Jesus' Pattern of PrayerI was curious as to why the followers of Jesus might have asked him to teach them how to pray. I spent some time looking at what the Bible tells us about the prayer life of Jesus and what I found encouraged, challenged and inspired me.

Jesus. . .

  1. prayed on special occasions
  2. prayed in everyday circumstances
  3. prayed when he was alone
  4. prayed when he was with others
  5. prayed for himself
  6. prayed for others
  7. told stories about prayer
  8. taught lessons about prayer
  9. gave his followers a template for prayer
  10. prayed when things were great
  11. prayed when times were stressful
  12. prayed in conjunction with his miracles
  13. prayed spontaneously
  14. prayed in nature
  15. prayed in buildings
  16. could pray both like a sprinter and like a long distance runner
  17. prayed in intimate conversation with his Father

Teach me to pray

Now wonder they asked them to teach them how to pray.

Reading the following scripture passages in connection with the prayer life of Jesus made me want to develop a life habit like his.

Take a look at some of them. Bookmark this post to come back for a closer look, copy and paste them into your word processor and save the file, copy and print them.

Examining the prayer life of Jesus

Matthew 6:5-8; Matthew 6:9-13; Matthew 7:7-12; Matthew 11:25; Matthew 14:22-23; Matthew 18:19-20; Matthew 26:26-28; Matthew 26:39-46; Matthew 27:46

Mark 1:35-37; Mark 7:32-37; Mark 8:6; Mark 10:13-16; Mark 11:22-26
Mark 14:32-42

Luke 3:21-22; Luke 5:12-16; Luke 6:12-13; Luke 9:18; Luke 9:28-35; Luke 10:17-21; Luke 11:1; Luke 18:1-8; Luke 18:9-14; Luke 22:31-34; Luke 23:34; Luke 23:46; Luke 24:13-35

John 6:11; John 11:41-42; John 12:20-28; John 14:13-14; John 17

“Lord Jesus, the desire of my heart is pray like you. I want to know the Father the way you do. I long for the life giving presence of the Spirit. I want to know better how to talk with you, the Father and the Spirit. Please teach me your pattern of prayer and develop a rhythm of prayer in me.”

Grace and Peace,
Terry

Join the conversation: What is it about the payer habit of Jesus that stands out the most to you? How would you write out your request for God to develop a life habit of prayer in you?

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Filed under: Life Habits

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