Some people have the idea that you must be kneeling down to talk to God, and certainly that is prayer in one of its best known forms. However, that kind of prayer can be restrictive and if that is the only way you pray, you are missing a lot. That really isn't living a life of prayer.
Our very lives should be a constant prayer. First Thessalonians 5:17 admonishes us to "pray without ceasing." We can and should talk to God at any time, day or night, whether we are on our knees or not.
It's not the position of our bodies that God is interested in as much as the condition of our hearts.
Prayer can be in the form of praise, fellowship, confessing the Word, or even doing spiritual warfare. But most importantly, prayer must prevail over circumstances.
Prevailing prayer is frequent, continuing, effective, and persuasive. We can learn how to have a prevailing prayer life. The Bible is specific about the things that are necessary if we are to be successful in living a life of prevailing prayer.
Pray with a Sense of Righteousness (Without Condemnation or Guilt)
"Confess to one another therefore your faults, your slips, your false steps, your offenses, your sins; and pray [also] for one another, that you may be healed and restored to a spiritual tone of mind and heart. The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available, dynamic in its working" (James 5:16 AMP).
The continued prayer of a righteous person creates tremendous power. And that power is available when we pray scripturally. We don't need to approach God feeling weak and unworthy. We are the righteousness of God, and our worthiness does not depend on our own abilities.
The prayer that really prevails before God is the prayer that honors the great redemptive truth of the New Covenant - that we are new creatures. We are righteous, and we have the right to come boldly to the throne of grace in order to obtain mercy and grace in time of need (Heb. 4:16).
Prevailing prayer comes from a sense of righteousness; not from arrogance that is filled with pride but from a calm, sensible acceptance of the fact that we are the righteousness of God. This kind of prayer - earnest prayer by one who knows he is righteous and has a right to be in the presence of God - makes tremendous power available.
Delight Yourself in the Lord
"Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart" (Ps. 37:4, AMP). This is another way to have prevailing prayer in your life - delight yourself in the Lord.
You can't pay any attention to folks who try to discourage you. There are always those around who will criticize God's people and try to cause trouble. But in the first few verses of Psalm 37 we are told to, "fret not...because of evildoers, neither be envious against those who work unrighteousness...for they shall soon be cut down" (vv. 1-2 AMP). Unrighteous people won't survive! The only way to survive today is to live for God.
In spite of those who may criticize, delight yourself in the Lord and live a life of prayer. It's not how much time you spend on your knees, but it's how much of your life is a prayer to God. First Thessalonians 5:16 tells us to rejoice evermore.
Ask in the Name of Jesus
"I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, if any one steadfastly believes in Me, he will himself be able to do the things that I do; and he will do even greater things than these, because I go to the Father. And I will do - I Myself will grant - whatever you may ask in My name...so that the Father may be glorified and extolled in [through] the Son. [Yes] I will grant - will do for you - whatever you shall ask in My name" (John 14:12-14 AMP).
Jesus went to the Father, and He is our representative there. You fellowship with Jesus, talk with Jesus, but when you pray, you pray to the Father. For it was the Father who thought salvation. The Son brought it, and the Holy Ghost wrought it. But the Father "so loved the world" - He's the One behind it all. Ask in Jesus' name that your joy may be full and complete.
Pray In Faith, Without Wavering
Jesus died and rose again. He went to the Father so that we might have the privilege of praying. And we are instructed to ask in faith, with no wavering (James 1:5-8, AMP).
God does not want our faith to be based on present conditions. He wants our faith to remain constant. We should not be tossed about by the circumstances of life - "up" one day and "down" the next. The scripture says if we are like this, we need not expect God to answer our prayers. God wants us to believe His promises and hold on to them without any wavering.
Don't Ask Amiss
Be careful when you pray that you don't ask with the wrong motives and for the wrong purpose. We must ask for the right reasons. In order to have prevailing prayer in our lives, we must be sure we don't ask amiss - just for our own selfish purposes.
Some people might pray to be healed just so they can go out and sin again - never planning to live for God. Some may pray for help with financial problems - never intending to give God His tithe. This is praying with selfish motives and dishonoring God. Jeremiah 17:9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? This scripture speaks of our true human nature. We must overcome that nature with the power God makes available to us.
So, in order to pray prevailing prayers in our lives, we need to be sure our motives for asking are right. We need to be tied in to the great purposes of God.
Ask In Line With The Will Of God
The will of God is the Word of God. If we are not asking for something that is in God's Word, our prayers are useless. But if we ask in line with God's will, we have His promise that He will answer us. "And this is the confidence - the assurance, the [privilege of] boldness - which we have in Him: [we are sure] that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan) He listens to and hears us" (1 John 5:14 AMP).
There are many, many promises in God's Word, and we have a right to claim them all. Healing is in His Word. Salvation is in His Word. Prosperity is in His Word. A happy marriage is in His Word. Salvation for your loved ones is in His Word. We can ask all of these things in confidence, knowing that God will listen to us and hear us, because they are promised in His Word.
So we can pray in confidence, knowing God will hear and answer our prayers, as long as we are praying in accordance with His Word.
Pray With a Clear Conscience and Obedient Life
"In whatever our hearts in [tormenting] self-accusation make us feel guilty and condemn us. For [we are in God's hands]; He is above and greater than our consciences (our hearts), and He knows (perceives and understands) everything - nothing is hidden from Him" (1 John 3:20 AMP).
Sometimes Christians try to justify what they are doing, and they have a battle down inside themselves. Maybe they have allowed some things in their lives that shouldn't be there, but their born-again hearts just won't allow these things to stay. In a case like that, there will be an aggravation in a person's spirit that just won't let him rest.
Unsaved people can live in sin, but saved people can never live in sin and be comfortable. We are ruined for the things of this world. We are born of God. His seed remains in us and we cannot enjoy sin. We have the nature of almighty God! We may make a lot of mistakes, but we can't habitually practice sin and enjoy it. We can never love it.
The scripture continues, "And, beloved, if our consciences (our hearts) do not accuse us - if they do not make us feel guilty and condemn us - we have confidence (complete assurance and boldness) before God; and we receive from Him whatever we ask for, because we (watchfully) obey His orders - observe His suggestions and injunctions, follow His plan for us - and (habitually) practice what is pleasing to Him" (1 John 3:21-22 AMP). This scripture clearly spells out four specific things that we should be doing in order to receive from God.
First, watchfully obey His orders. God delights in answering the prayers of those who are always interested in obeying Him.
Second, observe His suggestions. Now, most Christians strive to obey God's orders. But as our relationship with Him grows, God has enough confidence in us that He sometimes makes suggestions and lets us make up our own minds. It is a wonderful thing to be so in tune with God that we respond to His slightest suggestion: "My son, I wouldn't do that," or "My daughter, that's not best."
Third, follow His plan. The most important thing in the world is for you to get into God's plan for your life.
Some people don't really care what God's will is for them. They never ask, "God, what do You want for me? What is Your will for my life?" They are just going to live and die and do what they want to anyway. But in order to use the power of prevailing prayer, we must follow God's plan for our lives.
Four, habitually practice what is pleasing to God. Make it a point to find out what is pleasing to God and make living that way a priority in your everyday life.
Listen to what the Bible says about how we are to live. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever" (1 John 2:15-17).
Don't make your prayer life a drudgery. Variety is the key. Enjoy God. There are times when God will specifically call you to prayer. There are times for intercession. And there are times when you need to stay on your knees before God and talk about serious problems in your life. But don't make prayer a meaningless ritual. Enjoy the benefits of prevailing prayer.
As you follow these simple guidelines you can learn many ways to enjoy and practice prevailing prayer in your life. Make prayer a constant and enjoyable part of your life.
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The late John Osteen served the Lord Jesus Christ as pastor, evangelist, author, and teacher for sixty years. Ordained as a Southern Baptist, he received the baptism in the Holy Ghost in 1958, an experience which revolutionized his ministry into a worldwide outreach for Jesus Christ.
