Prayer is how we communicate with God; it’s how we talk to Him, and how we make space in our day to listen to Him. Similar to any other relationship in our lives, our relationship with God is strengthened by regular and consistent communication.
We also pray because, simply put, the Bible tells us to. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 tells us to, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances…” and so we do.
You can pray any time, anywhere! You don’t necessarily have to designate a special place, but you may find it helpful to create a distraction-free environment to regularly connect with God. You can pray whenever you want to express adoration of God for who He is, gratitude for the blessings in your life, whenever you need to apologize or ask for forgiveness for certain things, or even when you want to ask God for help. There are a million reasons to pray, and the good news is that whenever we want to, we can!
Throughout the Bible, we are told that God hears our prayers. This means that whether we address our prayers to God the Father, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit, He hears us. It’s worth noting, though, that prayer isn’t just about God listening to us; we must also be attentive and listening to Him.
“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”
1 John 5:14
Jesus gives us an outline for prayer through ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ found in Matthew 6:9-13, where we approach God to acknowledge who He is, express our desire to see God’s agenda be first in our lives, and then ask God to meet our needs, forgive us of our wrongdoing, and give us grace for others and protection from evil. It’s important to remember that we pray to a God who already knows us – our thoughts and our true character, so we don’t have to approach Him with a facade or perfect language. We can be ourselves when we pray.