As I said in the previous article, the Bible is one of the most crucial parts of our life because that’s how we get to know God. Along with Bible reading is prayer and they work hand in hand. So, we should pray before we read, asking the Holy Spirit to help us. The Holy Spirit is like the sun in a garden. Without its light nothing will grow. Therefore, we should pray throughout our time with God as prayer needs come to mind. And we should praise the Lord and thank him for our daily bread as we bring our “quiet time” to a close. Without question, we need both Bible reading and prayer to have a fruitful Christian life. The Bible informs the heart, while prayer transforms the heart. As Soren Kierkegaard said, “Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.”
In gardening terms, you know what I’m talking about if you ever planted a seed and it failed to sprout. Something happened in the process that kept it from growing. To neglect one task while being diligent in another can be detrimental to any garden. If you water and water, but don’t take the time to prune or weed, the garden will become overgrown with weeds and plants will suffer with dead limbs and spent flowers. If all you do is weed, but fail to water, the garden may be free of weeds, but all the plants will die. Bible reading and prayer are similar in that regard. We can’t read the Bible, but neglect prayer or vice versa. Therefore, it is crucial that prayer is a part of your time with God and your life.
In my own life, I have noticed that when I don’t spend time in prayer, even though I read my Bible, my sin nature tends to creep in and I find that I am impatient, irritable, worried, or not sleeping, which makes all those things even worse. I have learned that the best remedy for sleeplessness is just to start praying. By the time I know it, I can sense that I have peace, because I know God can actually do something about all the things I’m worried about. By giving him my cares, worries, fears, burdens, sins, I am letting go and giving him the reigns to act in my life. That’s what it means to cast our cares on the Lord (I Peter 5:7). If I don’t surrender, I am merely struggling in vain to do the things only God can do for me.
Besides the time we set aside for intentional Bible reading and prayer, we just need to remember to pray all the time. An article on Crossway states, “Pray without ceasing suggests a mental attitude of prayerfulness, continual personal fellowship with God, and consciousness of being in his presence throughout each day.” Prayer is our lifeline to God, after all. And you don’t need to go to any special place every time you pray. Basically, we need to pray throughout the day. As Billy Graham said, “Prayer should not be merely an act, but an attitude of life.”
Open with Prayer
Therefore, before you start to read your Bible, say a simple prayer. It doesn’t have to be long or complicated. The following are verses paraphrased into a prayer I like to use:
Speak, Lord, your servant is listening (I Samuel 3:10). Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your Law (Psalm 119:18). Give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of you, make the eyes of my heart enlightened, that I may know the hope to which I have been called (Ephesians 1:17-18). Help me to put into practice what I have learned, received, and heard from you (Philippians 4:9).
You can write this prayer down on an index card or come up with your own and use it as a bookmark so that you remember to pray before you start to read.
Utilize Scripture in Prayer
Use passages of scripture as part of your daily prayer time. The following are some examples of verses I pray straight from the Bible or paraphrase into prayers for morning and evening. You can start with these or compile a list of your own.
Morning:
• “Satisfy me with your love in the morning.” Psalm 90:14
• “…by the mercy of God, I present my body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is my spiritual worship.” Romans 12:1
• The Lord’s Prayer, Matthew 6:5-15
• The Armor of God, Ephesians 6:10-20
• “Help me bring great joy to all the brethren.” Acts 15:3
Evening:
• Psalm 91
• Philippians 4:6
• “Help me to think on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy. Help me to put into practice what I have learned, received, and heard from you.” Philippians 4:8-9
For intercessory prayer, you can do the same thing for others. There is nothing more powerful than God’s Word in prayer, regardless of the need or topic. You can highlight and categorize corresponding passages of scripture in your Prayer Bible (as you will see below), or write them in a community companion or journal to pray for specific individuals according to their needs.
Create a Prayer Bible
Speaking of utilizing scripture in prayer. I recently came across a video for a Prayer Bible from The Sisterita Club YouTube channel. Sisterita Jessica just posted this video and I totally agree with her that Satan did not want her to post this video, because I believe her idea for the Prayer Bible has the potential to transform and revolutionize our prayer lives. I also think it makes it easier to pray without ceasing as the Bible encourages us to. To get started on your very own Prayer Bible, here are the videos from Jessica at The Sisterita Club YouTube channel:
- How I Pray Using Bible Verses
- Create a Prayer Bible Part I
- Create a Prayer Bible Part II
- Create a Prayer Bible Part III
DIY a Community Companion
Get a notebook and divide each page with a line across the middle. Then I divided the notebook into sections starting with those who are in closest proximity to my daily life, with my own family first, my church family second, the third section for friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. I also left a few blank pages between each section, in case I need to add more people. This makes it much easier to keep track of birthdays, important dates, prayer requests, needs, etc. Another method you can do is get an “old-fashioned” phone book and do the same thing. Plus, everyone will be in alphabetical order.
Read Bible Verses About Prayer
In the previous article, I suggested reading passages about the Bible to encourage and inspire you to read the Bible. And I would suggest the same thing for prayer. We can learn so much about prayer by reading about it straight from the Bible and putting it into practice. Some of my favorite verses about prayer include:
•II Chronicles 7:14-15
• Psalm 5:3
• Psalm 17:6
• Psalm 32:6
• Psalm 69:13
• Jeremiah 33:3
• Daniel 9:17-19
• Matthew 6:5-15
• Mark 11:24-25
• Acts 2:42-43
• Romans 8:26-27
• Philippians 4:6
• I Thessalonians 5:16-18
• I Timothy 2:1-2
• Hebrews 4:16
• I John 5:14-15
Close with Praise
Finally, another very important aspect of our time with God is praise. In my effort to learn hymns, I like to close my time with God by singing a hymn. As you grow close to the Lord through your Bible reading and prayer time, you can’t help but praise God. It is like the fruit of getting to know God through Bible reading and prayer that just makes you want to sing! Praise brings joy to your heart and your life and helps to strengthen and encourage you. Praise and worship are the inevitable fruits of deep roots.
Remember, your time of prayer and praise doesn’t have to, nor should it, end when you’re done with your daily Bible reading and prayer time. I would like to encourage you to pray and praise your way throughout the day. Start listening to Reawaken Hymns, Verses or your favorite worship music to keep your heart and mind focused on God. Spend your time in prayer, talking to God and praising him. As you draw near to him throughout the day, he will empower you to take up your cross and follow him (Matthew 16:24).
*This article has been updated with links and resources 11/10/2023
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