Help!: Secrets to Answered Prayer

Help me, Jesus! How many of us say this on a daily basis? I do not mean just say it just to say something, but say it because you actually need some help. When my daughter prays for our food the first words out of her mouth are: “Father, Help My Mother“.  I always say “I need all the help I can get”. She has done this for years to the point that we had a friend over for Thanksgiving last year and asked her to pray over the food. She said, “Father, Help Ms. Garnet“. We laughed about that for days. I did a teaching a few months ago on Secrets to Answered Prayer and I thought I would repost this series with a few updates because we all need help.

Prayer Secret #1. How many of you want to know a secret? Hard to resist, right?  For the next two weeks, I am going to reveal to you a few prayer secrets. During this season many of you have prayed and asked for help with many things including needing more money and taking care of your family. Some have been praying for what seems to be a long, long time and you think God has not heard you or He is not answering you. He wants to help you more than you know. He is not ignoring you.

The first secret is so simple. The answer is; you need to PRAY. I can hear some of you already saying, she has got to be kidding? No, I am very serious. Not everyone falls into this category; however, many times when people say they have prayed all they did was complain, whine, throw a few words into the air, speak doubt and unbelief; and then say they prayed.

A few weeks ago God spoke to me and said, “My people have grown silent, I need them to speak, and speak BOLDLY.” Everything God accomplishes, He accomplishes through speech and He expects us to SPEAK. God is not a silent God. From the beginning of the book of Genesis, God spoke and it was. (Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Philippians 4:6) All through the Word, God commands us to speak, confess and pray.

There is no way to receive answers to our prayers if we do not pray. So how should you pray? Well, first of all, you need to be sure you have positioned yourself to be heard. Are you a born-again believer? Are you in a covenant relationship with Him?  A covenant has to be between two or more parties. God has a part and we have to play in this relationship; therefore the word ‘if’ is necessary for covenant language. If we do our part; God will do His part. This is a sure thing because God made a covenant with Himself, and He cannot lie. Prayer is necessary if we want answers.  So pray and pray BOLDLY. He wants to hear from you. There are a lot of books available on prayer; I highly recommend this one by Lynne Hammond.

Prayer Secret #2. The second secret to answered prayers is to: Pray the Word. Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by Satan and responded by stating, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). The word of God is alive and powerful.  If we want answered prayers we must meditate on the Word daily.  Search the scriptures to see what the Bible says about your situation, get the Word in your heart, and use it when you pray.

The only way God works is through His Word. He moves in line with the Word; just as He has magnified His Word above His name (Psalm 138:2). Always remind God what His Word says about your situation (Isaiah 43:26). If you are sick, remind God that by His stripes you are healed (Isaiah 53:5); if you need finances, remind God that He provides all of your needs (Philippians 4:19).

I remember once I needed my lawn mowed and I did not have a lawnmower or the finances to pay anyone to do it. So I called out to God for help and said, God, your Word says you are like a husband to me (Isaiah 54:5). I did not tell anyone, except God, about my prayer request.  I believed if I had a husband he would mow the lawn. I prayed and left home believing that when I returned the yard would be mowed just as if my husband had done it.   Well, I returned home hours later; in fact, it was dark when I got back home. I went inside and started getting ready for bed when it occurred to me to check the yard. Well, glory to the God, the yard had been nicely mowed.  That was a very long time ago, and I still have no idea who mowed the lawn. I always tell people that an angel did it. I reminded God of His promise and He answered my call for help. I was trusting Him to move on my behalf and He did. I have many other examples of answered prayers; however, this blog space does not allow me to tell you about all of them. God is not only interested in the so-called big things in our lives, He offers help in all situations, even those things which may seem trivial.

There is much wisdom in following what the Word teaches us. Proverbs 4:20-22 tells us:

• Pay attention to what the Bible says.
• Listen carefully to the Word.
• Don’t lose sight of them.
• Let them penetrate deep into your heart.
• These words bring life to those who find them and healing to their whole body.

God is simply waiting on us to ask according to the Word. Pray, and Pray the Word.  He is an ever-present help in times of trouble.

I hope you enjoyed these two secrets to answered prayer. Stay tuned for the final two secrets next week and on Saturday, a continuation of Jesus Who?