Effective Prayer – SS1 Christian Religious Studies Lesson Note (Third Term)

Prayer is the act of communicating and interacting with God.

Behavioural objectives

1. Define prayer and explain why it is a two-way process.
2. Explain why we must forgive others before we pray.
3. State what Jesus taught about how not to pray in Matthew 6:5-8.
4. List the requests in Jesus’ template for prayer.
5. Explain why the template should not be repeated word for word.

What is prayer?

Prayer is a means of communicating with God and relating with him as a child relates with a father.

• Prayer: a means of communicating with God.
• Interaction: prayer is also a way of relating with God, as a child relates with a father.
• Communication: the passing of a message from a sender to a receiver, with feedback.
• Effective prayer: prayer offered the way Jesus taught, which God hears and answers.

Why is prayer a two-way process?

Prayer is a two-way process because communication is not complete until the receiver responds.

• Two-way: the person who prays speaks, and God answers.
• Living God: God is living, so he hears what we say to him.
• Willing to respond: God is ready to answer man’s prayer.
• Common fault: in many cases we pray and leave without waiting for an answer.

How does prayer compare with communication?

Each part of ordinary communication has a matching part in prayer.

What should a person who prays do?

1. Speak to God sincerely.
2. Pause after speaking.
3. Wait for God’s answer.
4. Accept his answer.

Why must we forgive before we pray?

We must forgive before we pray because forgiving others opens the way to receiving forgiveness from God.

• Earlier topic: forgiveness is one of the requirements for Christian living studied earlier in the scheme.
• Gateway: forgiving others opens the way to receiving forgiveness from God.
• Loss: when we refuse to forgive, we deprive ourselves of forgiveness from our heavenly Father.
• If we forgive: Jesus said our Father in heaven will also forgive our wrongs (Matthew 6:14).
• If we do not forgive: Jesus said our Father in heaven will not forgive the wrongs we do (Matthew 6:15).
• Rule: when we stand to pray, we should forgive anyone we have something against (Mark 11:25).
• Result of ignoring the rule: prayer offered with an unforgiving heart loses its value before God.

What did Jesus teach about how to pray?

Jesus gave classic teaching on prayer in Matthew 6:5-15, telling people how to pray to their Father in heaven.

• Source: Matthew 6:5-15, part of the Sermon on the Mount.
• Audience: the people who listened to him, including his disciples.
• Hypocrite: a person who pretends to be good or holy to impress others.
• Synagogue: the Jewish place of worship and teaching.

How should we not pray? (Matthew 6:5-8)

Jesus taught that we should not pray to show off and should not repeat empty words.

• Do not show off: hypocrites love to stand in the synagogues and on street corners and pray loudly so that people see them.
• Their reward: Jesus said being seen by people is all the reward they will get.
• Do not repeat empty words: people who do not know God say the same things again and again.
• Wrong belief: they think their god will hear them if they say it enough.

How should we pray? (Matthew 6:6-8)

Jesus taught that we should pray in private to our Father, who knows our needs.

• Go into your room: pray in a private place and close the door.
• Pray to your Father: God is present in the private place.
• God sees in private: he sees what is done in secret and will reward you.
• God knows your needs: your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

What are the right and wrong ways to pray?

The table sets the wrong ways Jesus warned against beside the right ways he taught.

What is Jesus’ template for prayer?

Jesus’ template for prayer is a pattern for praying, found in Matthew 6:9-13, and not a fixed text.

• Template: a pattern or guide to follow.
• Where found: Matthew 6:9-13.
• Beginning: it opens with “Our Father in heaven”.
• Also called: the Lord’s Prayer, because Jesus taught it to his disciples.

What are the requests in the template?

The template contains six requests.

1. Honour God’s name: we pray that his name will always be kept holy.
2. God’s kingdom: we pray that his kingdom will come.
3. God’s will: we pray that what he wants will be done on earth, as in heaven.
4. Daily needs: we ask for the food we need for today.
5. Forgiveness: we ask God to forgive our sins, just as we have forgiven those who wronged us.
6. Protection: we ask not to be tempted and to be saved from the Evil One.

Why should the template not be repeated word for word?

The template should not be recited word for word because it is a guide, and empty repetition does not express the heart.

• It is a guide: it shows the kind of things to include when we pray.
• Jesus warned against empty repetition: he said not to say the same things again and again.
• God wants sincere prayer: words recited without thought do not express what is in our hearts.
• Our own words: we can follow the pattern and say it in our own words.

What are the other conditions for effective prayer?

The Bible gives four more conditions for effective prayer: faith, righteous living, asking according to God’s will, and persistence.

• Faith: believe that God will answer (Mark 11:24).
• Righteous living: the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16).
• God’s will: God hears us when we ask according to his will (1 John 5:14).
• Persistence: Jesus taught that we should always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1).

Evaluation

1. What is prayer?
2. Why is prayer described as a two-way process?
3. Why should we forgive others before we pray?
4. According to Jesus in Matthew 6:5-8, how should we not pray?
5. Why should Jesus’ template for prayer not be repeated word for word?

Assignment

1. Read Matthew 6:5-15. In your own words, write a short paragraph on what Jesus taught about how to pray.