Prayer provides immediate access or connection to God. In prayer we confide to God our most intimate feelings, thoughts, concerns and requests. We also praise God for that for which we are grateful, ranging from our salvation to His every provision as we know every good gift comes from Him (James 1:17). The investment of prayer allows us to hear from God as the Holy Spirit guides our hearts and minds, transforming our desires and thoughts to those in line with His will and His way (Psalm 143:10). We engage in prayer in two primary ways:
- Personally: Knowing Jesus Christ as our personal Savior affords us, as individuals, direct access to God via prayer, with Paul instructing us to: “…pray constantly” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) or always be engaged in an exchange with God, open to His leading and guidance as you beseech His help;
- In Fellowship: Praying with others proves a powerful way to lift up our voices to the Lord and to share our petitions with God as the body of Christ. The early church met regularly to learn the doctrine of the apostles, break bread, and pray together (Acts 2:42) in response to Jesus’ admonition: “‘For where two or three gather together in my name, I am there with them’” (Matthew 18:20). When we pray with other believers, the same Holy Spirit knits us together in a unique bond of fellowship found nowhere else in life for the express purposes of praising and lifting up His name.
The immediate purpose of prayer is the accomplishing of God’s will on earth; the ultimate purpose of prayer is the eternal glory of God. These two elements are found within ten specific types of prayers recorded within Scripture:
- Prayer of Adoration: This type of prayer is focused on worshiping the Lord out of deep love, respect, and admiration. These prayers come from a place of genuine awe of who the Lord is and all that He does: “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens” (Psalm 148:13);
- Prayer of Thanksgiving: For some, beginning each day with a prayer of thanksgiving is a habit they practice. Prayers of gratitude are prompted by an answered prayer, deliverance, recognition of how good and merciful God is, or simply because we have been given another day of life: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Cry out, ‘Save us, God our Savior; gather us and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name, and glory in your praise’” (1 Chronicles 16:34-35);
- Prayer of Confession: Confessing our sins is a significant way to pray as followers of Jesus. Often, Jesus called those he interacted with to confess their sins and sin no more. In the Bible, we get a glimpse of confession prayers and many reminders that God forgives those who confess their sins: “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin” (Psalm 32:5);
- Prayer of Vows: Praying a promise to the Lord is a prayer that we may pray when we are making a life-changing commitment that we need God’s strength, guidance, and help to fulfill. Perhaps we vow to the Lord never to drink alcohol, or to abstain from premarital sex, or to live in a certain righteous way that is pleasing to the Lord. A pledge to God, just as we see in Hannah’s vow, should be followed through, and made with great consideration and certainty: “In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, ‘Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head’” (1 Samuel 1:10-11).
- Prayer of Quiet Reflection: Prayers of silence draw us away from prayers filled with words, and into a place where we quiet ourselves down and reflect. These types of silent prayers provide us needed time to reflect on God’s goodness. This type of prayer is valuable to how we learn to hear from the Lord and allow him to guide our steps: “On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night” (Psalm 63:6);
- Prayer for Healing: A prayer for healing is usually spoken when we seek restoration for our physical bodies, spiritual wholeness, or emotional wounds. A key component of Jesus’ earthly ministry was healing those who were physically ill. The Bible affirms that we can come to God asking for all types of healing: “Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise” (Jeremiah 17:14);
- Prayer for Deliverance and Help: When we are facing challenges, hardships, or oppression, we find ourselves praying for deliverance and breakthrough. We say these prayers for help because God is the one who can aid us in ways no one else ever could. In the Bible, many followers of God cried out for His intervention in this type of prayer for help and deliverance: “Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress” (Psalm 107:6);
- Prayer of Intercession: Praying for others is a crucial part of being part of the body of Christ. The Bible instructs us to pray for one another and to intercede on our or someone else’s behalf. In the book of Nehemiah, prayer is made for God to intercede on behalf of His people and their work: “But we made intercession for judgement to God” (Nehemiah 4:9a). In the Gospels, we read that Jesus prayed for others in his final hours before being arrested. The apostle Paul wrote of how he often kept other Christians and new believers in his prayers, as well: “And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light” (Colossians 1:9-12);
- Prayer for Transformation: As followers of Jesus, we aim to live like him, live according to his ways, and enter into a lifelong process of sanctification. Praying for this type of transformation in our hearts, minds, and lives is purposeful and we can find these types of prayers in God’s word: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24);
- Prayer of Blessing: Prayers of blessing are often said for visiting missionaries, or families relocating to another church, those starting a new job, new graduates, newlyweds and newborns. Prayers of blessings are found throughout Scripture and are powerful ways to ask for God’s best to be poured out: “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God” (Philippians 1:9-11).