Do you want to ask God for something, but you don't know how to do it? God hears your prayers, but He doesn't always give you exactly what you ask for. It is important to praise God and ask for forgiveness for sins before making your requests. Ask the Lord to proceed as He wishes. Also, be honest and specific in your question. Have patience and believe that God will act.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Connecting with God
Step 1. Build a relationship with God
The Lord hears your prayers whether you follow Him or not, but he is more likely to answer those closest to Him. Before asking for anything, it would be wise for you to start reading God's Word and following Jesus, if you don't already do so. Learn to listen and obey what God asks of you.
- This does not mean that the Lord will refuse your requests if you are not his follower. It just means that you will be able to communicate better with God if you are in a relationship with Him.
- Think about the difference between a stranger and your best friend. Imagine that a friend asked you to lend him money and that, at the same time, a stranger did the same: most likely, you would accept your friend's request. It is not a perfect comparison, but it gives the idea.
Step 2. First, praise God and give thanks
When you pray to God, don't go straight to the point where you ask for something. We must first praise him and thank him for what he has already done. Praise him for being good and powerful. Thank him for guiding and blessing you. Starting this way shows God that He is more to you than someone to turn to in need.
- Praise and thanks must be sincere, not a tactic to curry favor with God so you can ask him for what you want. You have to really mean the words you say when you pray.
- Start by saying, “Lord, it's amazing how much You take care of me and how much you give me. I thank you for your greatness and I am grateful to you for never abandoning me”.
Step 3. Confess and repent of sins
After establishing a relationship with the Lord, it is important to make sure that you are in God's grace. If you continue to live in guilt or have recently sinned, you have separated from God. You must confess these things and turn away from them. This will restore the broken connection with God.
- Confession is important because sinning goes against God's will. When you sin, you separate yourself from God.
- Confessing and repenting simply means telling God that you are aware that you have sinned, that it grieves you, and that you wish to change.
- Pray to God, saying, “I'm sorry I misbehaved with my neighbor. I know that You love him and that I too should love him as myself. I will try harder to be patient and kind to him”.
Step 4. Ask God for forgiveness
In addition to confessing and repenting, ask God to forgive you for your sins. Asking for forgiveness is the step that must follow the confession. Once God forgives you, the lines of communication will be much more open between you and Him.
- There is no specific prayer to be recited to ask for forgiveness. Tell God that you are sorry and that you want me to forgive you for offending him.
- Pray saying, “Lord, I'm sorry I lied about what I did last night. I shouldn't have done that. Please forgive my dishonesty”.
Step 5. Make peace with others
If you are angry or have hurt someone, it is difficult to present a sincere prayer to God. Take a minute to think about the relationships that have cracked and work to repair them. Solving problems with other people allows you to ask God for something in a more relaxed way.
- It's not enough to think about what's wrong if you don't want to make an effort to fix it. Get in touch with that person and try to reconcile with him or her before making requests to God.
- Apologize or forgive him, depending on what's wrong with you.
Step 6. Pray against the evil that may surround you
If you live for the Lord, the evil one could act against you to distance you from God. Pray that God will dissuade any spirit that tries to distance you and distract you from Him. Spiritual conflicts will prevent you from communicating effectively with God.
- It would be helpful to spend some time learning what spiritual conflict is and how it affects your prayer and God-oriented life.
- Pray saying, “Lord, I feel evil surrounds me. In the name of Jesus, please repent those spirits. Don't let them separate us. Tell them that they have no power over me ".
Part 2 of 3: Pray for What You Want
Step 1. Be honest with God about what you feel
God knows all your thoughts and feelings, so there is no point in hiding them. When asking for what you want, be fully honest about what you think and feel. Honesty will open the ears of God to your prayers.
Step 2. Ask God for what you specifically want
Tell the Lord what you want or need and ask Him to provide. Be specific in your request. Even if God knows what you want or need, He wants you to ask Him. God can answer vague prayers, but accuracy creates a deeper bond between you and Him.
- Being specific does not guarantee that God will grant your request in the way you wish. He may have other plans for you.
- Pray to God saying, "I'm having a hard time paying my rent this month because of medical bills. Please let me work overtime in order to earn the money for the rent."
- Remember that God will not give you what is against his will. Listen to your conscience and consult the Bible to see if what you are asking is against his will.
Step 3. Invite God to act in ways he wishes
While there may be many special things that you want from God, another good thing to pray for is that His will be done in your life. Ask Him to move and use you as He wishes, not just as you want. Ask Him to help you desire the things He wants for you.
- There are many benefits to praying in this way. Even when you know exactly what you want, God may have more in store for you than you might think he could ask for. If you ask only for the thing you desire, you may be missing out on a greater grace.
- Turn to God and say, “Lord, I really want to start a new job this month, but I know You may have more in store for me at this time. Please show me your plans, even if they are not exactly what I want”.
Step 4. Urge God to answer your request
If you ask God for something, you will probably want him to act quickly. Being honest with God means telling him that you want him to act quickly. The Lord has his timing, so the answer to your prayer may not come as fast as you hope for. It is always good to ask God because it is a sign of honesty on your part about what you want.
Step 5. Conclude by saying “In the name of Jesus”
The Bible teaches that the name of Jesus Christ is powerful. Whenever you pray, but especially when you ask for something, conclude by saying "I ask you in the name of Jesus." This attests that God moves through Jesus and that Jesus is powerful.
It is not a magic formula and it must not be used as a method of exploiting the graces of God. It is simply a way of showing that you submit to God's will through Christ
Part 3 of 3: Wait for God's Answer to Your Prayer
Step 1. Be patient as you wait for God to do His work
Remember that God acts at different times than yours. If he doesn't respond as quickly as you were hoping for, don't be discouraged. Go along with His timing and remember that there may be a reason why He's not responding as quickly as you hoped.
Step 2. Keep praising Him
As you wait for God's answer to your prayer, you must continue to honor and praise Him. It is important to be grateful and to continue worshiping God even when you have not yet achieved what you want. If you only praise God when he acts as you hoped, your praise may not be genuine.
Step 3. Have faith that God will act according to His will
If you don't believe that God has the power to act, your prayer loses strength. You must believe that He has listened to you and will act according to His will. If your request is within his plan, then he will give you what you ask for, but remember that God doesn't always answer the way you would like.
