Practical things you can do when you're finding it hard to pray

As humans, we aren't OK all the time. While we do have great times especially after knowing that God loves us and is always with us, we also have difficult times that challenge our faith and make us realize that we need God.

When these moments come, many of us can't seem to press on and pray. Why? It's because we simply don't know what to say.

When we're out of words to say
Friend, don't be discouraged from coming to God when you don't know what to say. The Bible encourages us to come to Him boldly for any need – even when we don't know what to say:

"Let us then come with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
 
What's more, we can come to Him knowing full well that even if we don't know what to say, He already knows what we want to tell Him:

"Lord, all my desire is before You, and my sighing is not hidden from You." (Psalm 38:9)

Just come
With that, my friend, I want to encourage you. Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). If you want to pray but don't know what to say, here are some things that you can do:

1) Pray according to the Word of God
The Word of God is a wonderful prayer book. Inside it we find all sorts of prayers, supplications, and things we haven't thought of but should pray to God about. At times, all we need is the words to say.

Let God's Word supply what you have to pray.

Mary-Lynn Chambers, writing for Bible.org, suggests using Bible passages as guides to praying. For example, use Paul's words or prayers to give you an idea of what to pray for over yourself, your family, your church, and everyone around you. The Psalms are also a great prayer resource when it's hard to find the words.

2) Pray in the Spirit
When we pray in the Spirit, words won't be needed. We simply allow the Holy Spirit to pray for us. Paul, a man who prays in tongues more than any other believer in his time (See 1 Corinthians 14:18) tells us,

"Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses, for we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." (Romans 8:26-27)

Praying in the Holy Spirit also allows us to build ourselves up in the faith (see Jude 20).

3) Ask someone close to pray with you
Are you married? Ask your spouse to pray with you. Are you single? Then ask a friend to pray with you. Ask your pastor, or perhaps anybody in your church to pray with you. Join your church's prayer meetings or consider joining a local prayer fellowship. They would be glad to have you!

"Two are better than one, because there is a good reward for their labor together." (Ecclesiastes 4:9)
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