Jesus’ disciples had similar questions. They asked Him to teach them how to pray. Jesus responded, but didn’t give the answer they expected. He said, “Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven . . .”

The secret to prayer is not passion. It’s not summoning more faith. It’s knowing that God is your Father.

Prayer is simply conversation. Watch any five-year-old interact with his parents and you’ll hear lots of conversation. Healthy relationships can’t exist without it. Neither can healthy prayer. Too often we make prayer all about a list of requests. But remember, God is our Father. He wants to spend time with us simply because we’re His kids.

To be sure, God wants us to ask Him for things. Parents want to meet the needs of their children. But prayer is so much more!

To understand prayer, look at conversation. Good conversation is about enjoying the presence of the other person. It’s about getting to know their heart. It’s about asking for wisdom. It’s about sharing life. It’s about pouring out your heart and knowing that someone is listening to everything you say.

All of this and more is wrapped up in prayer. God gives us a stunning promise: As we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us (James 4:8). As we spend time conversing with Him, He will draw closer and closer to us.

Building up intimacy with God leads to requests becoming easier and easier. It flows as naturally as a kid asking daddy for ice cream. But as great as the ice cream is, spending the day with daddy is even better.

Prayer is powerful, conversational and all about relationship, but sometimes you need help. The following ministries connect you with trained facilitators who love prayer and people. Super-charge your prayer life and experience God like never before.

Steps to Freedom in Christ
Freedom Ministry helps clear away the junk keeping you down. A lot of baggage from our past holds us back from enjoying true freedom with God. The wounds we’ve suffered from others, the fears that lurk behind our backs, the sin patterns we’ve inherited from family, the habitual sins we still haven’t kicked—these all can make it hard to connect with God. Clearing this junk out of your “spiritual ears” helps you hear from God anew.

Transformation Prayer Ministry
Explore your soul as God transforms deep-seated pain into peace. So often the pain we feel doesn’t come from the wounds we’ve suffered, but rather from the lies we’ve come to believe about ourselves or God. Through Transformation Prayer Ministry, God can expose these lies, speak His truth into your heart and bring peace to places you’ve never thought possible. When you experience His healing this dramatically, it super-charges your passion for Him.

Prayer Resolution
Perform a systematic soul-cleansing, leaving no stone unturned. If you don’t know where to begin in getting your life right with God, Prayer Resolution can help by starting at the beginning. Two safe, loving people walk with you through your life’s story, bringing every aspect of it before God for Him to heal, restore, soothe, comfort and challenge you into health. It’s not for the faint of heart, but it’s perfect for the poor in spirit.

Prayer Room
If you simply want a safe person to pray with, we’d love to join you. Make an appointment or stop in the Prayer Room on Sunday mornings. 

Kyle Davison Bair is Prayer Ministries Pastor at New Hope Church. He has a passion for people to call on the name of Jesus for direction and seek an authentic culture of prayer in this church.