Foundations of Faith: What Does It Mean to Be a Christian?ናሙና

Talking to God

Have you heard someone pray out loud and feel intimidated by how eloquently they are praying? This feeling is not uncommon, especially if you’re new to prayer! Prayer is communicating with God, and you should feel as comfortable talking to God as you would with any friend. It should feel natural and not be done as an obligation or something to check off a spiritual to-do list.

Some may be used to saying memorized prayers learned from a past church experience and may not have ever experienced or witnessed what it looks like to have an organic conversation with God in prayer.

Prayer is actively talking to the Living God! He wants to hear from you about everything!

Say whatever comes to mind. Talk to God just like you would with your friend. It may feel awkward at first, but keep talking to Him, and just like with a friend, you’ll begin to grow closer to Him.

Prayer transforms you. Indescribable growth is happening within your soul as God nourishes His Spirit within you. The more you pray and get comfortable talking with God, the healthier your spiritual growth will be. Prayer is never a waste of time. Give it time, trust that God is working in your life, and you will begin to experience how God works within you.

In Scripture, we see that Jesus prayed a lot! He made time to be with His Father in prayer. Jesus modeled this prayer for His disciples in Luke 11:2-4:

“Father, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. Give us each day the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation.”

You can use your own words and make this prayer your own: Acknowledge God’s holiness and sovereignty. Thank God for what He provides for you, like food, shelter, water, basic needs, etc. Ask God for forgiveness from any sins you’re struggling with, ask God to help you forgive anyone you’re holding a grudge against, and ask God to keep you focused on Him and not the ways of the world.

That’s just one example of what prayer can look like, as there is no right or wrong way to talk to God. Your prayers can be unscripted and straight from the heart, or you can use a prayer guide to help you communicate your heart to Him.

No matter how you pray, God is always listening and wants to hear from you!