How Do You Approach God In Prayer?
If you’re anything like me, unanswered prayers can cause you to question if you’re doing it right. If I’m not careful, my human mind can quickly look for prayer as a formula to receive something I need or want from God.
In other words, it’s important not to turn prayers into formulas with ulterior motives for personal gain (discover what Jesus says about our helper and advocate — the Holy Spirit).
Here are some thoughts on how to approach the Father in prayer:
If you want to know how to pray, the best place to start is with what Jesus taught.
In Luke’s Gospel, there’s a moment when the disciples observe Jesus praying. After he was finished, they came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, teach us to pray.”
Jesus answered them, not with a formula to follow, but instead taught his disciples how to approach God in prayer with pure motives (see Luke 11:1-13).
Jesus said, “When you pray, say, ‘Heavenly Father, may your name be kept holy.'”
Address your prayer to God as Father.
Whose home is in Heaven and whose name is holy.
And may we keep his name holy by approaching him with humility and reverence.
If that’s where Jesus stopped his teaching, I’d have a picture in my mind of an all-powerful, holy God who is the kind of dad who may get annoyed at kids who are too noisy or like a parent who doesn’t want to be bothered by their child’s petty requests.
But Jesus doesn’t stop there. He instructs us on how to approach God as Father. Come to him, like a dearly loved child, humbly and boldly asking for these specific needs that are part of being in his kingdom:
- Give us the provisions we need for each day.
- Forgive us and help us to forgive others.
- Guard us from being led into temptation.
These three prayers reveal God as our loving Father. He provides, forgives, and protects. What a beautiful illustration of how a loving father treats his children.
Jesus continues to teach about prayer by saying, “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ If you keep asking with persistence, he will give you what you ask for” (Luke 11:5-10).
For many years, I thought this story was about Jesus emphasizing the importance of persistence in your prayers (here are four simple ways to build a habit of prayer). Don’t give up. There’s some truth to that.
However, I see a hidden gem where Jesus points to the importance of checking your motives in your prayers. The story highlights someone going to their neighbor’s house and requesting something on behalf of a friend.
A question I ask myself to expose my motives is this: If all my prayers were answered, would my life be the only life that improves?
Then Jesus returns to the picture of God as a Father, not just in how we approach him but in how we can trust him to be good.
“You fathers,” Jesus asked. “If your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not (Luke 11:11-12)!
A fish represents provision. A snake represents deception and temptation.
If a hungry child asks for food, would a good, loving father deceive them with temptation?
An egg represents new life. A scorpion represents danger or punishment.
If a growing child asks for help, would a good, loving father endanger them with punishment?
Jesus is making it obvious. Of course, a good father, even one with a sinful nature, wouldn’t do that.
“So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him” (Luke 11:13).
Is your view of our heavenly Father, one who gives good gifts to his children?
Do you approach God as a Father who gives good gifts to his children?
Come boldly, with pure motives, and ask your heavenly Father, who will give you the Holy Spirit to reveal Jesus to you so that you have something to share with others in need.