Man of Prayer: Specific Requests

            What was the last request you said in your prayers? Your request may have been someone who is sick, someone who has lost a loved one or someone who is struggling with sin. There are three prayer requests we sometimes forget to pray to God.

            The first request is praying for our enemies. Matthew 5:44 says, “…love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” It does seem weird to pray for people who would oppress and harm you. Yet, God still wants us to make a request to him about our enemies in order to learn to love them. We are not better or important as much as they are not better or important than us. Do not forget to pray about your enemies.

            The second request is believing our prayers. Matthew 21:22 says, “And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” How often do we have a lack of faith while making requests to God? When we are making a petition to God, it is like a formal written request telling God this is what I desire to happen. God wants us to have faith and be confident in order to receive what we desire. Do not forget to pray about having more confidence in God.

            The third request is avoiding temptation. Matthew 26:41 says, “Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” Our spirit and flesh will battle each other every day when we strongly want something. As long as we keep making requests to God to avoid temptations, our spirit will not be defeated by the desires of our flesh. Do not forget to pray about being on the alert for our temptations.

            It might be hard to love an enemy when they hurt you. It might be hard to rely on God if it feels like he has not been faithful to you. It might be hard to resist your temptations when you feel like you want to give up. I want you to write down specific areas within these requests and pray to God for a better outcome of these areas. Let your requests be known to God!