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Avoid Obstacles to Effective Prayer

James 1:1-8

 

Some of King David’s prayers are recorded in the Psalms. There we read how he praised the Lord, confessed sin, and cried out about his troubles. He also asked God to hear his prayers and not be silent. Psalm 28:1- Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit. 

Psalm 28:2 - Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle. 

 

I think we all want to pray effectively like David. To do that we must avoid certain hindrances, such as;

 

  1. Wavering faith – James 1:6 - But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.  – Doubts about God’s character or dependability diminish our trust in Him. Therefore, we must not allow feelings to dictate what we believe.

 

“For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” I say, “I believe God is going to work this out,” but then I jump at it myself and make my own decision. So often I turn a problem over to the Lord and believe Him, but then the next day I do not believe Him. I decide that nothing has shown up by way of solution, so I will solve it myself. That's where I make my mistake. Such a man is “like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”

 

  1. Wrong Motives – James 4:3 - Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. – Prayers motivated by selfish desires will not receive an affirmative answer. God wants us to pray for His will to be done – not ours. 


1 John 5:14 - And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us: