Bible – The Bible Society of Lesotho

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

Prayer is a vital aspect of the Christian faith, serving as a direct line of communication with God. The Bible offers numerous verses that can guide and inspire us in our prayer life. Here are seven Bible verses that can help you to pray:

1. Matthew 6:9-13

“This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’”

The Lord’s Prayer, provides a perfect model for prayer. It includes elements of praise, submission to God’s will, requests for daily needs, forgiveness, and guidance. Using this structure can help us cover all aspects of our spiritual life in prayer.

2. Philippians 4:6

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

You are encouraged to turn your worries into prayers. This verse emphasizes importance of approaching God with your needs and anxieties, coupled with a heart of gratitude. This verse reminds you that prayer is a means to relieve anxiety and to trust in God’s provision.

3. 1 Thessalonians 5:16

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Praying continually doesn’t mean being on our knees all day but maintaining a constant awareness of God’s presence and turning to Him throughout our day. It encourages an attitude of gratitude and joy in all circumstances.

4. James 5:16

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

James 5:16 emphasizes the power of communal prayer and confession. It encourages us to support each other through prayer and to recognize the importance of a righteous person’s prayer. You are encouraged to seek out prayer partners and to be diligent in your intercessions for others.

5. Romans 8:26

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

You can find comfort in knowing that the Holy Spirit assists you in your prayers, especially when you are uncertain about what to pray for. The Spirit’s intercession ensures that your prayers align with God’s will, providing a deeper connection in your communication with God.

6. Matthew 7:7-8

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Jesus assures you that your earnest seeking and asking will not go unanswered. This promise can bolster your confidence in approaching God with your needs and desires, knowing that He listens and responds.

7. 1 John 5:14-15

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

God is attentive to your prayers. It highlights the importance of aligning your requests with His will, giving you confidence that your prayers are heard and will be answered in accordance with His divine plan.

Conclusion

Prayer is a powerful and essential practice in the Christian life. These seven Bible verses offer guidance, encouragement, and assurance in our prayer journey. By meditating on and incorporating these scriptures into your prayer life, you can deepen your relationship with God, approach Him with confidence, and experience the transformative power of prayer.

Judging Others

(Luke 6.37Luke 38Luke 41Luke 42)

1 Don't condemn others, and God won't condemn you. 2 God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them.

3 You can see the speck in your friend's eye, but you don't notice the log in your own eye. 4 How can you say, “My friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you don't see the log in your own eye? 5 You're nothing but show-offs! First, take the log out of your own eye; then you can see how to take the speck out of your friend's eye.

6 Don't give to dogs what belongs to God. They will only turn and attack you. Don't throw pearls down in front of pigs. They will trample all over them.

Ask, Search, Knock

(Luke 11.9-13)

7 Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you. 8 Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And the door will be opened for everyone who knocks.

9 Would any of you give your hungry child a stone, if the child asked for some bread? 10 Would you give your child a snake if the child asked for a fish? 11 As bad as you are, you still know how to give good gifts to your children. But your heavenly Father is even more ready to give good things to people who ask.

12 Treat others as you want them to treat you. This is what the Law and the Prophets are all about.

The Narrow Gate

(Luke 13.24)

13 Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate. 14 But the gate to life is very narrow. The road that leads there is so hard to follow that only a few people find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

(Luke 6.43-45)

15 Watch out for false prophets! They dress up like sheep, but inside they are wolves who have come to attack you. 16 You can tell what they are by what they do. No one picks grapes or figs from thornbushes. 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. 19 Every tree producing bad fruit will be chopped down and burned. 20 You can tell who the false prophets are by their deeds.

A Warning

(Luke 13.26Luke 27)

21 Not everyone who calls me their Lord will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only the ones who obey my Father in heaven will get in. 22 On the day of judgment many will call me their Lord. They will say, “We preached in your name, and in your name we forced out demons and worked many miracles.” 23 But I will tell them, “I will have nothing to do with you! Get out of my sight, you evil people!”

Two Builders

(Luke 6.47-49)

24 Anyone who hears and obeys these teachings of mine is like a wise person who built a house on solid rock. 25 Rain poured down, rivers flooded, and winds beat against that house. But it was built on solid rock, and so it did not fall.

26 Anyone who hears my teachings and doesn't obey them is like a foolish person who built a house on sand. 27 Rain poured down, rivers flooded, and the winds blew and beat against that house. Finally, it fell with a crash.

28 When Jesus finished speaking, the crowds were surprised at his teaching. 29 He taught them like someone with authority, and not like their teachers of the Law of Moses.

1 Judge not, that ye be not iudged. 2 Eor with what iudgement ye iudge, ye shall be iudged, and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you againe. 3 And why seest thou the mote, that is in thy brothers eye, and perceiuest not the beame that is in thine owne eye? 4 Or howe sayest thou to thy brother, Suffer me to cast out the mote out of thine eye, and beholde, a beame is in thine owne eye? 5 Hypocrite, first cast out that beame out of thine owne eye, and then shalt thou see clearely to cast out the mote out of thy brothers eye. 6 Giue ye not that which is holy, to dogges, neither cast ye your pearles before swine, lest they treade them vnder their feete, and turning againe, all to rent you. 7 Aske, and it shall be giuen you: seeke, and ye shall finde: knocke, and it shall be opened vnto you. 8 For whosoeuer asketh, receiueth: and he, that seeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. 9 For what man is there among you, which if his sonne aske him bread, woulde giue him a stone? 10 Or if he aske fish, wil he giue him a serpent? 11 If ye then, which are euill, can giue to your children good giftes, howe much more shall your Father which is in heauen, giue good thinges to them that aske him? 12 Therefore whatsoeuer ye woulde that men should doe to you, euen so doe ye to them: for this is the Lawe and the Prophets. 13 Enter in at the streight gate: for it is the wide gate, and broade way that leadeth to destruction: and many there be which goe in thereat, 14 Because the gate is streight, and the way narowe that leadeth vnto life, and fewe there be that finde it. 15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you, in sheepes clothing, but inwardly they are rauening wolues. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruites. Doe men gather grapes of thornes? or figges of thistles? 17 So euery good tree bringeth foorth good fruite, and a corrupt tree bringeth forth euill fruite. 18 A good tree can not bring forth euil fruite: neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruite. 19 Euery tree that bringeth not forth good fruite, is hewen downe, and cast into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruites ye shall knowe them. 21 Not euery one that sayeth vnto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdome of heauen, but he that doeth my Fathers will which is in heauen. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, haue we not by thy Name prophecied? and by thy name cast out deuils? and by thy name done many great workes? 23 And then will I professe to them, I neuer knewe you: depart from me, ye that worke iniquitie. 24 Whosoeuer then heareth of mee these words, and doeth the same, I will liken him to a wise man, which hath builded his house on a rock: 25 And the raine fell, and the floods came, and the windes blewe, and beat vpon that house, and it fell not: for it was grounded on a rocke. 26 But whosoeuer heareth these my wordes, and doeth them not, shall be likened vnto a foolish man, which hath builded his house vpon the sand: 27 And the raine fell, and the floods came, and the windes blewe, and beat vpon that house, and it fell, and the fall thereof was great. 28 And it came to passe, when Iesus had ended these wordes, the people were astonied at his doctrine. 29 For he taught them as one hauing authoritie, and not as the Scribes.