Seven Things God wants us to ask Him for! : By James Lantz
Knowing how to pray and what to pray for are two important aspects of prayer. Praying to the Father in the name of Jesus is how we are to pray. John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Jesus was referring to the day in which he would be raised up from the dead and you and I would be raised up with Him. Upon rising from the dead, Jesus appeared to Mary, saying, tell my brethren (disciples) that I ascend unto my Father and to your Father, to my God and to your God. Jesus prayed to the Father and we are to pray to the Father in His name!
Praying these seven areas of prayer listed in the new testament allows God to intervene and meet every need of man and release His blessing into the earth. God has great desire to hear and answer our prayers! He would not tell us to pray and ask Him for these things if He didn’t want us to have them. James tells us there are only two reasons that people fail to receive their needs met and their desires fulfilled. The first reason is that some do not ask God to forgive, save, heal, bless, protect, or deliver them and so they go without. James 4:2 NLT You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. The second reason that people fail to receive forgiveness, salvation, healing blessing, protection, or deliverance is that they ask but their heart is not right towards God. James 4:3 NLT And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure. Both of these failures can be righted on our end. We are not waiting on God to do something so we can receive our need met! If we have not asked God in faith lets ask Him. If our hearts are selfish and full of covetousness let us repent and begin to build God’s house like He asked us to. Remember the words of Jesus, If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. Also the Holy Spirit through Paul says, praying always with all manner of prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. God wants everyone blessed!
1. Pray for kings and all that are in authority! 1 Tim. 2:1-8
We are exhorted first of all to supplicate, pray, intercede, and give thanks for all men, for kings and all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. Praying for our leaders, pastors, teachers, and parents first will allow God to work things for our good and the kingdom of God will increase. Natural human (selfish) thinking is pray for myself first but God is telling us that because we are praying for others He will cause our lives to become free from turmoil and strife which is conducive to a godly and honest life. Notice the reference to supplications and intercessions. We supplicate for fellow Christians but we intercede for those who are lost. God’s purpose for our prayers is that all might be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth! Jesus is the mediator between God and men and praying in Jesus name acknowledges Jesus redemptive work for man! The posture of lifting up holy hands to God without wrath or doubting shows that we are fervent and fully engaged in asking God to move in the life of our national leaders, church leaders, community leaders, teachers, parents, and all men everywhere that God’s kingdom will prosper.
2. Pray that God grant His ministers boldness to preach His word and that He would stretch out His hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done in the name of Jesus! Acts 4:29&30
The early church prayed that God would grant His servants boldness and that God would stretch forth His hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus! This prayer was prayed after Peter and John were threatened for magnifying Jesus as the one who healed the lame man and the one who commands that people repent everywhere. The chief priests and elders commanded Peter and John that they no longer speak or teach in the name of Jesus but they replied that it was more important to obey God than men. Upon being let go they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. They all began to pray in one accord magnifying the greatness of God and then they asked God to grant His servants more boldness and more signs, wonders, miracles, and healings. God was so pleased with their prayer and desire to preach and teach the name of Jesus that He shook the building where they were assembled and filled them all with His Spirit. This pattern of asking God to give His ministers boldness and utterance is repeated in the Ephesians letter. Ephesians 6:19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
3. Pray that God will send forth laborers into His Harvest!
It is not scriptural to pray that God would save so and so because in the mind of God He already has by sending Jesus. Rom. 10:6&7 NLT But faith’s way of getting right with God says, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?’ (to bring Christ down to earth). And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead?’ (to bring Christ back to life again).” There are two prayers that God can not answer! “Asking God to do what He already did and asking Him to do what He told you to do.” We are Christ’s ambassadors and God makes His appeal through us! 2 Cor. 5:19 NLT For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. Often our loved ones have closed their ears to our voice, but God knows just the right person they will listen to. We are to pray that God will send someone to minister the truth to them. Mt. 9:38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest. Jesus makes it plain that heaven has already moved and now it is time for those on the earth to take what God has offered. Mt. 18:18 . . . Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. God has already made His decision that Jesus’ blood was shed that all might receive remission of sins. 1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
4. Pray for those which despitefully use you and persecute you!
Loving our enemies is hard on our flesh because the flesh wants to get back at those who hurt us. Mt. 5:43-48 . . . But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; . . . God truly wants to bless evil, hurtful people because of His great love for them. 1 Cor. 6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. Of course God is looking for the proper response to His love so He can receive them! Since we received the life and nature of God in the new birth we are capable of loving and forgiving just like God has forgiven us. If we forget that God loved us and forgave us while we were yet sinners we will not act on the love of God that has been placed within us and act just like an unsaved person. Jesus modeled the Father’s will in every thing he did so we would see how to do it. Jesus suffered unjustly at the hands of evil men and he did not retaliate when he was insulted nor threaten revenge. Jesus forgave those who crucified him! 1 Pet. 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Forgiving those who treat us badly and praying for God to bless them is an act of faith that shows that we believe that God will bring goodness into our life regardless of how others treat us! This keeps our faith active so that our prayers are not hindered. Mark 11:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh!
5. Make Supplication for all saints!
Our prayers for our fellow believers allow God to intervene and to bless in a greater measure! We intercede for sinners but we make supplication for the saints. Eph. 6:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. Notice supplication is mentioned twice in this verse in connection with praying for the saints and no mention of the word intercession. We are to pray for believers with our understanding and with our spirit. 1 Cor. 14:15 What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. Praying with the spirit is praying in other tongues! The Holy Spirit knows exactly what the need is and will help us to make supplication for our fellow Christian with the perfect prayer. Rom. 8:26 WNT In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness; for we do not know what prayers to offer nor in what way to offer them. But the Spirit Himself pleads for us in yearnings that can find no words, The Holy Spirit does not do our praying for us but rather through us. Our lack of understanding is a weakness and when we pray in other tongues for ourselves, other Christians, or lost people we have the Holy Spirit helping us. Our new commandment is to love one another as Christ has loved us!
6. Pray for one another!
In James’ epistle we are told to pray one for another that we may be healed. James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. God’s strong desire for His people to be well and prosperous is evident in the many ways He has for us to pray one for another. Those that are sick may call for the elders of the church to pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord and the prayer of faith shall heal the sick. The Lord shall raise them up and if they have committed sins they are forgiven. The Greek word translated sick denotes a very sick person. Humility is a must when it comes to receiving from God and for the sick person to call for the elders of the church it is an act of faith. We do not have to be an elder in the church to love our brethren with compassion and to pray for their healing. Pray one for another that you may be healed indicates that we will not receive the answer to our prayers if we do not love our brethren enough to pray and release faith for them. Having the right motives and attitudes toward God and His people are important along with our words and actions because God looks on the heart. You can pray the Ephesians prayers for your fellow church members just like Paul prayed them for the Ephesians. These are prayers that you can pray again and again!
Eph. 1:16 NLT I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly. There are three foundational truths mentioned in this prayer that will absolutely cause us to rise above our problems and overcome every obstacle! Eph. 1:18&19 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
7. Pray for your needs! Find scriptures that promise you the things that you are praying for!
I have listed pray for your needs last because the scriptures teach that we are to put God and His things first, others second, and ourselves last. Christ put us ahead of Himself by going to the cross and taking our suffering upon Himself so we did not have to suffer. He is our example and we are to be like him. We are to prefer our brother before ourselves. This does not mean that our brother is more important than ourselves but that we are to count him that way. I know this teaching is hard for the western mind to receive but when we are fully persuaded that the blessing of the Lord is working on our behalf we will be like father Abraham and give our brother the first pick. I have come to understand that as I take my place in the body of Christ I am putting God and His things first and preferring my brother before myself. We know that our great God will honor us for trusting Him and preferring our brother and nothing can stop us from receiving what God has promised. God’s grace in offering redemption to fallen man includes Jesus, eternal life, the Holy Spirit, and every need supplied while we walk this earth but we have to follow the rules of the kingdom to receive. The rules of the kingdom are to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. With that being said about putting God’s kingdom first and preferring our brother before ourselves we must realize that our needs are and always have been a top priority with our great and mighty God. God included provision for every need of man to be met through Jesus Christ from the foundation of the world. We have been redeemed from all of the curse of the law! Jesus purchased eternal life for us to live with God eternally, Jesus also bore our sicknesses so that we might be healed, and Jesus became poor that we might become rich! What Jesus accomplished through his death, suffering, and rising from the dead was all about meeting our needs. Yet, we must ask God for the things that we need, believing that we receive them. Mt. 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. Jesus taught his disciples that they are to pray for their daily bread. God still wants us to look to Him daily for our provisions! God knows what we need before we ask Him but we still need to ask because Satan is the god of this world system and his sole purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. God expects us to be aware of our brothers and sisters needs and as we can, do something about it. James 2:15&16 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Surely God would not do any less for His children than He asks us to do for them! In fact, God wants to fulfill your desires as well. Psalms 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Psalms 37:4 Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Absolutely nothing will be withheld from those who walk uprightly! Remember, only two things can stop God’s children from full provision and blessing. We will not receive if we do not ask. We will not receive if we ask to fulfill the lust of our flesh. God has no shortages and He delights in giving us richly all things to enjoy! John 14:13 And what soever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Let’s ask him, believing, that He might be glorified through us!
