Why Pray The Bible
Four reasons to pray Scripture
1. Praying for the right things
While there are many reasons to pray the Bible, the biggest might be in the "what we pray for". If left to myself, without some guidance, my focus will always become narrow. Without God speaking to me in the Word as I pray, I can get into the habit of one-dimensional prayer that doesn't think about God's priorities. This is not to say I'm praying badly or wrong, but there is so much more.
The Bible is all about God and God's movement toward us in Jesus - the victory of Jesus over sin and death. The Bible is God talking to his children about all he is for us.
If we look at The Lord's Prayer, we see a prayer structure that has diverse and important elements. And this is how Jesus said his disciples should pray. So, hopefully we're not ignoring this structure as we pray. But really, is this the way you pray? Praying the Bible helps us stay on target.
2. Praying with the right disposition
Praying Scripture correctly will keep my attitude in check. It's very easy to forget that God is God and that God's agenda is better than my agenda and that God often works in ways that I simply don't understand.
If I'm not continually thinking about God's sovereignty as I should, I can easily start praying with a proud and demanding attitude. Humility is difficult and Scripture - when we read carefully - will leave no doubt as to God's power and purpose and care. We must always pray with the right disposition.
3. Praying in response to God's voice
The Bible is God speaking to us and praying the Bible is responding to what God is saying.
Our ability to walk by the Spirit means we function while listening and responding to what God has for us. And Scripture is the primary source of God's voice.
4. Improve your Bible reading
When we read the Bible with a purpose, we are not simply reading words that can easily be boring. When you read knowing that it's important to pull out specific ideas, you'll be looking for them.
Too often I've read the Bible wanting something magical to happen without being engaged. That's not how this works. But it's difficult to focus if we don't know what we're looking for. Among the many things we can look for in the passage are:
attributes of God (sovereignty, love, patience, etc.)
the gospel (overtly or images of)
how we align with the passage (how we might confess our need or repent of wrong)
how we might rejoice in what this passage means for sinner
Pulling key concepts out of Scripture will give us keys to our praying.
If we want a conversation with Jesus, shouldn't we be talking to him as he is talking to us?
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