How To Get Your Prayers Answered!

Want to know how to get your prayers answered? Obviously there is no formula that magically binds God to give you what you want -- and thank God for that, since he knows so much better than we do what is best for us -- but you can do a few things to make sure you are in a position to receive the answers and blessings that God wants to give you!

What Can Keep Us from Receiving Answers from God?

Psalm 103:7 says, God "made known his ways unto Moses and his acts unto the children of Israel." For most of the Israelites, they knew God only from what they saw him do. But with Moses, God actually revealed his plans and purposes before he acted; God showed Moses his heart.

That's like the difference between reading about the public actions of a President or Prime Minister in the news, on the one hand, and knowing the President or Prime Minister personally and being privy to his decision-making process.

If you want to know God's wisdom so that you can apply it to your life, the best way to do this is by getting to know God better. And how do you get to know God better? The best way is by reading his word.

Just like any good habit, reading the Bible may feel like work at first. Let's be honest, if you start with Leviticus or Deuteronomy, chances are you will quit reading before it becomes fun, since those are not the easiest parts of the Bible to read.  So I would recommend starting with the Gospels and the Psalms. There are a lot of reading plans and study groups out there that you can use. But the most important thing is to do like Nike: just do it!

Set aside some time each morning to read the Bible and pray. How much time? Start with something you feel you can easily do. If you only have five minutes, then set aside five minutes. If you can spend more time than that, then do so. But it's better to do a little consistently than to do much inconsistently; incidentally, that is true for trying to develop any new habit! Each day, give God the firstfruits of your time: spend your first few minutes after waking reading the Bible and then praying over what you read.

If you don't know where else to start, here's an easy reading program that worked for me when I first started to read the Bible regularly as an adult: read one chapter from the Gospel of Matthew and one Psalm each day. Once you finish Matthew, go on to Mark.

As the saying goes, "If you want to hear God speak audibly, read the Bible aloud."

As is true with any friendship, the more time you spend hearing or reading God's word, the more you will come to know his heart. And the more you come to know God's heart, the better you will be able to distinguish between what is in accordance with God's will and what is not.

Start Each Prayer with the Premise that God Loves You!

Whenever you pray, and whatever you pray for, pray with the belief that God loves you, because he does! 

As Paul says in Romans 5: 1-11, "God commendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us . . . For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life." 

And in Romans 8: 31-32, Paul says, "If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for all of us, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" 

In other words, if Jesus willingly suffered and died for us when we were at our worst, then you best believe God won't withhold anything from us that we need to live a good and fulfilling life!

No matter what you are praying about or praying for, start each prayer with the premise that God loves you!

Have an Attitude of Gratitude towards God!

In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Paul tells us that we should give thanks in every situation, because that is God's will for us.

No matter what you are going through, maintain an attitude of gratitude. Obviously, this can be easier said than done; but no matter how difficult it seems to stay positive and thankful, you really have no choice but to try, because the alternative is so harmful. 

If you hold a grudge, you poison your own mood and outlook on life. This is true whether you are holding a grudge against another person or against Life itself or God. Counting your problems is a surefire recipe for despair!

No matter what your situation is, you can always, ALWAYS, find something for which to be thankful. Tell God thanks for those things that are good in your life. Have food to eat? Clean water to drink? Clothes to wear? A roof over your head? Those things sound so basic, but start there. Look around you right now and try to find ten things that you would miss if you were to lose them. Here's one: are you able to breath easily and freely? Think about how grateful you would be to be able to breathe like that if you had emphysema!

In psychology, the action of focusing on what is good, rather than what is bad, is called "reframing." Even if you don't believe in God, reframing your perspective on your situation by counting your blessings and expressing gratitude for them is a powerful antidote for depression. 

Forgive Yourself and Others

Jesus makes this explicit in his teachings on prayer: if you want God to answer your prayers, be sure to forgive! This is not an option! 

As the Lord's Prayer goes, "Forgive us our debts [or trespasses], as we forgive our debtors [or those who trespass against us]." (Matthew 6:12.)

In Mark 11: 24-26, Jesus makes this teaching more explicit. After telling his disciples to have faith and trust God to give them what they ask for, Jesus says, "And when you stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any; that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not fogive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses. 

Even if you have a good reason for holding a grudge, you exercise this dubious "right" at your own peril: you need forgiveness and mercy as much as anyone! And if you don't forgive others, you will have a hard time forgiving yourself, because deep down, you will know that you're not living up to your arbitrary standards of morality either. But if you are willing to forgive yourself and others, you can be sure that God has forgiven you as well. 

From mindfulness meditation, there's a technique which may also be helpful here. If you feel angry, turn your attention upon the raw sensations of this emotion, as you feel it in your body. Be willing to feel the physical tension or other pattern of energy that arises when you feel angry. Paradoxically, when you allow yourself to feel the raw physical pangs of anger, without identifying with it or trying to suppress it, the feeling is robbed of much of its power. It's almost like anger is a beach ball that you have tried to hold under the water, but which keeps rising to the surface: instead of trying to hold your anger down and force it out of your awareness, which is an impossible task, just let go of it.

Don't worry; it's not a sin to feel angry: in Ephesians 4:26, Paul quotes the Psalmist by saying, "Be angry, and sin not." What is wrong, harmful, and contrary to God's will for your life is for you to hold onto your anger, nurse a grudge, and try to get even.

As 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Recap: How to Get Your Prayers Answered...

When you pray, pray from the wholehearted belief that God really does love you; be sure to have an attitude of gratitude and thank God for your blessings, especially if you don't feel like it; and forgive yourself and others, so that you are no longer holding any grudges against anyone. Moreover, start each day with prayer and Bible-reading, with no agenda other than to know God better and to know his will for your life. If you do these things, you will find that your prayer-life improves significantly, and you will see more of your prayers answered. Just be sure to give God thanks and praise when that happens!