Reading material on how to pray?

AMorrii

New Member
I'm looking for some reading material on how to pray. It's not something I do much and I'm not very good at it. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks.
 
"Oddly" timed. Tabletalk devotions with RC Sproul (from Biblegateway) was on this topic today:

How to Pray

James 5:16 “Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (v. 16).

After explaining justification by faith alone (Rom. 1–4), Paul lists the benefits of being counted righteous in God’s sight. The second blessing he describes is that we have “obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand” (5:2). As members of the new covenant, we are privileged to be able to enter into the most holy place and commune with the Lord because of Jesus (Heb. 6:19–20).

Prayer has been given to us so that we may enter into this holy place to commune with our Father in heaven. As the bride of Christ, we know that He wants us to approach Him with our needs and with our petitions for the sake of the kingdom. After all, if a good marriage on earth depends on communication with one’s spouse, how much more does a blessed relationship with our Lord depend on speaking with Him on a regular basis?

Unfortunately, many of us do not often take advantage of the awesome privilege of prayer. True, we mean well. We establish certain times of the day to approach God, but we find that our minds wander or that all we do is read off a laundry list of our own needs. God is, of course, concerned about these needs (Matt. 6:30), but we sense that we are too self-centered in our prayer lives when all we do is tell God what we need or what we want.

Not knowing how to pray is probably the main reason why we encounter these problems. Thankfully, we have a model in Scripture from our Savior Himself on the things we should pray for. The Lord’s Prayer is not simply something that we should recite in church and at home; it is a guide Jesus gives us for structuring our communication with God (Luke 11:1–13). Fundamentally, this prayer tells us to ask that God’s name be hallowed so that His kingdom may come and His will be done.

In A Simple Way to Pray, Martin Luther suggests that Christians pray through the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer, using each line as a springboard for adoring God, confessing sin, expressing gratitude and pouring forth supplications. Using such tools helps keep our minds focused on those things our Father is most concerned about.

Coram deo: Living before the face of God

As an illustration of Luther’s advice, take some time today to pray through the Ten Commandments. Take each stipulation and confess how you have violated that particular law. Worship Him for the perfection of His character revealed in each commandment. Thank Him for enabling you by the Spirit to be faithful to His Law and ask for His kingdom to come so that all may love and obey Him. Make it your aim to pray to our heavenly Father without ceasing.

For further study:

Psalm 54

The Bible in a year:

Leviticus 16
 
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll start with the Practice of the Presence of God because it's free and I only allow myself to buy books once a month. I'll add the others to my wishlist.


In A Simple Way to Pray, Martin Luther suggests that Christians pray through the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer, using each line as a springboard for adoring God, confessing sin, expressing gratitude and pouring forth supplications. Using such tools helps keep our minds focused on those things our Father is most concerned about.

I'm not sure that knowing what to say is my problem. I think my problem is that when I pray my words are still just words in a room that only I hear. I don't know if my mind is not in the right place or if the stars are not aligned or what.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll start with the Practice of the Presence of God because it's free and I only allow myself to buy books once a month. I'll add the others to my wishlist.




I'm not sure that knowing what to say is my problem. I think my problem is that when I pray my words are still just words in a room that only I hear. I don't know if my mind is not in the right place or if the stars are not aligned or what.

Sometimes we enter points where we feel distant from God, that's normal. The key is to align your heart to God in prayer and not to worry about the stars. ;) Seriously tho, focus on God and the other things will start to fall into place.

Oh and to throw another book on the pile... Prayer: Does it Make Any Difference by Philip Yancy.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll start with the Practice of the Presence of God because it's free and I only allow myself to buy books once a month. I'll add the others to my wishlist.

I'm not sure that knowing what to say is my problem. I think my problem is that when I pray my words are still just words in a room that only I hear. I don't know if my mind is not in the right place or if the stars are not aligned or what.

Sometimes I think it's mood. If you're not in the mood to talk to someone you probably won't. But God really does deserve our attention, and so we have to consciously make an effort to settle down and find time to talk to him. I admit even when I'm praying I get distracted, and sometimes I'm just not in the mood to pray for other people or even myself. But in those cases, at least just talk to God.

I think it's a really good idea to find something that you do everyday, and pray during that time. Something like walking to the mail box or down the block, driving to work, working out, or preparing food. Or even doing laundry.

It's also important to find things to pray for. Things like health and financial stability are standard, but don't get stuck on just those. Pray for simple things; those are important.

And lastly, prayer is really just having a conversation with God. It's really just about talking with him on a personal and kind of intimate level; like a trusted friend. You should be respectful, but at the same time I think it's important to be honest; complain if you need to, but ask for guidance and direction, ask for clarity and patience, and do what you can to try and move forward.
 
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Just my own personal anecdote, my prayers have drastically changed after I read the Psalms. These are prayers that David, Solomon, and others have prayed and serve as an example of what Biblical prayer is like, though not necessarily what they NEED to be.

The books that have been suggested will help your prayer life immensely, but I would also encourage you to take a look at Psalms, find some favourites, and take a look at how these prayers are formed, what they're saying, how they say it, and try and learn from them.

Hope it helps :)
 
What you need to remember is that you are having a conversation. It's not just one sided. He might not reply verbally, but He does reply. Praying for ya. You're not just talking to dead space. Sometimes it is hard.

One thing that I've been trying to do more often is pray while on my way to/from work.
 
St. Thomas Aquinas: On prayer and the contemplative life :)
 
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