Why is Prayer Difficult?

It's hard to pray because it requires humbling ourselves, getting over ourselves, and coming to the end of our stubborn and sinful selves.

For the Christian, praying is supposed to be like breathing, easier to do than to not do. We pray for a variety of reasons. For one thing, prayer is a form of serving God (Luke 2:36-38) and obeying Him.

Why do we need to develop a prayer life?

We pray because God commands us to pray (Phil. 4:6-7).

Christ and the early church exemplified prayer for us (Mark 1:35; Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 4:23-31; 6:4; 13:1-3). If Jesus thought it worthwhile to pray, we should also.

Another reason to pray is that God intends for prayer to be the means of obtaining His solutions in various situations.

• We pray in preparation for major decisions (Luke 6:12-13)

• To overcome demonic barriers (Matthew 17:14-21)

• To gather workers for the spiritual harvest (Luke 10:2)

• To gain strength to overcome temptation (Matthew 26:41)

• To obtain the means of strengthening others spiritually (Eph. 6:18-19).

Prayer Defined!

Prayer should not be seen as a means of getting God to do our will on earth, but rather as a way of fulfilling God’s will on earth. God’s wisdom far exceeds our own.

Prayers unprayed will remain unanswered.

Prayer is our means of “plugging into” God’s power; it is our means of defeating Satan and his army that we are powerless to overcome by ourselves.

The most basic definition of prayer is “talking to God.”

Prayer is the primary way for the believer in Jesus Christ to communicate his emotions and desires with God and to fellowship with God.

All prayer must be offered in faith (James 1:6), in the name of the Lord Jesus (John 16:23), and in the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26).

We pray to make requests, seek guidance, and ask for wisdom. God loves this exchange with His children, just as we love the exchange we have with our children. Fellowship with God is the heart of prayer. Too often, we lose sight of how simple prayer is supposed to be.