How to Pray Properly

Prayer. It is undeniable that prayer is one of the clearest expressions of a Christian's faith.

Through prayer you can feel peace in the midst of the anxiety and worries of your life. You can feel and think more calmly because you see that there is hope after what you have asked has been spoken to God. With prayer, you can experience what it means to surrender over a situation you cannot control. Also, through prayer, you can experience so many spiritual benefits as well as the formation of good character.

Jesus even personally showed in His life how He always prayed, how He used His time to pray, how the important decisions in His ministry always began with prayer.

The simple question is: How do we pray? What is an example of biblical prayer?

In my former denomination, at the end of the “Intercessory” prayer, the prayer leader would usually say something like this: “And we will end this prayer of ours by saying the perfect prayer as You taught…..” or say: “And we will complete this prayer of ours with the prayer You taught:…”

The question is whether Jesus said that the prayer He taught was the perfect one? Apparently not! Will my prayer become perfect if I close my prayer by reciting the prayer Jesus taught? Also no! So how should a person pray?

First is your condition when you pray

Matthew 6:6 explains that what Jesus taught about the condition of prayer is not about closing the door or having to do it inside the house. Because if you are in a public place, does that mean you may not pray because the situation is open? Or when you are in a restaurant, you also cannot pray because other people will see you. So the point here is not the place, but your condition. What Jesus taught is about concentrating well. When you pray, you must not let your circumstances distract you while praying.

Second is Your Motivation for Praying

In the same story in Matthew 6:5, Jesus compares the motivations of the Jewish religious leaders at that time, whose motivation in praying was to appear spiritual. In fact, throughout chapter 6, Jesus focuses on discussing and exposing the motives behind all the spiritual activities you do. If you pray, do not do it with the motivation of being seen by people. If you fast, do not do it with the motivation that people will know you are fasting, with a face made to look like someone starving. The same is true of giving something to the poor, which usually not many people do. Therefore, the temptation to want to be seen as kind and loving is very great indeed.

Jesus teaches that if you give alms, the way to do it is quietly and not to announce it to many people, even if necessary in the closest illustration it is about the right hand and the left hand. How much Jesus wants you to have the right motivation in doing everything related to your spiritual activities, including prayer.

Third is the structure in Prayer

In Matthew 6:7, Jesus makes a statement that seems small but is actually something very great. He says that when praying, do not ramble on like the habit of people who do not know God. Think about it: you may feel that you already know God, but from your prayer, God can know that you are actually someone who does not know Him.

Rambling on is the habit of people who speak in a disordered way, whose train of thought is not logical and not in a good order. For example, facts going back and forth in a story plot without order. As an example: if you watch a movie, when the characters who appear in it have no clear relation to one another, the chronology of the story is disorderly and jumps back and forth, or the story topics are all different. Can you enjoy that movie? Or even understand its plot? Of course not!

Therefore, the prayer Jesus taught (its name is not the Lord's Prayer), is a form or structure of prayer so that you do not pray in a rambling way and also so that it shows that you know God.

Through prayer you can feel peace in the midst of the anxiety and worries of your life.

 

STRUCTURE IN PRAYER

Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed Be Your Name

The beginning of a prayer is relationship. You know who you trust as your God, and you also know that God. The word Father shows a close relationship, yet there is also a different degree where Jesus adds the words 'in Heaven.' Heaven shows a perfect state, but also the goal or reward for you who live according to the Word. By saying Our Father in Heaven, you are saying that you know God wants to be near you, but also that God has a different degree from you. You want to be close, but with respect. The second thing is that you know who God is, by saying the words Hallowed Be Your Name.

Beyond the words, Praise (Praise) also describes what you know about God. I prefer to say that structured prayer is prayer that begins with knowing who God is, knowing every aspect of God, whether through God's works, God's character, God's help, God's plan, everything about God that you know, through the Word of God and through your life that also accords with the Word of God.

You want to be close, but with respect.

Your Kingdom Come

In Jesus' conversation with the Pharisees in Luke 17, Jesus states that the Kingdom of God was among them. So what does it mean, then, if you pray and speak about the coming of the Kingdom of God? Is the Kingdom of God only at the end of the age, or does the Kingdom of God already exist?

In proclaiming the Word, there are the same words spoken by John the Baptist and also Jesus, namely about repentance and that the Kingdom of God is near. If Jesus said that the Kingdom of God was already in their midst at that time, then it can be concluded that praying for the Kingdom of God to come is speaking about the Church of Christ. In this part, you pray for the congregation where you are, or for the ministry and group where you are involved.

Your Will Be Done on Earth as It Is in Heaven

From where do you know the will of God? Surely we all agree that to know the will of God, we receive it only through the Word of God. In this part, I will pray about the passage of Scripture I studied that day (if I read the Word first), or pray over my reading material from the previous day (if I pray first). This part is where you reflect on and meditate on the Word of God, what you learned, what message you received, what decision or what change you should make so that God's will may happen in your life.

And Give Us Our Daily Bread

After the first 3 things about God, God's Name, God's congregation, and God's Word, only then do you pray for what you need. It is very clear that behind the words give us what is sufficient, there is an extraordinary character of surrender, that what is requested is enough for your needs. Then some people say: “There is the principle of according to faith, if you ask for a little you will surely be given a little, if you ask for a lot you will also be given a lot according to the measure of your faith!”. The problem is that everything related to greed is sin, and secondly, the Bible never contradicts the principles of the Word of God; everything follows one line. If from the beginning your requests are always for a lot, I can be sure that you are a person who does not know the Word of God. Jesus teaches you to ask according to what you need.

And Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Notice the continuation from the request for today's needs, where what is needed is humility and a pure heart before God, a spiritual heart and not a worldly one. Only then does it continue with words asking for forgiveness. Usually in this part we can cleanse our conscience by openly examining the motives of our heart, the impurity of our heart, and all the hidden things that can destroy your spirituality. Is there also confession of sin? It is interesting for us to discuss. But from other Bible verses, we find that confession of sin is always done together, or to one another.

 

Other People's Offenses

What is interesting about this part is when Jesus includes the element of other people in your prayer. Is there anyone who has hurt you? Who are the other people involved in your life? Is there anyone who helps you? The point is that in this part, you pray for specific other people whom you will include in your prayers, whether family, friends, brothers/sisters, the government, even people who have hurt you!

And Do Not Lead Us into Temptation but Deliver Us from Evil..

This is the closing part where you ask God for protection. Protection from evil things, protection from temptation, even freedom from evil or wicked things.

For Yours Is the….

The last part of that prayer is an addition that was added because it was used in Christian worship rituals in the Middle Ages. It is not part of the prayer structure that Jesus taught. You do not need to say it.

So when praying properly, the principles are as follows: you must pay attention to your condition when you pray; whether you can concentrate well when praying, you pray with the right motivation yang benar; not to look spiritual, but because you truly want to be near God, and lastly you must pay attention to the structure in prayer so that your prayer becomes a right prayer like someone who prays because he knows God.

By: Ps. Franky Lumenta - GKDI

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