The Seven Prayer Habits of Highly Effective People

At a recent cell group meeting I spoke on the seven prayer habits of highly effective people. Several folk have asked for the notes and so I have reproduced them in shortened version below.

The seven prayer habits of highly effective people

The #1 issue facing the church today is the need for consistent and passionate prayer both corporately and personally.

Pray in right relationship to God

• The starting point of prayer is a right relationship with God (Is 1:15)
• It’s also living right before God (Is 1:16ff; Jn 14:6; Ps 6:9; Heb 4:16; Ps 34:15)
• The Disciple’s Prayer (Matt 6:9) helps us to understand this
• Our Father in the heavens
• Ecc 5:1-2
• Hallowed be your name
• Knowing God’s name means being able to pray into and out of who God is
• Jehovah Jireh – The Lord my Provider, my vision, the One I see, Gen 22:14
• Jehovah Rophe – I am who heals thee. Ex 15:26
• Jehovah Nissi – The Lord is my banner. Ex 17:15

Pray in the Spirit

• The Spirit brings us into right relationship to God (Rom 8:15)
• Praying in the Spirit is a conference in perfect agreement with the Father. Nothing can go wrong with these kinds of prayers. Nothing will be prayed that is in disagreement, disharmony, disunity or disconcordant with the will of the Father (Rom 8:26f)
• You will strike all the right chords when you speak the language of heaven. It will dovetail beautifully with the Father’s heart. He will consider your prayer, nod his head in agreement, smile and be delighted to answer your heart cries.
• When all is said and done, I want to pray prayers that God would want to answer!
• Praying in the Spirit is more than just speaking in tongues (Eph 6:18)
• Spirit searches even the deep things of God (1 Cor 2:9)
• Call unto me, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you know not (Jer 33:3)
  

Pray in the will of God

• These are guaranteed to be answered (1 John 5:14,15)
• We tune ourselves into the will of God in time spent in prayer (Mk 1:35; Lk 6:12)
• We tune ourselves into the will of God in time spent in the Word (Heb 5:12)

Pray in faith

• Everything that we receive from God, we receive by faith (Heb 11:6; Mk 11:24; Mk 9:23)
  

Pray in secret simplicity

• Beware the babbling prayers of unbelief (Mt 6:7)
• “The fewer the words, the better the prayer.” – Martin Luther
• Pray secretly to receive your reward openly (Mt 6:5)
• It’s relational. “For the Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Mt 6:8)
• Pray for your needs (Jas 5:14)
• Give us this day our daily bread (Mt 6:11)
• What you need for life for today.
  

Pray with fervency

• The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available – dynamic in its working (Jas 5:16)
• Tremendous things happen when we pray fervently
• The whole building was shaken (Ac 4:23)
• Elijah prayed under a spirit of intercession (1 Ki 18:41-46)
• “O God, you are my God, Earnestly I seek you” (Ps 63:1)
  

Pray without ceasing

• Jesus presents this spiritual principle in the story of the Persistent Widow (Lk 18:1ff)
• And the need for prevailing prayer in the Friend at Midnight (Lk 11:5)