WBSG

14
Perspectives

On

Prayer

Perspectives on Prayer Biblical Reference

1. Position yourself for prayer by reading Scripture first Daniel 9:2 (NLT)

2. Follow scriptures lead toward what you should pray for. (If Daniel 9:3 (NLT)
prayer’s the train, make Scripture the rails). Daniel 9:3 (NLT)
Daniel 9:4 (NLT)
3. Pray humbly, recognizing your utter unworthiness before
an all-holy God. Daniel 9:5-6 (NLT)

4. Begin by praising God for His attributes, His greatness and
faithfulness. Let God’s character provide the context for
prayer, so He’s the center of gravity, not you.

5. Confess your sins, taking full responsibility, without
rationalization, spin or self-exemption.

6. Permeate prayer with affirmations of God’s amazing grace Daniel 9:7-11a (NLT)
and your profound gratitude, never asking for what you
deserve, but thanking Him that He’s given you infinitely
better than you deserve.

7. Before bringing your requests, repeatedly affirm God’s Daniel 9:11b-12a (NLT)
worthiness and your unworthiness; never forget who you
are, and Who you’re talking to.

8. Never blame God for sin, It’s consequences or for life’s Daniel 9:12b-14 t
hardships. (NLT)

9. Make requests in light of God’s past acts of faithfulness. Daniel 9:15-16
Rehearse those acts to God, as demonstrated in Scripture, (NLT)
history, and your own personal and family life.

Helpful Scriptures

1. During the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, learned from reading the word of the Lord, as
revealed to Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years.

2. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting…

3. …I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes.

4. I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: O Lord, you are a great and awesome God!
You always fulfill your covenant and keep your promises of unfailing love to those who love
you and obey your commands.

5. But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your
commands and regulations. We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets, who
spoke on your authority to our kings and princes and ancestors and to all the people of the
land.

6. “Lord, you are in the right; but as you see, our faces are covered with shame. This is true
of all of us, including the people of Judah and Jerusalem and all Israel, scattered near and
far, wherever you have driven us because of our disloyalty to you. O Lord, we and our
kings, princes, and ancestors are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.
But the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him.
We have not obeyed the Lord our God, for we have not followed the instructions he gave
us through his servants the prophets. All Israel has disobeyed your instruction and turned
away, refusing to listen to your voice.

7. So now the solemn curses and judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of
God, have been poured down on us because of our sin. You have kept your word and done
to us and our rulers exactly as you warned. Never has there been such a disaster as
happened in Jerusalem. You have kept your word and done to us and our rulers exactly as
you warned.

8. Never has there been such a disaster as happened in Jerusalem. Every curse written
against us in the Law of Moses has come true. Yet we have refused to seek mercy from the
Lord our God by turning from our sins and recognizing his truth. Therefore, the Lord has
brought upon us the disaster he prepared. The Lord our God was right to do all of these
things, for we did not obey him.

9. O Lord our God, you brought lasting honor to your name by rescuing your people from
Egypt in a great display of power. But we have sinned and are full of wickedness. In view of
all your faithful mercies, Lord, please turn your furious anger away from your city
Jerusalem, your holy mountain. All the neighboring nations mock Jerusalem and your
people because of our sins and the sins of our ancestors.

Perspectives on Prayer Biblical Reference

10. Pray for God’s sake, His glory, and His reputation, Daniel 9:17, 19
reminding yourself it’s all about Him, not you. (NLT)

11. Pray with a heartfelt recognition of God’s undeserved Daniel 9:18
grace on behalf of you and others. (NLT)

12. God hears our prayers and starts responding to them Daniel 9:21-23
(when we pray with Daniel’s attitude and perspective) before (NLT)
we can see results, and even when we can’t see results at all.

13. God deploys angels on missions in response to humble, Daniel 10:12
biblically based, God-centered prayers. (NLT)

14. Prayer mobilizes righteous angels, who engage in intense Daniel 10:
turf warfare against fallen angels, with kingdom claims at 13-14, 20-21
stake. Answers to prayer may be hastened or delayed as a
result of this warfare. (NLT)

Helpful Scriptures

10. O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead. For your own sake, Lord, smile
again on your desolate sanctuary…O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and act! For
your own sake, do not delay, O my God, for your people and your city bear your name.

11. O my God, lean down and listen to me. Open your eyes and see our despair.
See how your city, the city that bears your name, lies in ruins. We make this plea, not
because we deserve help, but because of your mercy.

12. As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at
the time of the evening sacrifice. He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you
insight and understanding. The moment you began praying, a command was given.
And now I am here to tell you what it was, for you are very precious to God. Listen carefully
so that you can understand the meaning of your vision.

13. Then he said, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for
understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in
heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer.

14. But for twenty-one days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way.
Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit
prince of the kingdom of Persia. Now I am here to explain what will happen to your people
in the future, for this vision concerns a time yet to come.” He replied, Do you know why I
have come? Soon I must return to fight against the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia,
and after that the spirit prince of the kingdom of Greece will come. Meanwhile, I will tell
you what is written in the Book of Truth. No one helps me against these spirit princes
except Michael, your spirit prince.

Summary

Prayer isn’t passive, it’s active. It’s really doing something.
Prayer isn’t the least we can do, it’s the most.

Prayer is supernatural. It’s reaching out of the visible world into the unseen world,
and tapping into powers beyond this dimension.

(Prayer picks fights with demons—and empowers righteous angels to win those fights.)
“Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,

against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12).

Prayer is never secondary, it’s always primary. It’s not the last recourse, when options run
out, it’s the first and best recourse. Prayer is the central work which causes all other work
to bear fruit. (No prayer, no power.) “Therefore put on the whole armor of God...take the

sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all
kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for
all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me

so that I will fearlessly make known the gospel.... Pray that I may declare it fearlessly”
(Eph. 6:13, 17, 18-20).

God’s greatest works, accomplished through prayer, are often invisible to us for now.
(What’s visible to us, except in rare moments of clarity, are not God’s greatest works.)

We pray now in faith, believing our prayers are making an eternal difference;
we anticipate heaven, where we’ll learn God’s breath-taking answers to our prayers,

including many that seemed unheard and ignored.

There is no greater ministry, no higher calling, no better investment than prayer.
(It’s not just right, it’s smart.)

Prayer is trusting God that He can accomplish more when I’m on my knees than I can
accomplish on my feet.