Prayer Champion Ideas

VanderGriend is the Prayer-Evangelism Associate for Harvest Prayer Ministries and co-founder of the Denominational Prayer Leaders’ Network. He is author of the Praying Church Sourcebook and several other books. I particularly appreciated working through this very practical, down-to-earth prayer guide. Each day consists of a two-page spread beginning with a Scripture passage and commentary, questions for reflection, and suggestions for prayer and action. This would make a great gift book.

“Prayer is the talking part of a relationship with God.” (8)

“Prayer starts with God.” “God is the initiator. He moves us to pray. He gives us prayer ideas. He holds out the promises we claim in prayer. When we pray, we are God’s instruments.” (10) “If prayer starts with God, then the first order of business as we learn to pray is to learn to listen to God’s whispers, to tune our hearts to him, to respond to his promptings.” (11)

“Sin hinders prayer.” “We are shut out from God when we cherish sin because God is holy and cannot tolerate sin in his presence.” “Forgiven sinners are welcome in God’s presence.” The first requirement of prayer, then, is to confess anything in your heart that is not of God.” (18) “We can’t have the privilege of prayer without purity of heart.” (19)

“Not only does sin hinder prayer; prayer hinders sin.” “Is there any area of your life about which you are uneasy before God? Risk taking a closer look at it. You may find a ‘cherished’ sin.” (19)

“Faith is a second requirement of true prayer. Prayers without faith are incomplete.” “Faith is not simply a possession. It’s an aspect of relationship.” “Praying in faith is not an inner conviction that God will act according to our desires if only we believe hard enough. It involves believing that God will always respond to our prayer in accord with his nature, his purposes, and his promises.” (20)

“When you ask a person for something in good faith, you don’t ask for something the person would not be willing to give.” “Similarly, if you truly know God, you will only ask for what is in accord with his will and not for anything that is purely selfish.” (21)

“By offering to let us pray in his name…Jesus is demonstrating great trust in us. He is trusting that his honor and his interests are safe in our hands.” (24)

“By prayer we direct God’s grace and power to strategic locations where it is needed.” (24)

“Ask for anything you need in order to accomplish God’s will in your life and in your world.” (25)

“His Father-heart leaps for joy when we come asking.” “…t is okay to request God’s blessings for ourselves.” “Petitionary prayer connects our needs to God’s generosity. The Bible is full of it.” (28) “Jesus stands ready to meet us, no matter what our need may be.” (29)

“The ‘good gifts’ Jesus has in mind [Mt 7:9-11] are the spiritual blessings of grace, wisdom, joy, peace, power, holiness, and so on.” (30)

“God doesn’t promise to give us anything and everything we ask for. (I Jn 5:14-15) But he does make an astonishing promise to prayer-ers that is even better. He promises to give us whatever we ask that is ‘according to his will.’” (32)

“Someone has suggested that God answers prayer in the following five ways:

· ‘Yes! I thought you would never ask.’