It’s our hope that your prayer life becomes more natural, effective, and enjoyable.
Learn more about strengthening your prayer life. Use these resources to help bring joy into your time with God.
6 Questions about Prayer
Q: What Is Prayer?
Simply put, prayer is communicating with God. When we pray, we express our devotion to our heavenly Father. We also invite Him to talk to us as we talk to Him.
Q: Who Can Pray?
Though God is at work drawing us to Himself long before we receive Jesus as Savior, relationship with Him doesn’t truly begin until the moment of salvation (John 14:6). Praying with a clean heart is also vital to successful prayer. We cannot expect God to answer our prayers if there is any unconfessed sin in our life or if we are harboring an unforgiving spirit (Psalm 66:18; Mark 11:25).
For God to answer our prayers, we must have a believing heart and ask according to His will (Matthew 9:29; 21:22; 1 John 5:14-15).
Q: Why Are We to Pray?
God’s Word commands us to pray (Luke 18:1; Acts 6:4; Mark 14:38; Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2; 1 Timothy 2:1-2).
We pray to have fellowship with God, to receive spiritual nurture and strength to live a victorious life. We also pray to maintain boldness for a vital witness for Christ.
Prayer releases God’s great power to change the course of nature, people and nations.
Q: To Whom Do We Pray?
We pray to the Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. When we pray to the Father, our prayers are validated by Jesus Christ. They are interpreted to God the Father by the Holy Spirit. (Romans 8:26-27,34).
Q: When Should We Pray?
God’s Word commands us to “Pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We can be in prayer throughout the day, expressing and demonstrating our devotion to God as we go about our daily tasks.
God wants us to be in touch with Him constantly wherever we are. We can pray in the car, while washing the dishes or while walking down the street.
Q: What Should We Include in Our Prayers?
Although prayer cannot be reduced to a formula, certain basic elements should be included in our communication with God:
A - Adoration
To adore God is to worship and praise Him, to honor and exalt Him in our heart and mind and with our lips.
C - Confession
When our discipline of prayer begins with adoration, the Holy Spirit has opportunity to reveal any sin in our life that needs to be confessed.
T - Thanksgiving
Thanking God for who He is and for the benefits through belonging to Him, enables us to recognize that He controls all things — not just the blessings, but the problems and adversities as well. As we approach God with a thankful heart, He becomes our strength.
S - Supplication
Supplication includes petition for our own needs and intercession for others.
Pray that your inner person may be renewed, always sensitive to and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Pray for others — your spouse, your children, your parents, neighbors and friends, your nation and those in authority over you.
Pray for the salvation of souls, for a daily opportunity to introduce others to Christ and to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Finally, pray for the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
Simply put, prayer is communicating with God. When we pray, we express our devotion to our heavenly Father. We also invite Him to talk to us as we talk to Him.
Q: Who Can Pray?
Though God is at work drawing us to Himself long before we receive Jesus as Savior, relationship with Him doesn’t truly begin until the moment of salvation (John 14:6). Praying with a clean heart is also vital to successful prayer. We cannot expect God to answer our prayers if there is any unconfessed sin in our life or if we are harboring an unforgiving spirit (Psalm 66:18; Mark 11:25).
For God to answer our prayers, we must have a believing heart and ask according to His will (Matthew 9:29; 21:22; 1 John 5:14-15).
Q: Why Are We to Pray?
God’s Word commands us to pray (Luke 18:1; Acts 6:4; Mark 14:38; Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2; 1 Timothy 2:1-2).
We pray to have fellowship with God, to receive spiritual nurture and strength to live a victorious life. We also pray to maintain boldness for a vital witness for Christ.
Prayer releases God’s great power to change the course of nature, people and nations.
Q: To Whom Do We Pray?
We pray to the Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. When we pray to the Father, our prayers are validated by Jesus Christ. They are interpreted to God the Father by the Holy Spirit. (Romans 8:26-27,34).
Q: When Should We Pray?
God’s Word commands us to “Pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We can be in prayer throughout the day, expressing and demonstrating our devotion to God as we go about our daily tasks.
God wants us to be in touch with Him constantly wherever we are. We can pray in the car, while washing the dishes or while walking down the street.
Q: What Should We Include in Our Prayers?
Although prayer cannot be reduced to a formula, certain basic elements should be included in our communication with God:
- Adoration
- Confession
- Thanksgiving
- Supplication
A - Adoration
To adore God is to worship and praise Him, to honor and exalt Him in our heart and mind and with our lips.
C - Confession
When our discipline of prayer begins with adoration, the Holy Spirit has opportunity to reveal any sin in our life that needs to be confessed.
T - Thanksgiving
Thanking God for who He is and for the benefits through belonging to Him, enables us to recognize that He controls all things — not just the blessings, but the problems and adversities as well. As we approach God with a thankful heart, He becomes our strength.
S - Supplication
Supplication includes petition for our own needs and intercession for others.
Pray that your inner person may be renewed, always sensitive to and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Pray for others — your spouse, your children, your parents, neighbors and friends, your nation and those in authority over you.
Pray for the salvation of souls, for a daily opportunity to introduce others to Christ and to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Finally, pray for the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
The goal of fasting is to draw near to God.
It hits the reset button of our soul and renews us from the inside out. Fasting enables us to celebrate the goodness and mercy of God. It prepares our hearts for all the good things God desires to bring into our lives.
When deciding what to fast, we encourage you to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do.
When deciding what to fast, we encourage you to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do.
Questions About Fasting
Q. What Are The Types Of Fasting?
This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.
Complete Fast
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.
Partial Fast
This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown.
Soul Fast
This fast is a great option if you do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance.
For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast.
Q. Are There Any Scripture Reference To Fasting?
Matthew 6:16-18
16 When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Matthew 9: 14-15
14 Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” 15 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”
Luke 18: 9-14
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Acts 27: 33-37
33 Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food—you haven’t eaten anything. 34 Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” 35 After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36 They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37 Altogether there were 276 of us on board.
Nehemiah 9: 1-3
1 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. 2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God.
The timing of your fast is not as important as the strength of your focus on God as you fast.
- Selective Fast
- Complete Fast
- Partial Fast
- Soul Fast
This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.
Complete Fast
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.
Partial Fast
This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown.
Soul Fast
This fast is a great option if you do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance.
For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast.
Q. Are There Any Scripture Reference To Fasting?
Matthew 6:16-18
16 When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Matthew 9: 14-15
14 Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” 15 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”
Luke 18: 9-14
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Acts 27: 33-37
33 Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food—you haven’t eaten anything. 34 Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.” 35 After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36 They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37 Altogether there were 276 of us on board.
Nehemiah 9: 1-3
1 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. 2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God.
The timing of your fast is not as important as the strength of your focus on God as you fast.
