10 Things That Hinder Prayer:
James 5:16 The effective, fervent
prayer of a righteous man avails much.
James 5:16 The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power
and wonderful results. (NLT)
1. Praying from an
unrepentant heart.
Psalm 66:18 If I regard
iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear.
2. Praying while
ignoring the poor.
Proverbs 21:13 Whoever
shuts his ears to the cry of the poor Will also cry himself and not be heard.
3. Praying for show.
Matthew 6:5 "And when you
pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in
the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.
Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
4. Praying repetitive,
empty words.
Matthew 6:7-8 And
when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think
that they will be heard for their many words.
Therefore do not be
like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask
Him.
5. Praying with
bitterness in your heart toward someone.
Mark 11:25-26 And
whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him,
that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
But if you do not
forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.
6. Praying without
knowing God through Jesus.
John 14:6 Jesus said to him,
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but
through me.”
7. Praying without
faith.
James 1:6-7 But let him ask in
faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and
tossed by the wind.
For let not that man
suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord
8. Praying without
asking for a specific request.
James 4:2 “You do not have
because you do not ask.”
9. Praying with wrong
motives.
James 4:3 You ask and do not
receive, because you ask with wrong motives so that you may spend it on your pleasures.
10. Praying while
mistreating your spouse.
I Peter 3:7 In the same way,
you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat her with understanding as you
live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in
God's gift of new life. If you don't treat her as you should, your prayers will
not be heard. (NLT)
(Also see Malachi 2:13-16)
10 Things that make prayer effective
1. Praying while
delighting in the Lord.
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in
the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.
2. Praying in secret.
Matthew 6:6 But you, when you
pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father
who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you
openly.
3. Praying by asking,
seeking and knocking.
Matthew 7:7-8, 11 Ask,
and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be
opened to you.
For everyone who asks
receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.…If
you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much
more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!
4. Praying in
agreement with other believers.
Matthew 18:19-20 Again I
say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask,
it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.
For where two or three
are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.
Check here for some thoughts on "agreeing in prayer"
Check here for some thoughts on "agreeing in prayer"
5. Praying in faith.
Mark11:24 “Therefore I say to
you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them
and they will be granted you.”
6. Praying in Jesus’
name.
John 14:13-14 Whatever
you ask in my name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the
Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
7. Praying while
abiding in Christ and His Word.
John 15:7 If you abide in me,
and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
8. Praying while
fasting.
Acts 14:23 When they had
appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they
commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. (also see Matt. 17:21)
9. Praying from an
obedient life.
I John 3:21-22 Beloved,
if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.
And whatever we ask we
receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are
pleasing in His sight.
10. Praying according to God’s will.
I John 5:14 This is the
confidence we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will,
He hears us.
