By Michael Risley
George Mueller (1805-1898) was a Christian evangelist who founded a series of orphanages in Bristol, England, providing housing for over 10,000 children. Mueller was known for being a man of faith and prayer. Along with the orphanages, he started the Scriptural Knowledge Institution to educate believers, distribute Bibles, and evangelize the lost. He decided to believe God and depended entirely on God to supply his needs. In today’s dollar, God provided almost $100 million in response to Mueller’s prayers! One thing Mueller knew above all else was to pray about everything!
What if you and I were to pray about everything; what would that be like? Let me give you five prayers to pray in circumstances that would be common for most of us.
-
- A prayer to pray when you are worried. Imagine what it would be like to never worry about anything! It seems unreasonable because we all have worries about our health, future, finances, family, and so many things. God’s advice in Philippians 4:6-7 is to shape our worries into prayers. It says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.” Do you want less worry? Then you need to pray more! Whenever you are tempted to worry, stop and pray instead. Here is a suggested prayer: Heavenly Father, strengthen my faith to believe You are with me and in control of my life. Help me now in this situation. May Your will be done. In Jesus’ name, amen.
-
- A prayer to pray when you are lonely and in despair. The good news from God is in Psalm 34:18 which says, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” God promises to comfort you in the midst of despair and loneliness–to bring you supernatural joy, hope, power, courage, and wisdom in the midst of the tough circumstances you face. Sometimes He chooses to deliver us from the pain, and sometimes He gives us the strength to go through it. However, whatever God chooses, you’re never alone. And although “Weeping may last through the night, joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). A prayer you might use is: Heavenly Father, Thank You for being close to me and delivering me from being overwhelmed. I need Your help. Sustain and lead me for Your glory! In Jesus’ name, amen.
-
- A prayer to pray when you are afraid. We all battle against being afraid. That’s why the Bible repeats the command “fear not” 365 times, or once for every day of the year! It is as if God is telling us there is no day in our lives where fear is not a present reality. However, God says, “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with My victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). We don’t need to fear because God is with us, He has established a relationship with us, and He will strengthen and help us to victory! What a wonderful promise and truth to pray back to God when we are tempted to be afraid. You might pray: Heavenly Father, I am not giving into fear because You are with me and You are my God. Strengthen and help me now, especially to trust You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
-
- A prayer to pray when you have sinned and feel ashamed. An important promise is found in I John 1:9 which says, “But if we confess our sins to Him (God), He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” At conversion all our sins are forgiven–past, present, and future. However, even after we become Christians, we still sin and still need to confess our sins. This kind of confession is not given to gain God’s acceptance (our salvation is secure in Christ), but to remove the barrier to fellowship or closeness that our sin has put between us and God. We should confess so that we can enjoy maximum fellowship and joy with God. Also, true confession involves a commitment not to continue in sin. Finally, we should pray for strength to defeat temptation the next time we face it. A suggested prayer when we sin would be: Heavenly Father, I confess that I have sinned (name the sin). Thank You for your forgiveness and cleansing. I ask for Your strength to defeat future temptation. In Jesus’ name, amen.
- A prayer to pray when you are blessed or thankful. When the Holy Spirit controls you, you gain a mindset or perspective that frequently recognizes that every blessing ultimately comes from God. And this results in something deeper and more profound than happiness; it is called “Joy.” A thankful heart to God–the giver of every good gift– is the key to being lifted up into the pleasure of joy! God’s Word teaches, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17a). And Psalm 30:11-12 adds, “You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give You thanks forever!” Here is a prayer when you want to praise Him for His blessings: Heavenly Father, You are the source of every blessing. My heart is full of praise to You, the Most High, and the Giver of all good gifts. Thank You for Your mighty grace and love. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Remember, whatever you face, God is with you, He is in control, and His will is for you to trust and obey Him. As Ephesians 6:18 says, ” Pray in the Spirit at ALL times and on EVERY occasion.” You can make prayer your life and your life a prayer while living in a world that gives ample opportunity to talk with your great God about every situation
If you’d like to encourage more seniors to experience the transforming power of Christ day by day, please consider giving a gift to Senior Living Ministries below. Thank you – we are so grateful for you!