Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. (Romans 12:12)

Your daily prayer life is the greatest privilege you have as a child of God. One of the reasons Jesus died for you is so that you would have unhindered access and unfiltered fellowship with the Father! He wants you to be with Him… but what do you do when you finally get “there” — alone with Him?

Enjoy Him first… He is your first love.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27) Prayer is so much more than presenting a “want list” or reciting religious phrases: prayer is first a relationship. Prayer involves interaction between the heart of a believer and the greatest love in his or her life: Jesus Christ. When we are in love, we want to spend all of our time involved with the object of our love. Prayer is like that. Application: Take a moment and speak to the Lord, silently expressing your love to Jesus!

Ask Him for “open doors” as you walk in the world today.

“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message.” (Col. 4:3) Paul uses the analogy of an “open door” to describe an opportunity to tell others about Jesus Christ. The “open door” would be a set of circumstances arranged by God allowing Paul to share the gospel. Notice too that when Paul asked his readers to pray for an “open door” he was in prison. Imagine that! He could have asked for his freedom, yet he asked instead for the opportunity to share Christ. Application: In all of your relationships (co-workers, family and friends), where do you encounter firmly closed “doors” when it comes to talking about Christ? Perhaps the person will not listen, does not have the time, or lives too far away. Ask God to open one of those doors.

Ask Him to bless other believers with dramatic spiritual successes.

“Pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you.” (2 Thess. 3:1) Paul is using a military word picture that escapes a casual reading of this verse. The message should run swiftly (like a warrior into battle) with great success (like a great military victory). Throughout the history of the church, there have been dramatic outpourings of God’s saving power. Paul is implying that happens as God’s people pray for a mighty work of God in their day. Application: List the most dramatic news events taking place today around the world. Can you imagine the kind of spiritual event that would cause mass media to place a mighty move of God on that list? Ask God to move powerfully in your community!

Ask Him to send compassionate workers to minister to a broken generation.

“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Luke 10:2) Jesus viewed the crowds that followed him as “sheep without a shepherd” — there were simply too many for Him to personally interact with each one. He knew that a “harvest” of devoted followers would result IF loving workers would go out and build relationships in the crowd. His root motivation was compassion. Where there is human need in our church, our community, or our world, then Jesus directs us to pray for workers to go and address those needs. Of course, it would be silly to pray this prayer without being willing to go ourselves! Application: Where are the specific “harvest” fields around your church today? What groups of people need ministry in and outside the church? Ask God to raise up a new generation of impassioned servants.

Ask Him to help Christians in trouble – no matter where they are in the world.

“…join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.” (Rom. 15:30) Prayer enables us to join with laborers around the world as they struggle with sin and evil. Paul specifically requests prayer for several items (see Rom. 15:31-32), but he describes the act of praying as joining him “in my struggle“. When we pray with others regarding their problems and needs, we become real participants in their life and work. Application: Have you ever had to face a major crisis alone? What does it mean to you when someone prays for you when you are in trouble? Who do you need to help in prayer today?

Daily prayer is vital. Lives are at stake. Eternity is on the line. Will you set your heart to meet with God each day?

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Want to go deeper? The model prayer taught by Jesus is the best outline to guide your time alone with God.