- Thankful prayer: (4:2c): Thanksgiving is an important ingredient in successful praying (Phil. 4:6). When we ask and receive and never give thanks God for His gifts, we are selfish and ungrateful. Sincere gratitude towards God is one of the best ways to put fervour into our praying.
- Purposeful prayer: (4:3): Our prayers ought to be purposeful and expectantly: Too often our prayers are vague and general. “Lord, bless the missionaries!” How much better it would be if we would pray for specific needs and expecting the needs to be met. By doing so, we would know when God answered. Perhaps it is our lack of faith that causes us to pray generally instead of specifically. Prayer is not telling God what to do or what to give. Prayer is asking God for that which He wants to do and give, according to His will (1 Jn. 5:14-15). When we grow in the Word and fellowship, we discover His will and then boldly ask Him to do what He has planned.
Prayer for proclaiming God’s Word in prison(4:3b-4):
Paul did not ask for the prison doors to be opened, but that doors of ministry might be opened. It was more important to Paul that he be a faithful minister than a free man. It was worth noting that in all of Paul’s prison prayers, his concern was not for personal safety or material help, but for spiritual character and blessing.
Paul was in prison because of the “mystery of Christ” which was related to the Gentiles. The mystery involved God’s purpose for the Gentiles in relation to Israel; for in the church, Jews and Gentiles are one (Acts 21:18-22:30).
How strange that Paul would want God to help him to do the very thing that had caused his arrest! He had no intention of giving up his ministry or of changing his message. When John Bunyan was arrested for preaching illegally and put into prison, he was told that he would be released if he promised to stop preaching. “If I am out of prison today,” he replied, “I will preach the Gospel again tomorrow, by the help of God.” How could Paul share the mystery of Christ when he was a prisoner? Paul’s case was discussed by many people; Paul was also able to witness to the guards to whom he was chained (Phil. 1:12-18). There were even “saints in Caesar’s household”! (Phil. 4:22).
Ex: A visitor at Spurgeon’s Tabernacle in London was being shown around the building by the pastor, Charles Spurgeon.” Would you like to see the powerhouse of this ministry?” Spurgeon asked, and he led the man into a lower auditorium. “It is here that we get our power, for while I am preaching upstairs, hundreds of my people are in this room praying.” Is it any wonder that God blessed Spurgeon’s preaching of the Word?
We can pray for our pastor/graduates as he prepares the Word, studies, and meditates. Pray that the Holy Spirit will give deeper insights into the truths of the Word. We can also pray that our pastor/graduates will practice the Word as he preaches so that it will be real in his own life too. As he preaches the message, pray that the Spirit will give him freedom of utterance, and that the Word will reach into hearts and minds in a powerful way. The proclaiming of the Word of God is a great privilege and a tremendous responsibility. We do not have to be an ordained preacher or a missionary to share God’s Word. Even in our daily conversation we can drop the seed of the Word into hearts, and then pray that God will water that seed and bring forth fruit.
5-things that happen when we pray:
1. Prayer personalises the burden personally:
It deepens our ownership of the burden and our partnership with God. As we pray we begin to become aware of how God might use us to answer our prayer, how He might involve us in ways we had not theretofore foreseen.
2. Prayer forces us to wait:
Prayer makes us to wait upon the Lord. God has three answers to prayers: Yes, no and wait. Yes and no are not tough to understand. But wait, that is tough. John MacArthur says: “There is a tension between boldness and waiting on God’s will. That tension is resolved by being persistent, yet accepting God’s answer when it finally comes.” Instead of getting frustrated that God is not on our schedule, prayer forces us to be on God’s timetable.
3. Prayer opens our spiritual eyes:
It enables us to get in touch with what God is doing and how He is doing it.
In (2 Ki.6) we can recall the story of when the Army of Israel was surrounded by their enemies and Elijah’s servant got nervous.
(2 Ki.6:15-17) say: Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Prayer opens our eyes, enabling us to see what God is doing, to see things we are blinded to without prayer. That’s because prayer is communication. We speak to God, God answers us, speaking to us, showing us.
4. Prayer aligns our heart with God’s heart:
Prayer makes adjustments, alignment, setting our thoughts, emotions, actions upon God.
5. Prayer enables us to move forward:
Prayer engages God, enables God’s people, and enlarges His kingdom. Jesus said, “without Me, you can do nothing.” Once we have prayed we are ready to do anything, until we have prayed we can do nothing, but once we have prayed we can accomplish anything.
God cannot stop listening to our sincere prayers.