Is There Something I can do to Get my Prayers Answered?

‘It feels like my prayers just hit the ceiling … I wonder if God even hears me.’  ‘Of course, maybe I am not praying in the right way—not really sure. Hey, is there a right way to pray?  Is there something I am missing?’  These are common thoughts of so many folks, right?  Are there answers to these questions?  Some helpful hints from Scripture to be sure:

1) Approach God, and pray, in Jesus’ name. 

John 14.13 ~ And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.

John 16.23-24 ~ In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. 

2) We must pray in faith. 

James 1.6-8 ~  But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

3) We must pray with a clear conscience.

1 John 3.21-22 ~ Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him

Psalm 66.18 ~ If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;

->This is why including inner searching and confession are critical!

Psalm 139.23-24 ~ Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, ?and lead me in the way everlasting.

4) Approach God in prayer with boldness, and in confidence! 

1 John 5.14,15 ~ This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

Ephesians 3.12 ~  In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

God hears and answers the prayers of his children.  Just tonight I had a text message from someone who had gotten concrete answer to prayer, and she was overjoyed and relieved!  I too was thrilled to be able to share in her joy; we serve a loving God who delights in answering our prayers.  ~We can come to God, indeed, we ought to come confident that he will hear and answer our prayers, when we pray according to his will.  He clearly expresses his will in his Word, so we must be a people of the Word, and in the Word. 

~The Holy Spirit is our interpreter, both of God’s will to us, and of our prayers before the Father. 

Romans 8.26 ~ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Romans 8.27 ~ The Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

So even when we do not know what to pray, the Spirit of God intercedes for us, and our loving Father comes and meets us at our point of need.