But prayer is a means of communion with God. Prayer is used by the Lord to exert His power and influence. Change can come about by the intercession of the saints. The devil and his hordes realize that Spirit-filled prayers are considerable weapons that do the most serious damage. For these reasons, prayer must be cultivated in the believer’s life. It must become a way of life.

The obvious question then is, “how should we pray?” This is an age-old question, and as far as human records go, it was first recorded as a question put to Jesus by His disciples, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples” (Luke 11:1). The answer our Lord gave was not a clinic or seminar on prayer. Rather, it was a basic overview of prayer. But its simple and common flavor ought not to fool you into thinking that the Jesus’ words didn’t get to the heart of prayer. His words are exquisitely rich and express the essence of prayer. Mountainous volumes have been written on prayer, but Jesus gives us the greatest lesson on prayer using few words.

 

The Lord’s Definition of Prayer

The prayer that Jesus taught recorded in the Sermon on the Mount and in Luke 11 is called the The Lord’s Prayer. But Jesus did not expect this prayer to be recited by Christians. Some believe the prayer was meant to be a model prayer. They suggest that the prayer outlines the different segments of prayer. Acronyms have been designed to outline the prayer. For example, one acronym is ACTS. A is for adoration because Jesus begins the prayer with worship. C is for confession. T is for thanksgiving, while S is for supplication.