It’s helpful in daily prayer to explore simple prayer ideas. While in my seminary days I found great help in prayer from a resource produced by Peter Lord of the First Baptist Church of Titusville, Florida, called the 2959 Guide (29.59, or about 30 minutes in prayer). The following is my adaptation and expansion of something I first thought of while going through the guide. I often use this in my daily prayer time. Perhaps it will encourage you as well. These are seven prayer ideas you see practiced consistently in Scripture. While I’m emphasizing these for personal prayer, they would be useful in corporate settings as well.
7 Simple Prayer Ideas from Scripture
1. Praise
Praise is our response to the person of God. We praise him for who he is. Praise is not noise, just as reverence is not silence. It is the acknowledgment of God’s greatness. It is recognizing he is “hallowed,” or “holy,” as the Model Prayer tells us (see Matt 6:9). Sometimes reading a Psalm of praise helps here. Beginning with praise starts our praying with a focus on God, not us, which is always best.
2. Thanksgiving
This is our response to the goodness of God. Thank him for what he has done. “Enter His gates with thanksgiving” (Ps 100:4). “In everything give thanks” (1 Thess 5:18). An attitude of gratitude should permeate our lives.
3. Confession
Confession is our response to the holiness of God. Our sins will hinder our praying (see Ps 66:18). As we pray, we can ask the Holy Spirit to reveal each sin in our lives. Then we can confess the sin (see 1 John 1:9) and forsake it. When broken relationships are involved, we should seek to make them right as well (see Matthew 5). Remembering God’s forgiveness in Christ also helps us to be forgiving to others.
