Many of us pray the same way every day. We bring God a list: heal her, help him, fix this. Those requests are good. Jesus told us to ask, seek and knock (Matthew 7:7-8). But Joe Carter, writing for The Gospel Coalition, says prayer is meant to be more than asking. He describes it as an encounter with God in which we humbly worship the Lord, confess our sins and ask Him to meet both our needs and the desires of our heart.
One pattern many Christians have found helpful goes by four letters, A.C.T.S.: adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication. Here is how Carter walks through each one.
Adoration comes first. It is an attitude of worship marked by love and reverence toward God. Before you ask for anything, tell God who He is and praise Him for it. Carter quotes R. C. Sproul: "I've noticed over many years that as we grow in the discipline and in the delight of prayer, it seems that we naturally spend more and more of our time on this first element."
Confession is next. Admit your sins to God, both in general and in particular. Carter suggests thinking back over the past 24 hours. Ask forgiveness for sinful patterns of behavior as well as for single acts. Then comes thanksgiving: thank God for the daily blessings He has given you.
Supplication is where the list belongs. Supplication means asking God for something, usually for yourself. Intercession means asking on behalf of someone else. Carter gives a simple rule: in every prayer, include at least one request for yourself and at least one for another person.
Why keep the requests for last? Carter points to the Westminster Catechism, which calls prayer "an offering up of our desires unto God". But the spiritual disciplines exist to train us in godliness (1 Timothy 4:7), so the deepest purpose of prayer is to bring our will into line with God's. Carter sums up the goal in seven words from Jesus, asking that the Father's will be done and not His own (Luke 22:42). Try the pattern this morning. Then take Carter's self-check. Write down what you believe about prayer. Next, look at how often you actually pray. Is there a gap between what you believe and how often you meet with God?
Carter's article ran as part of a series at The Gospel Coalition on spiritual formation. The editors describe that as the process by which Christians, in union with Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, become more like Jesus inside and out. Carter ranks prayer near the top of the habits that shape us. He cites Donald Whitney, who places prayer second only to taking in God's Word among the spiritual disciplines. Prayer, Carter writes, continues a conversation that God started through His Word and His grace.
He also notes one catch in the promise of Matthew 7:7-8. The Westminster Catechism adds that the desires we bring to God must be "for things agreeable to his will." That is why Carter says the power of prayer rests on our knowledge of God rather than on effort or technique. Carter is a contributing editor for The Gospel Coalition, the editor of the NIV Spiritual Habits Bible and an associate pastor at McLean Bible Church in Arlington, Virginia.
Scripture: Matthew 7:7-8, 1 Timothy 4:7, Luke 22:42
