Does God listen when I pray? If I pray, does it make any difference to God or in me?

These are the nagging questions about prayer. What can I do to help my time of prayer?

James gave us a concise but powerful picture of prayer that matters to God: “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results” (James 5:16). People who pray want their prayers to be filled with power and to effect results.

First, pray in righteousness. Confess your sins and turn your back on them. Ask God to show you those areas which aren’t pleasing to Him. Don’t get caught up in the debate about big sins and little sins or sins that don’t matter to God.

Remember this: no sin is little to God. Obedience matters and faith pleases God. Make both of these a priority in your life.

Second, pray fervently. James called us to pray earnestly. If your prayer doesn’t matter to you, why do you pray? Hannah described her prayer for a child as “pouring out her soul to the Lord.”

Third, pray specifically. We often pray in generalities; we should pray with great specificity as we take our needs to God. Praying that God would bless all the missionaries means much but calling missionaries by name and asking God to bless them in specific ways is better.

Fourth, pray consistently. Paul told us to be constant in prayer. We need to go to the Father regularly and often. While we will have many spontaneous prayers throughout the day, a regular time and place for prayer is helpful as well. In a sense, the regular time and place becomes our own prayer room we have dedicated to spend time with the Father. That in itself will encourage you to pray.

Finally, trust God in prayer. He hears, and He cares.

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