Prayer: Petition, Gratitude, & Guidance
“Prayer is simply a two-way conversation between you and God.” Billy Graham.
This month, I wanted to take a moment to pause and spend some time sharing about prayer with you. We’re over halfway through this year now, and lots has happened. The seasons have been ticking by, and depending on which hemisphere you find yourself in, you’re either rugging up and enjoying the grey, cold days over steaming cups of coffee, or you're shimmying into your swimwear and heading to the beach for summer holidays.
Whatever you’re up to this July, can I encourage you to take stock of your prayer life? Can I encourage you to take a moment out from rugging up or cooling off to consider how you have been praying this year? Have you been diligent? Have you kept track? Have you noticed God’s answers and replies? If not, here are three prayers for you to practice in your prayer life to help you restart.
A prayer of petition
These are the prayers that we bring to God and simply petition Him for something - we are asking our Creator to meet a need or supply a want. Of course, you could go crazy and ask for anything under the sun, but it’s God’s prerogative to decide what His children receive and when. The absolute essence of prayer is this, as Jesus says in Matthew 7:7 (VOICE):
“Just ask and it will be given to you; seek after it and you will find. Continue to knock and the door will be opened for you.” -Matthew 7:7 VOICE
Health, finances, family, work — you can ask God for anything when you are searching for Him. Just ask, Jesus says. Ask for it, search for it, keep on asking because God is coming to that door, and He’ll open it at the right time. Is there something that has been pulling at you recently that you need to petition God for?
A prayer of gratitude
How often do I find myself praying when things are tough? When something is difficult, hard to deal with, scary or simply in my way of living a chilled-out life? All the time. This makes me wonder then, how often am I praying and praising God when things are great? When things are enjoyable and full of life, and I’m so thankful for it all? Not as often. I forget; I’m too busy celebrating those good moments and simply moving on to the next that I forget to give thanks to the One who gave me those exact moments and memories and experiences. It doesn’t really make sense does it?
“Celebrate always, pray constantly, and give thanks to God no matter what circumstances you find yourself in. (This is God’s will for all of you in Jesus the Anointed.)” - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 VOICE
There are some key concepts in this short collection of verses: pray constantly and give thanks no matter what are the two that stand out the most. Verse 17 is only three words, and if you were to do that literally, you would find yourself in prayer regardless of your life circumstances, which is an exact representation of verse 18 and giving thanks no matter what. Is there an opportunity for you today to offer prayers of gratitude regardless of what you find yourself doing?
A prayer for guidance
This is the sort of prayer I find fills up my journals the most: “Lord, please tell me which way to go, because I have no idea!” If you’re like me, then making decisions causes a lot of anxiety and trepidation because the fear of making the wrong decision is haunting.
Jeremiah 33:3 (The VOICE) is a useful verse when praying prayers for guidance as it reads,
“Call to Me, and I will answer you. I will tell you of great things, things beyond what you can imagine, things you could never have known.” -Jeremiah 33:3 VOICE
God is very open here. He is clear in saying that we simply need to call out — use our God-given voices and call out for the help we need because His promise is that He will always respond. His response will also be bigger than we had hoped for in our prayer, and because it will be full of things we could never have thought of, there’s a good chance it won’t come at the time that we think it will come. We can’t live in fear, waiting for Him to direct every single step we take. We can’t be passive. We can, however, trust Him completely to come through with an answer when the time is right and, in the meantime, know that He is still present as we carry on. Is there something in your world that requires you to ‘let go and let God,’ trusting that He is faithful to His promise of a response?
While you practice these three prayers in your prayer life, remember the quote at the beginning: prayer is not your monologue to God; prayer is a conversation. So remember that at some point, you will need to be silent. Seek the still, small whispers of God rather than the loud trumpets of chaos that might swirl through your world, and remember to listen during your prayers. These quiet moments are when He will respond to you. These quiet moments are when you are sure to feel His presence in your life, just like Elijah standing on the mountainside in 1 Kings 19:11-13 letting fire, raging winds and earthquakes pass him by as he waited for the simple, gentle breeze of God’s voice speaking to him. Let’s be like Elijah today.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I'm Hannah Juanta- mama to two littles and dipping my toes into my next right thing as I learn to navigate this chapter God has called me to. I generally hover in that space between consciousness and coffee as I try to take each day knowing I need grace to get through it. I'm a lover of good words, strong conversation, a well-worn thrift store and a doughy doughnut.