Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 232

August 19;   Matthew 21:22;   21/260(II);   ‘Praying in Faith’

Matthew 21:22 And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive." 

Prayer is incredibly important.  Since it is, God’s Word teaches extensively about prayer.  The Word of God teaches the importance and power of prayer.  The Word of God teaches the necessity for us to pray and the reality that nothing will be done by the Lord until we ask Him.  The Word also teaches about the different kinds of prayer and the specific use of each type.  Anything as vital as prayer, must have guidelines for the prayer to be as effective as the Lord created it to be.  People, with no knowledge at all about what the Bible teaches about prayer, pray in their own way.  Surely that is better than not praying at all, but the Lord painstakingly laid out, in the Word, the kinds of prayer there are and when to use each kind.  He did this so that our prayers can have the power and impact He desires our prayers to have.  The prayer of faith sees in God’s Word that the need you have has been taken care of by the Lord Jesus’ redemptive work on your behalf.  You then take the scriptures that confirm that your need is met and pray that verse or verses back to the Lord in faith.  “Lord I see in the Bible, that because of your love for me and everything the Lord Jesus did for me when He redeemed me on the cross, that my need is met.  I receive my answer to that prayer right now as I pray and I thank You for meeting this need of mine, in Jesus’ Name.”  Knowing God’s Word is the key.  It tells you that the need you have has been met, you believe the Word and believe by faith that the Lord has answered your prayer.  Then you stand, thanking Him the Word is true and your prayer is answered.