Please Help Am I praying wrong?

[sterry]

Hello Ladies,

I was raised as a Jehovah Witness and am now a Christian. I pray every night and sometimes during the day. I pray for good times and bad. I pray to talk to my Lord.

I my sister told me that the Lord was not going to answer my prayers and that he did not hear me because:

1) I did not call him Jehovah the way I should address him
2) I began with the Lord's prayers as it is written in the bible I thank the Lord for his son Jesus Christ whom has died for our sins, I THANKED the Lord for the home he provided me, the food he provided me, for my childrens health, for the clothes he provided me, for my spouse being a good father and decent man, that I thank him for everything, for times that are good and bad, for the business he enalbed me to have, for my family. That I thank him for all that he has blessed me with because I will never take for granted the things that I have. I know that he has enabled me to have these things just as he may take them away. And I will still me thankful if I had a roof over my head (whether it was in a shelter) the clothes on my back (whether it was the only pair I had) and the food that I ate, (whether it be bread and water) She stated that these things should not be mentioned when praying.
she also said that it was self righteous if I prayed for a long time.
I am really disheartened as it sounds as if she was stating what I had been doing all these years was wrong.

Then she stated how do I know if it is not Satan who has given you these things. I stated because I am not walking his path. That I live for the Lord. My life is not my own and I give my all to him.

Ladies is this wrong.

 

[Country gal]

I'm really curious about the answer. Sometimes I feel I am sending out requests not praying.

 

[Shimmie]

Angels, God loves you. And because of that, He will never care how you call or pray...there is no 'magic' or mandatory formula neither is there any confusion. Drop all of the fear and the doubts that satan is trying to cloud your minds and hearts with.

God wants you to call upon Him, but just do it in your own special way.

Psalm 86:5 and 7: For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that CALL upon thee.

In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.

Psalm 91:15

He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

Psalm 145:18

The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

Don't worry anymore about getting through to Him. He hears you and His answer to you will always be 'He loves you.'

Just talk to Him and let it go. Just talk.

 

[sterry]

I'm really curious about the answer. Sometimes I feel I am sending out requests not praying.

What I explained to her is I am not asking the Lord for what I need,,,,,I am thanking him for what he has given me.
If you can thank him for food.......why can't you thank him for your home, your health, your family, your transportation your life. My goodness I am thankful. And it dosen't matter the cost or size of this things. There are so many that don't have .....and i pray for them as well. But what is so wrong with being thankful.
Am I just to say ...Lord you know what I am thankful for?

 

[Shimmie]

Hello Ladies,

I was raised as a Jehovah Witness and am now a Christian. I pray every night and sometimes during the day. I pray for good times and bad. I pray to talk to my Lord.

I my sister told me that the Lord was not going to answer my prayers and that he did not hear me because:

1) I did not call him Jehovah the way I should address him
2) I began with the Lord's prayers as it is written in the bible I thank the Lord for his son Jesus Christ whom has died for our sins, I THANKED the Lord for the home he provided me, the food he provided me, for my childrens health, for the clothes he provided me, for my spouse being a good father and decent man, that I thank him for everything, for times that are good and bad, for the business he enalbed me to have, for my family. That I thank him for all that he has blessed me with because I will never take for granted the things that I have. I know that he has enabled me to have these things just as he may take them away. And I will still me thankful if I had a roof over my head (whether it was in a shelter) the clothes on my back (whether it was the only pair I had) and the food that I ate, (whether it be bread and water) She stated that these things should not be mentioned when praying.
she also said that it was self righteous if I prayed for a long time.
I am really disheartened as it sounds as if she was stating what I had been doing all these years was wrong.

Then she stated how do I know if it is not Satan who has given you these things. I stated because I am not walking his path. That I live for the Lord. My life is not my own and I give my all to him.

Ladies is this wrong.

"Terry" your sister is wrong. Oh yes she is wrong. When I first got saved, my sister did the same and even worse to me. She was used of the devil to try and cast doubts into my faith about trusting Jesus. Because she was my sister, I almost believed her....'almost' but God gave me a 'deaf' ear to her mess and an open ear to Him.

Actually, your prayers are quite correct and pleasing to God. And the devil knows this and he is trying to distract you from continuing with this wonderful experience of getting to know Jesus on a very personal and special relationship.

So, keep your faith and watch for many blessings to come your way...to stay.

 

[sterry]

Angels, God loves you. And because of that, He will never care how you call or pray...there is no 'magic' or mandatory formula neither is there any confusion. Drop all of the fear and the doubts that satan is trying to cloud your minds and hearts with.

God wants you to call upon Him, but just do it in your own special way.

Psalm 86:5 and 7: For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that CALL upon thee.

In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.

Psalm 91:15

He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

Psalm 145:18

The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

Don't worry anymore about getting through to Him. He hears you and His answer to you will always be 'He loves you.'

Just talk to Him and let it go. Just talk.

As I am reading this it brings tears to my eyes. I had struggled for many years to move away from my how I was raised as a witness. Now, I know I just want to serve him. To hear her say that I am praying the wrong way aches me.
She says Jehovah is his name. And he will not hear any other name as they are all titles.
I have called apon him as God, Lord, All Mighty, My Father, Jehovah. Does he really ignore.
She states that the prayer in the bible is a "Model" A model I asked? Yes a model of how we should pray but are to substitue "Our Father" with Jehovah. In all my years even as a practicing witness (at seventeen) I was never told this.
Any answers

 

[GodsPromises]

I replied to you via pm sterry but as I was typing this message the Holy Spirit said that someone else needed to hear this as well so I copied and pasted my reply to you here:

I too was raised a JW and now an a Christian so I know what you are going thought like none other.

It has taken me many years to realize that their isn't a right way to pray. There are times when I will pray just talking to the father and then other times when I am on my knees or my face praying crying out to him. God hears all prayers remember that. He hears and he knows all. He want more than the form he wants the relationship with you. He wants you to come to him no matter what. That is what is most important. Remember Jesus got on the Phariasss for having all the right technigques but not the relationship not living right and that is what he is asking of you. Sometimes, we focus on are we doing this right and that right and He's not asking for all of that. HE wants you and you only.

 

[Shimmie]

As I am reading this it brings tears to my eyes. I had struggled for many years to move away from my how I was raised as a witness. Now, I know I just want to serve him. To hear her say that I am praying the wrong way aches me.
She says Jehovah is his name. And he will not hear any other name as they are all titles.
I have called apon him as God, Lord, All Mighty, My Father, Jehovah. Does he really ignore.
She states that the prayer in the bible is a "Model" A model I asked? Yes a model of how we should pray but are to substitue "Our Father" with Jehovah. In all my years even as a practicing witness (at seventeen) I was never told this.
Any answers

"Terry"...here' s the key, "how you were raised.' And you did something well, you took heed to what you were being taught. Now, you are being 're-newed'.

Terry, re-newal takes 'baby-steps'. And you have your 'Daddy', our Father God, standing right there with His arms open wide, saying, Come to Daddy...don't worry if you fall. I'm right here to pick you back up and you in my arms. For I am and will always be your Heavenly Father and your 'Daddy.'

Now, don't allow the enemy to use your sister any further. The thing is, the devil knows that if he can't stop you, he can't stop your sister from soon following you as well. And that's what this is all about. A 'fearful' enemy (the devil) trying to keep you and your family away from 'Jesus.'

{{{ Hugs Angel }}}

 

[belle_reveuse28]

Hi Terry,
It's very hard to let go of the "religous" ways we have grown up and have been woven tightly into our spiritual fabric. God is true to His word and his promise to deliver us from the wiles of the enemy. Even within the church and religious orgs. Not only is he God but he is also your father. His love and care for you are unconditional and your prayers and petitions to Him, as he says in his word, are a fragrant offering. The prayers of his saints are as incense and they bless him. Prayer is communion and having intimate relation with God, it is our lifeline. Like a husband, father, he desires that we have intimacy with him. That we pour out our hearts to him. That we are honest and transparent, laying before him every need, every want, every desire, every wrong, every lust, and every sin so that we can receive his guidance and blessing, and his cleansing. When your prayers and things you may desire in your life aren't in his will, he will tell you NOT condemn you. And he will, by his Spirit, continually conform you through the work of Christ's shead blood on the cross change your heart and make your more like Jesus and in way that be in you that doens't line up with his will, he will encourage change, strengthen you and love you as you go through that process. But he is a gentleman and doesn't force us to do anything. He waits patiently for us and is gracious to us. God does not create the divide between us and Him such that he is far away in heaven sitting on his throne looking down on us, and condemning every wrong thing we do but as a loving Father, he walks and talks with us. The Bible says that he sings over us, that his thoughts towards us are constant and never ending, that they outnumber the grains of sand on all of the beaches of the worlld. The Word says that nothing, not nothing can separate us from the love of God, not heaven nor hell, death nor life, principalities, powers, darkness, angels or devils, nothing can. God is gracious and mercifiul and when you looko up those words in the dictionary, the encompass a compassionate and unending love, one that many of us would take our entire lives to learn to love like that. The Lord wants us to be free in our worship in relaitonship with him. Not bound by man's ideals, or man's way to bind us up and make us captive to lies and their own religious and legalistic ways to earn their salvation. The bible says our salvation cannot be earned, we could never work enough in our entire lives and generations to come, enough to earn God's love and his salvation and the gift of Christ and the work he did on the cross to save us. With allll of that freely given to an undeserving sinful people, why would God then hold us captive and bound to things that dont give us life, that dont show us his favor, his love, his compassion and passion that he has for his children. You are his daughter and he loves to hear your hearts cries, what's in there. He has set you free and given you the freedom to worship him in spirit and in truth. That is a freeing refreshing thing that happens every day. OUr spirits being renewed constantly. Christ said that he came to the world not to condemn the world but to save the world. In all religions of the world, He is the only God who came down off of his throne, who left the perfection of his being, took on the human form, came to this earth, suffered GREATLY beyond what we'll ever expereience in our lives, experienced torture, pain, suffering, betrayal, rejection, abandonment, poverty, condemnation, faced religous legalism, was admonished daily, fwas crucified. The ONLY God who could identify with his people in a way no other ever could so that we would havve a savior and a Lord who truly knew what it's like and he died for us and conquered death hell and the grave allll so that we could be restored to right relationship with him that was lost at the beggining of the foundations of the world when adam and eve sinned in the garden. God, even in the beginning when that happened, had a plan to restore us after the fall, back to that "garden" relationship with him when his creation walked and talked wlith him daily and sin not separated them from HIs love. God's love is truly amazing, it's an unhindered, unconditional love that sees beyond our religious ways and draws us in the love he has and leads us to his truth by his HOly Spirit. Prayer is acknknowleding our need for him and our dependence upon him. There is no formula. Be thankful and give thanks, the Psalms commands almost everytime they begin. Bless the Lord, oh give thanks.. these are the many words written all over the psalms. Giving thanks also shows our dependance upon the Lord, that he in all of his providence is why we have the many blessings that we do. There is a site I visit daily about using discernment, about cults and other religions and it basically talks about the foundations of Christianity. why we believe what we believe. That is an area of theology called Christian apologetics. Scholars and people who have studied the original greek and hebrew and whose daily desire is to find the absolute truth in the word of God and bringing down the lies Satan tells. We should also have a keen understanding of other religions, what their beliefs are. What are the truths in their religon that have been polluted with lies to deceive it's believers. Those things are important to know so that you are strengthened in your belief in the Bible as God's inerrant word of truth, that it contains no lies, that it never contradicts itself. And that any contradictions we find are merely a lack of our understanding and not that God is wishy-washy or that he is inconsistent. Make it your business to find out what other religions believe and the lies contained therein. There is a section in there about Jehovah's Witness and why the religion is false and what makes it a lie. It's important as believers that we know why we believe what we do, so that when the enemy does come, and trust me, he will, we will have girded ourselves in the Truth of the Word and have a strong foundation upon which we can stand. www.letusreason.org check it out daily... REad as much as you can there. It is a church bbased in Hawaii but the pastor is one of the leading Christian apologists talking about the false expressions of christianity even within the church and the lies the enemy has brought in to deceive us. for he know he has but a short time and he wants to deceive as many people as he can.
be blessed.. sorry this was so long...

here is another link: http://www.carm.org/ and http://www.comereason.org/

 

[cece22]

Hello Ladies,

I was raised as a Jehovah Witness and am now a Christian. I pray every night and sometimes during the day. I pray for good times and bad. I pray to talk to my Lord.

I my sister told me that the Lord was not going to answer my prayers and that he did not hear me because:

1) I did not call him Jehovah the way I should address him
2) I began with the Lord's prayers as it is written in the bible I thank the Lord for his son Jesus Christ whom has died for our sins, I THANKED the Lord for the home he provided me, the food he provided me, for my childrens health, for the clothes he provided me, for my spouse being a good father and decent man, that I thank him for everything, for times that are good and bad, for the business he enalbed me to have, for my family. That I thank him for all that he has blessed me with because I will never take for granted the things that I have. I know that he has enabled me to have these things just as he may take them away. And I will still me thankful if I had a roof over my head (whether it was in a shelter) the clothes on my back (whether it was the only pair I had) and the food that I ate, (whether it be bread and water) She stated that these things should not be mentioned when praying.
she also said that it was self righteous if I prayed for a long time.
I am really disheartened as it sounds as if she was stating what I had been doing all these years was wrong.

Then she stated how do I know if it is not Satan who has given you these things. I stated because I am not walking his path. That I live for the Lord. My life is not my own and I give my all to him.

Ladies is this wrong.

Is your sister a baptized JW? Cause what she is saying is really off.

 

[Xavier]

Prayer is talking to the Lord. We have come to believe that true prayer has to be done on are knees, at night, hands folded, eyes closed, etc. This is a common misconception. I pray in the morning, while I am driving to work, in the shower, a night, even sometime when I read some of the posts on LHCF. When I was a baby Christian, I just use to talk to God and it was usually when I was in trouble of going through something or wanted something. I was treating the Lord like a gennie. Now I know the fundamentals of prayer and this is what has worked for me. I praise God first and foremost. I am really bothered by the fact that your sister said that "long prayer" is self serving which is definitely a lie. I have spent 10-15 minutes just praising God at times while in prayer. Exalting him, letting him know how excellent he is, worshipping him, letting him know that he is Alpha and Omega, Jehovah, Omnipotent...and I can go on and on. Then I thanks him for everything which can take all day if I wanted. I thank him for the little things that many take for granted like my health, my limbs, a good nights rest, and productive day, food, clothes on my back and then of course my slavation and sending his son Jesus to die for my sins. Then I continue my prayer by bringing my request forth to him. Whether it is to heal someone, rebuke an evil spirit, deliverance for a friend... I was always told that if you don't know how to pray you can never go wrong with praying God's will for your life or someone else's life. Stay encouraged.

 

[sterry]

Thank you so much ladies.....

You don't know how much this bother me. MY conversation with my sister had me second guessing myself.

This ached me all day. I feel so much better.
I have taken the time to look at the links suggested and will continue to read. Thank you Belle and Lady R


God Bless you ladies!!!