The Habit of Praying

Prayer, bible study, and occasional fasting bring us closer to God.

Prayer is among the most powerful spiritual tools that a Christian can use in his journey toward the Kingdom of God. No person can claim that they are a Christian without developing the habit of prayer.

There is POWER in prayer and effective Christians know this very fact. If you want to be an effective Christian, you need to develop the habit of prayer.


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What is the power of prayer?

Prayer is a divine weapon that we can always use to win our spiritual battle. We can read from the Scripture the different powers of prayer and how it changed the lives of many men and women in the Bible. Here are some of them:

  1. The power to bring a dead person back to life (I Kings 17:21-22; John 11:41-44).
  2. The power to heal the sick (James 5:13-15).
  3. The power to experience divine protection (Psalm 25, 71, and 91; II Chronicles 20:6-12; Ezra 8:21-23).
  4. The power to conceive a child (Genesis 21:1-3; Genesis 25:21; Genesis 30:22-24; I Samuel 1:11-18).
  5. The power to stop the rain (James 5:17).
  6. The power to be forgiven of sin (I John 1:9; Mark 11:25).
  7. The power to make the sun stand still (Joshua 10:12-14).
  8. The power to attain blessings (I Chronicles 4:10).
  9. The power to obtain wisdom (James 1:5).
  10. The power to bring fire down from heaven (I Kings 18:30-38).

These are the POWERS OF PRAYER. However, we need to realize that the source of its power is not us. Prayers are not powerful because we are smart, rich, beautiful, or strong. Prayers are actually powerful because of GOD!

When we pray, we are tapping into the power of God. It is He who grants our prayers and it is through His divine will and purpose that our prayers are granted.

Related blog: 10 Unbelievable Powers of Prayer that You Should Know

How should we pray?

We now know that we all need to pray and not faint (Luke 18:1). The next question we need to ask is, how. Thankfully, the same question came in the minds of the Apostles. They asked Christ:

“Lord, teach us to pray…” (Luke 11:1).

Christ responded with what we now know as the Model Prayer. In this prayer, Christ gave us an outline how we ought to pray to God.

Take note; this prayer is not the exact words that we should REPETITIVELY utter. For God does not want us to use vain repetitions (Matthew 6:7). This prayer is rather a model and guide to help us know what to pray for.

So let us take a look at the Model Prayer of Christ and learn how to pray. These are some of the high points that we need to take note of.

  • We don’t pray to impress other people. Prayer is an intimate conversation between God and us. Jesus warns us not to “pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that [we] may be seen by men” (Matthew 6:5). Clearly, if our intent is to please other men rather than God, then we are praying in vain.
  • Do not use vain repetition (Matthew 6:7).
  • Our prayers should be addressed to God the Father (Matthew 6:9). This means we don’t pray to any dead saints and people. They are all dead and God is the only living God that we should pray to.
  • Our prayers should start with praise to God and thanksgiving (Matthew 6:9). This helps us to set our minds to the great privilege that we have to talk to the Supreme Ruler of the vast universe.
  • We ought to habitually pray for God’s kingdom to be established here on earth (Matthew 6:10). This world desperately needs a Savior and only Christ’s second coming can bring the utopia we all have been dreaming of. That’s why we must continually pray for God’s Kingdom to come and save this dying world once and for all.
  • We need to ask for God’s will to be done in our lives (Matthew 6:10). God’s will is perfect and as Christians, we need to constantly strive to know His will and to have the heart to obey Him.
  • We pray for God’s physical and spiritual blessings (Matthew 6:11). We need to realize that God is the only TRUE Source of blessings and we are all dependent on Him.
  • Ask for forgiveness of our sins (Matthew 6:12). We are sinners and God’s mercy is enough for us to be forgiven. However, we need to realize that there are conditions for God’s forgiveness. Before we can earn God’s forgiveness, we must first forgive others (Matthew 6:14-15).
  • We need to pray for God’s divine help to overcome sin (Matthew 6:13). Let us not commit the mistake of believing that we can overcome sin by ourselves. We need God’s help.
  • We need to pray for God’s protection (Matthew 6:13). Our enemy, the devil, is so powerful and there is nothing in his mind but to destroy God’s people. As powerful as he is, he is POWERLESS against God and through prayer, we can be protected from his evil schemes.
  • We need to end our prayer with praises again (Matthew 6:13). Acknowledging God that He alone has the power to grant our requests is vital. This enables us to develop the right attitude and mindset when praying.

These are some of the important points we need to remember when praying.

Here’s an incredible truth about prayer: when we habitually pray, it changes the way we think.

As we make prayer our habit, it brings us closer to God and we transform both our hearts and mind to become more like Jesus Christ.  

As you say your prayer, you will soon discover that it can change everything, including yourself. Prayer is not just a way to communicate with God. It is also a way to develop a healthy relationship with Him.

Do you want to know how to pray a prayer that God hears? If yes, remember these 8 points when you pray.

How to develop the habit of prayer

There’s no doubt: prayer does not come naturally. It is something that we all need to strive for. If we are not careful, our initial enthusiasm and motivation may eventually die down. For this reason, I would like to share with you some tips that we can use to develop the habit of prayer.

Pray before everything else.

The Bible shows us that most of God’s servants are morning people. They always make it a point to pray in the morning. Psalms 88:13 tells us, “But to You I have cried out, O LORD, and in the morning my prayer comes before You.”

It is very easy to forget to pray to God because of our busy schedule. Instead of saying “I have a lot of things to do that I don’t have time to pray,” we must say, “I have a lot of things to do that I need to pray.”

Praying in the morning shows our PRIORITY in life. Before seeking earthly things, we need to seek God’s kingdom first (Matthew 6:33), and we can do that through prayer.

Before you get out of bed, we need to bring our hands together and bend our knees. Pray before anything else and this will set the tone for the rest of the day.

(To learn more about why you should start your day with a prayer, you need to read this.)

Never eat your meal without praying.

We have been taught when we are still young that we need to pray before eating our meal. However, as we grow older, we tend to forget this fundamental habit. Make it a point that you don’t eat your meal unless you say a prayer.

Since eating a meal is already a habit, we can have a better chance of developing the habit of prayer when we do it together with eating.

Avoid distractions. 

When we pray, we need to focus on God. We need to give our 100% attention to God. Distractions come in different forms. This may include our smartphones, television, books, and even sleepiness.  

If you really want to develop the habit of prayer, you need to eliminate all possible distractions. When you do that, you can concentrate more on God and your prayer.

Seek the support of others.

Having the support of your family, spouse, and friends can have a significant impact on your prayer life. We tend to gain more motivation when we do something together. If you have prayer partners or groups, then it would be easier for you to establish a more consistent prayer habit.

Prayer is the highest privilege given to man that he can come before the throne of Supreme Ruler of this vast universe.

Keep a prayer journal.

Saying a prayer is good, but sometimes it is better to write down your prayers. This is very useful since you can actually read what you prayed for. Remember the story of King Hezekiah? When he received the letter of his enemy, he spread it before God and prayed for protection.

Though not a letter of threat, we can still write our prayers to God and spread it before His throne of grace. There are times that we tend to be more sincere with our prayers when we actually write it down.

(Do you need a journal? If yes, here’s a notebook from Amazon that I believe you would love.)

Do a 30-day challenge.

There’s no doubt that developing a habit of prayer can be challenging. You can gain motivation by having a method to measure your progress. In this case, starting a 30-day prayer challenge can help you develop a short-term goal for long-term changes.

Set a new goal of praying. When you hit that goal, increase the level of difficulty. For example, from 5 minutes of prayer in one week, you can increase it to 10 minutes until you hit your goal. The important thing is that you gain progress. Though slowly, at least it is steady and sure.

Have a prayerful attitude. 

The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:16-18). However, this does not mean that we should pray without a pause. It only means that we should have a prayerful attitude. God is interested in what we have to say. God is interested even about the smallest details in our lives.

The best thing about prayer is that we can always do it, anytime, anywhere. We can pray silently whenever we have the opportunity. When we see someone in need, we can pray in our thoughts. When we achieve success in life, we can pray and thank God. When we encounter problems, we can simply pray and place it in God’s hands.

Pray as often as you could. It does not have to be long. It can be as sweet as a three-word sentence.

Developing a habit of prayer is crucial when it comes to developing an intimate relationship with God. It is the highest privilege given to man that he can come before the throne of the God of this entire universe. It is so powerful that it can entirely change our lives.

You can develop the habit of prayer

In a world full of distractions, developing a consistent and faithful habit of prayer can be difficult, but it is NOT impossible. God grants us the ability to talk to Him and we don’t even have to set an appointment. With this in mind, it is crucial that we are able to take advantage of this wonderful gift from God.

There is an endless list of things to pray for. We can NEVER run out of things that we can bring up and share to God.

The only problem is, “Are we willing to put in the time and energy to pray to God?”

You can develop the habit of prayer. Don’t let Satan, anyone or even yourself deceive you that you can’t do it. Our salvation depends on the type of relationship we have with God and it is important that we strengthen that relationship with prayer.

There are a lot of benefits that you can reap from praying. It will ultimately change your life not just today, but also during the life to come!


What’s next?

The 7 powerful habits of highly effective Christians

➠ Go to table of content
➠ Go to the second habit, “The Habit of Studying the Bible.”
➠ Read this blog series in PDF format or Kindle format.