Believers and nonbelievers alike experience lack of control resulting in anxiety, denial and fear. The blind optimist chooses to look only on the bright side of things, and the pessimist  anticipates inevitable bad news, always waiting for the other shoe to drop. In truth, the blind optimist will be ill-prepared and surprised by life’s happenings, and the cowardly pessimist dies a thousand deaths. Neither approach is God’s intention or the way to a victorious life.

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Desperate times remind us of the absolute necessity of prayer. Even the secular world recognizes the need for prayer. Think how many times you’ve heard broadcasters deliver the news of a tragedy—a mass shooting, a horrific natural disaster or an athlete who succumbs to trauma during a live sporting event. The person with the mic often calls for prayer. People innately know praying to God, the Creator of the Universe, works. Even Satan knows God has ultimate power over weather, health, finances, government, pandemics and even death!

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Prayer isn’t just for times of crisis. Praying only during trauma is like trying to put gas in your car after you’re sitting empty on a busy interstate. You can make it work if you must, but preparation ahead of time reduces risk and saves heartache. Daily prayer provides that preparation through an active relationship with a faithful, loving God who promises His grace and power will sustain you through good times and bad.

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The Promises of God

God’s way is perfect. He promises peace, confidence and victory no matter how troubled or frightening the world becomes. Philippians 4:6 ESV says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

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The Bible notes many examples of answered prayer. For safety: Paul and Silas (Acts 16: 25–27) and Peter (Acts 12:1–17) were freed from prison when they were persecuted for their faith. For provision: Abraham and Sara (Genesis 17–18), Hannah (1 Samuel 1) and Zechariah (Luke 1) prayed and received children. For health: God heard and answered prayers to heal Jairus’ dying daughter (Mark 5:41–42) and King Hezekiah's illness (2 Kings 20:1–6). For leading others: King Solomon prayed for discernment and wisdom (1 Kings 3:5–10), and King Hezekiah (2 Kings 19:19) prayed that his people be saved from an attacking army.

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Prayer is communicating with God, and it is life-altering. One incredible story of a man who recognized the importance of prayer is written in the book of Daniel. A young Israelite, Daniel, is taken to Babylon after the fall of Jerusalem. He resists Babylon’s wicked beliefs and the King’s rich food and drink, and instead he prays to God three times a day and maintains a strict diet. As a result of prayer, God blesses and protects him, even saving him from certain death in a fiery furnace and in a lion’s den.  

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While not everyone may experience such dramatic interventions from God, He still moves in remarkable ways in His children’s lives. It may be a small or seemingly insignificant thing, such as providing a close parking spot on a rainy day or a financial increase that covers an unexpected car repair bill. We need to recognize and acknowledge His work. 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 ESV says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  

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Understanding and Positioning for Battle

The Bible identifies our Enemy and his forces and outlines how we can overcome evil. Ephesians 6:12–13 NKJV says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

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The Word of God provides the reason for our confidence: Our Heavenly Father is most powerful and promises His followers that they have nothing to fear. 1 John 4:4 NIV says, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”

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This verse calls believers little children from God. But before we have the benefits of being a child of God, we must decide to be one. This is our personal choice, and we have two options—to be a child of light (God) or dark (Satan). There is no middle ground. 1 John 3:10 AMP says, “By this the children of God and the children of the devil are clearly identified: anyone who does not practice righteousness [who does not seek God’s will in thought, action, and purpose] is not of God, nor is the one who does not [unselfishly] love his [believing] brother.”

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The good news is that God has chosen you to be His child. “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son” (Ephesians 1:5–6 NLT).

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God sent Jesus Christ to pave the way for us each to be His child (John 3:16). Accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior adopts you into God’s family (Galatians 4:5–6, Romans 8:14–17), making you an heir to His promise (Ephesians 1:13–14). In John 14:6, Jesus tells His disciples a relationship with Him is the only gateway to Heaven: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me’” (NKJV).

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Our acceptance of Jesus promises us a place in heaven and allows us access to our Heavenly Father and His blessings—one of which is the ability to talk directly to Him through prayer. He also gave His children the Holy Spirit when Jesus left the Earth to be with Him in heaven (John 14:26).

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We Are Not Alone

The person of the Holy Spirit is our friend, advocate, comforter and guide. The Holy Spirit provides us supernatural help to navigate this troubled world. 1 Corinthians 2:13–14 NIV says, “This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” The Holy Spirit equips us to understand God’s Word and to apply it to our everyday lives. Through this relationship and a consistent prayer life, we are no longer tossed around like a seagull caught in a storm. We live in peace and confidence, knowing God is in control.

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Being a child of God requires us to do our part: One is a call to pray. Philippians 4:6–7 ESV says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

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How to Pray

Prayer is talking to and serving God (Luke 2:36–38).We are commanded to pray (Philippians 4:6–7). So, what‘s the best way to pray?

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First, consider who you‘re talking to. As in all relationships, whether speaking to one or more people, we do better when we know and respect the audience. When we pray, our audience is God. He is Holy, righteous, omniscient (all knowing; 1 John 3:20), omnipotent (all powerful; Jeremiah 32:17), omnipresent (present and everywhere at all times; Genesis 17:7) and so much more. He is the Creator of the Universe, rightly reminding Job (and us) that He is in control, even when it looks as if all hope is lost: “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand” (Job 38:4 NIV). God is the reason we’re saved. He sent His son Jesus Christ to provide a way for us to be in relationship with Him, thus He is more than an audience, He is our Father and shows great love and mercy, knowing we are made of dust (Psalms 103:13–14). When we realize the magnitude and benevolence of God it is easy to show Him love and respect.

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Second, look to the Bible’s instructions for how to pray. Jesus taught His disciples to pray in Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:2–4. The Lord’s Prayer shows the steps to pray:

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• Adore and honor God’s righteous position and identity. “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.”;

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• Submit and acknowledge God as Lord of all and above your own will. ”Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven”;

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• Petition or ask for your needs and intercede for other‘s needs. “Give us this day, our daily bread”;

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• Confess your sins—be specific and ask God to forgive you and repent. Turn away from sin and be determined to not repeat sinful behavior (1 John 1:9). ”And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.”;

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• Thank God for His presence and power and for hearing and answering your prayers and for blessings, people and trials, as these will strengthen you. “For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”

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God—The Same Yesterday and Today

God shows incredible love for us, especially when we are at our weakest points. During the pandemic, when alarming death toll numbers haunted the news, all three of my sons—athletic and physically fit young men—were hit with COVID-19 about a day apart. In those first dark hours, as the virus attacked their healthy bodies, fear engulfed me like a tsunami and turned my insides into a vibrating mess. I’d never experienced such fear, even though I’ve been a born-again believer for more than 30 years.

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The what-ifs ran through my head, and at first I was numb and struggled to pray against these lies from the devil, “… casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ …” (2 Corinthians 10:5 NKJV). However, the Holy Spirit was there as my advocate. “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we donot know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26–27 ESV).

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The Word is living, breathed by God, and no matter the circumstance, it offers wisdom, knowledge and understanding. The Holy Spirit directs us and illuminates Scripture, relevant and perfectly timed, to give us powerful truths to pray amid the storm. In the COVID-19 trial, Psalm 91:1–6 NIV comforted me: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ Surely He will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.”

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God surrounded me with His protective wings and just as He did for Paul, the Lord gave me strength despite my weakness. “… ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV).

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Prayer is our opportunity to talk to God, to offer praise and thanksgiving and to ask for help. If we do not ask, we will not receive. God cannot answer unprayed prayers. So we need to pray and ask others to pray with and for us. In my case, my husband and I prayed alone and together, and we asked other believers to pray, too, believing God would hear our prayers. 1 John 5:14–15 ESV says, “And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.”

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I took comfort in praying and being reminded of God’s promises, my Bible tucked beside me in bed when I slept. I filled the house with the Word of God: voices of ministers delivering nonstop Bible-based preaching, and in the wee hours of the night, as I drifted in and out of sleep, a woman of faith read healing Scriptures. Day by day, the virus was destroyed, and my sons each regained his full health. I was blessed, too, by the power of prayer and the Word of God that provided the strength I needed to weather the storm.

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We are not guaranteed the answers we want nor the quickness we desire for a prayer to be answered. However, in Hebrews 4:15–16 ESV, we are told to confidently come to the Lord with our needs, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

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