2 cor 1:8-11

8For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. 9Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. 10 He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 11 You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many. 2 Cor 1:8-11

In Prayer

O Lord, in prayer I launch far out into the eternal world, and on that broad ocean my soul triumphs over all evils on the shores of mortality. Time, with its gay amusements and cruel disappointments never appears so inconsiderate as then.

In prayer I see myself as nothing; I find my heart going after Thee with intensity, and long with vehement thirst to live to Thee. Blessed be the strong gales of the Spirit that speed me on my way to the New Jerusalem.

In prayer all things here below vanish, and nothing seems important but holiness of heart and the salvation of others.

In prayer all my worldly cares, fears, anxieties disappear, and are of as little significance as a puff of wind.

In prayer my soul inwardly exults with lively thoughts at what Thou art doing for Thy church, and I long that Thou shouldest get Thyself a great name from sinners returning to Zion.

In prayer I am lifted above the frowns and flatteries of life, and taste heavenly joys; entering into the eternal world I can give myself to Thee with all my heart, to be Thine for ever.

In prayer I can place all my concerns in Thy hands, to be entirely at Thy disposal, having no will or interest of my own.

In prayer I can intercede for my friends, ministers, sinners, the church, Thy kingdom to come, with greatest freedom, ardent hopes, as a son to his father, as a lover to the beloved.

Help me to be all prayer and never to cease praying.

From "The Valley of Vision"

Psalm 145:18

18The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
Psalm145:18

John Piper on His Prayer Life

Adrian Warnock's interview of John Piper a year or so ago. He spends about the first 5 minutes talking about his private prayer life.

Psalm 139:1-6

1O LORD, you have searched me and known me! 2You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
5You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
Psalm 139:1-6

Prayerless Christians

" A prayerless Christian is like having your room wallpapered with Saks Fifth Ave gift certificates but always shopping at Goodwill because you can't read." John Piper

This is a quote from the chapter on prayer in John Piper's classic, "Desiring God". This book is still one of my top 10 and I go back to it often for encouragement.

Can you get what you want from God

1.21 Blog on "Getting What You Want From God".

Psalm 138:3

On the day I called, you answered me;

my strength of soul you increased.

Psalm 138:3

Pray the Bible

Matthew Henry's method for prayer.

John Calvin and Prayer

NOT PREDESTINATION. The longest chapter in Calvin's Institutes is devoted to PRAYER. III.20.1-52.

John Piper tweet Aug 14

Psalm 66:20

Blessed be God,

because he has not rejected my prayer

or removed his steadfast love from me!

Psalm 66:20

Prayer and the Gospel

"Prayer mirrors the gospel. In the gospel, the Father takes us as we are because of Jesus and gives us his gift of salvation. In prayer, the Father receives us as we are because of Jesus and gives us his gift of help. We look at the inadequacy of our praying and give up, thinking something is wrong with us. God looks at the adequacy of his Son and delights in our sloppy, meandering prayers."

From "A Praying Life" by Paul Miller

Our Messy Honest Prayers

"My best friend is one of those who is okay with mess ups. And I realized while I was driving yesterday that I've never felt the need to edit myself for him. Sometimes I hesitate in my words because I want to get them just right, but I don't leave parts out. Isn't that the best kind of honesty? The unedited, ink blotted, messy, real honesty? Not even when we first met and we kayaked around the lake, not even then did I think I had to change my answers to say what he wanted to hear me say. I can't think of any words to explain the gratitude that wells up inside me when I think about that."

As I read my friend Hope's blog post this morning I thought about how I am always trying to clean up my prayers to make them appropriate for God when in reality He just wants our messy honest prayers. If we are blessed to have a friend or family member that we can talk to like this how much more does our Father want us to talk to him like this. The weird part is that He already knows it all anyway but I still try to put on a religious show. I have not been keeping a record but I really think that over the years that my desperate, honest, no mask prayers are the ones that God has answered the most.

Here is the rest of the post from "Hopeful"

1 Timothy 2:1-2

1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

1 Tim 2:1-2

Talk to God Like He is Your Dad

Psalm 86:9-13

⁸There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,
nor are there any works like yours.
⁹ All the nations you have made shall come
and worship before you, O Lord,
and shall glorify your name.
¹⁰For you are great and do wondrous things;
you alone are God.
¹¹ Teach me your way, O LORD,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
¹²I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
and I will glorify your name forever.
¹³ For great is your steadfast love toward me;
you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.
Psalm 86:9-13

Monergism.com

Here is the link to the prayer page of Monergism.com. This is one of my all time favorite websites!

Francis Chan on Praying Boldly

"If I was on a desert island reading the Scriptures, what would I believe about prayer, and how would that change my church? Think about the change that happened the day Elijah prayed in front of the 450 prophets of Baal. He tells them, “My God is going to take you down.” They’re dancing all day long and screaming out, and at the end of the day, Elijah gets on his knees and prays, “God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, I know you’re there.” And fire comes down! These prophets see this, and they just keep saying, “The Lord, He is God. He is the real God!” They didn’t walk away that day, commenting, “That Elijah, he’s so funny, and he gave such a great message.”

When was the last time people left your services saying, “OK, your Jesus—He’s the real one. Give me that Spirit. I want whatever you have!” My fear is that sometimes we may sound like the prophets of Baal more than we resemble Elijah. The prophets had a great worship time that day. They sang and clapped and yelled. But the Bible says that when they were done, no one answered and no one listened.

Or do our worship services look more like what Elijah did when he got on his knees and boldly prayed and fire came down from heaven? It wasn’t just a bunch of people rallying themselves and getting fired up.

One of my favorite verses is James 5:17: “Elijah was a man, just like us.” But Elijah prayed, the Bible says, earnestly. He didn’t even pray that long. He just laid it out and quietly said, “God, show them who you are.”

We desperately need the boldness of Elijah. I want that. I’m tired of just creating hype. We need to be planting and raising up churches that trust, act and pray boldly—where people walk away saying, “The Lord, He is God!"

Here is the rest of the article.

Psalm 86:6-7

Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer;
listen to my plea for grace.
In the day of my trouble I call upon you,
for you answer me.
Psalm 86:6-7

John Piper on Practical Ways to Help Your Prayer Life

Psalm 86:3-5

³ Be gracious to me, O Lord,
for to you do I cry all the day.
⁴Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
⁵For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.
Psalm 86:3-5

Psalm 86:1

Incline your ear, O LORD, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
Psalm 86:1

Francis Chan's Challenge-Proverbs 30:7-9

A Praying Life

I just finished reading an excellent book on prayer, "A Praying Life" by Paul Miller. This is a highly practical book looking honestly at the way most Christians pray.

"Jesus want us to be without pretense when we come to him in prayer. Instead, we often try to be something we aren't . We begin by concentrating on God, but almost immediately our minds wander off in a dozen different directions. The problems of the day push our well-intentioned resolve to be spiritual. We give ourselves a spiritual kick in the pants and try again, but life crowds out prayer. We know that prayer isn't supposed to be like this , so we give up in despair. We might as well get something done. What is the problem? We're trying to be spiritual, to get it right. We know we don't need to clean up our act in order to become a Christian but when it comes to praying, we forget that. We, like adults, try to fix ourselves up. In contrast, Jesus wants us to come to him like little children, just as we are."

I will be posting some excerpts from this book along the way but I highly recommend that you buy a copy a read it. I believe your prayer life will change dramatically.