on the
  throne and worship Him who lives forever and
  ever, and cast their crowns before the throne,
  saying

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Revelation 411

• "You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and
  honor and power For You created all things, And
  by Your will they exist and were created."

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Revelation 511-12

• Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many
  angels around the throne, the living creatures,
  and the elders and the number of them was ten
  thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of
  thousands, saying with a loud voice "Worthy is
  the Lamb who was slain To receive power and
  riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and
  glory and blessing!"

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Confession

• Confession, according to the old adage, is good
  for the soul.
• This is certainly true with regard to our
  relationship with God.

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Confession

• Prayer gives us an opportunity to admit to God
  that we have sinned and that we need His help to
  overcome the burden and guilt of sin.

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Confession

• We cannot afford to allow sin to taint our lives.
  
• We must petition God for forgiveness so we can be
  pure in His sight.

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1 John 18-10

• If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
  ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we
  confess our sins, He is faithful and just to
  forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
  unrighteousness. If we say that we have not
  sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not
  in us.

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Psalm 511-2

• Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your
  lovingkindness According to the multitude of
  Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions.
  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse
  me from my sin.

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Psalm 513-4

• For I acknowledge my transgressions, And my sin
  is always before me. Against You, You only, have
  I sinned, And done this evil in Your sight-- That
  You may be found just when You speak, And
  blameless when You judge.

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Proverbs 2813

• He who covers his sins will not prosper, But
  whoever confesses and forsakes them will have
  mercy.

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Thanksgiving

• Thanksgiving has been defined as an attitude of
  gratitude.
• But the attitude must express itself in prayer if
  we wish to continue receiving blessings from God.

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Thanksgiving

• That is, we must thank God for the favors already
  received as we petition Him for a continued
  supply of the same.
• Primarily, we should be grateful for His most
  majestic giftHis only begotten Son, and our
  Savior Jesus Christ.

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Thanksgiving

• Thanksgiving should be a part of our every
  prayer, because there will never be a time when
  we do not have something for which we should be
  thankful.

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Psalm 11612,17

• What shall I render to the Lord For all His
  benefits toward me? I will offer to You the
  sacrifice of thanksgiving, And will call upon the
  name of the Lord.

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Psalm 1361-2

• Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For
  His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the
  God of gods! For His mercy endures forever.

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Supplication

• Supplication is a seeking, asking, or entreating.
  
• It is used in the New Testament of the requests
  addressed by men to God, in which men primarily
  implored Godwith piety and humilityfor
  assistance in a matter.

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Supplication

• This implies that we can approach God, not merely
  in general terms, but with specific requests.
• As our faith in God to answer prayer grows, our
  supplications will become more and more specific.

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Supplication

• Of the two words translated supplication in the
  King James Version, the one in Hebrews 57
  appears nowhere else in the New Testament.
• The other word is more frequently translated
  prayer.

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Supplication

• The distinction between them is put into plain
  words by Robert Milligan, in his Commentary on
  the Epistle to the HebrewsThe Greek words
  rendered prayers and supplications . . . are
  often used interchangeably for prayers in
  general.

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Supplication

• But when used together, as in this instance, the
  former denotes such petitions as flow from a
  sense of our wants and the latter, such as are
  prompted by a deep sense of our own helplessness
  (page 194).

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James 15

• If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God,
  who gives to all liberally and without reproach,
  and it will be given to him.

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James 16-8

• But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for
  he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven
  and tossed by the wind. For let not that man
  suppose that he will receive anything from the
  Lord he is a double-minded man, unstable in all
  his ways.

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Intercession

• Intercession, praying for others, is one of our
  most solemn responsibilities.
• In praising God and giving Him thanks we express
  our love for Him.
• In supplication and confession we express our
  love and concern for self.

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Intercession

• But in intercession we express our love and
  concern for others, as well as our belief that
  they need the help that God alone can and will
  give them.
• Therefore, we should pray for one anothers
  health, and for one anothers safety while
  traveling.

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Intercession

• We should pray not only that religious freedom
  might continue in our land, but also that it
  might extend to other lands.

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1 Timothy 21-2

• Therefore I exhort first of all that
  supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving
  of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all
  who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet
  and peaceable life in all godliness and
  reverence.

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1 Timothy 23-4

• For this is good and acceptable in the sight of
  God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved
  and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

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Imprecation

• Imprecation is a prayer in which one petitions
  God to defeat ones enemies.
• The Old Testament prophets used this type of
  prayer quite extensively with reference to those
  who vexed the Israelites from time to time.

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Imprecation

• In the N. T., imprecations seem to have been made
  concerning those who hindered the cause of truth.

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Luke 181-2

• Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always
  ought to pray and not lose heart, saying "There
  was in a certain city a judge who did not fear
  God nor regard man.

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Luke 183-5

• "Now there was a widow in that city and she came
  to him, saying, 'Get justice for me from my
  adversary.' And he would not for a while but
  afterward he said within himself, 'Though I do
  not fear God nor regard man, yet because this
  widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her
  continual coming she weary me.' "

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Luke 186-8

• Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge
  said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who
  cry out day and night to Him, though He bears
  long with them? I tell you that He will avenge
  them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man
  comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"

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Imprecation

• At the conclusion of the parable Jesus asked,
  And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry
  out day and night to Him, though He bears long
  with them?
• He then answered His own question, saying, I
  tell you that He will avenge them speedily.