Editor's note: Enjoy today's devotion written for Devotionals Daily by Alli Patterson, author of Spirit-Led Bible Study.
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My prayers used to sound like I was catching up with one of my old friends over tacos: lots of topics, pretty unfocused (even a little wordy and excessive if I’m honest!). I thought of Jesus as my friend, so my prayers sounded like conversations I’d have with friends — about my job, my issues, my kids, and the world around me. I often repeated the same requests over time, sometimes thoughtlessly.
Don’t get me wrong, I think God is happy when we talk to Him at all. I don’t think He gets tired of hearing from me or you. But I started to feel like my prayers weren’t mattering much. I wondered if I might be one of the people Jesus was talking about when He said,
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. — Matthew 6:7
I became less satisfied with my random, conversational prayers. They felt haphazard — and at worst, a little self-centered.
My prayer life shifted when I began to pause and decide before I spoke what I wanted to say to God. I did that by using five types of prayers I found in Scripture.
These prayers throughout the Bible are powerful and effective. The more I modeled my prayers after them, the more focused, bold, and fruitful my prayers became.
These types of prayer appear again and again and began to help me think through what I’m really saying or asking of God. I often name the type of prayer I’m going to pray, which sharpens my focus and helps my prayers answer the question Jesus asked so many people:
What do you want Me to do for you? — Mark 10:51
Sometimes the answer is — nothing! Sometimes I just want to say how much I love Him and acknowledge His presence in my life. Knowing that has helped me do it more deeply.
1. Praise – When you speak the truth of who God is
I often look out my back windows and see the truth about God through the seasons, the trees, the sky, or the position of the sun. My backyard reminds me of His beauty, faithfulness, power, and goodness. Like the Psalms show me, I turn this kind of observation into prayers of praise to help me remember that God is always at work above my circumstances, like
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom. — Psalm 145:3
- Praise acknowledges God’s sovereignty and prepares your heart for the rest of your conversation with Him by placing you rightly below Him in awe and trust.
2. Thanks – When you express gratitude for what God has done and promises to do
Thanksgiving is more than a polite “thank you.” It is a recognition of God’s provision and promises. For two months, I thanked God for fifteen things every morning before getting out of bed. I thanked Him for my husband beside me, the warm water waiting in my shower, the health of my kids, the bed I was in, the work I get to do, the Dunkin hazelnut brewing in my coffee pot.
This kind of prayer shifted my perspective from what I lack to what I’ve already been given. As Paul wrote,
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. — 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Gratitude cultivates trust in what you cannot yet see. It aligns my heart with God’s track record so I can see more clearly.
And clear eyes are definitely required for the third type of prayer.
3. Confess – When you admit sin and ask for mercy
Confession is a raw and honest conversation, and I’ve found it to be the most intimate kind of prayer. Naming sin humbles me and reminds me of my need for God’s mercy, which Scripture says is new every morning. Real confession isn’t about shame — it’s about godly sorrow that brings change and restoration. David modeled this in Psalm 51:
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love.
Confession clears the path in prayer for the next step: asking God for what you need.
4. Ask (Petition) – When you bring your requests before God
Petition is often what we think of first when we think about prayer. It’s a natural instinct when we recognize God as the One Who Owns It All. Bringing your needs — big or small — before God is an act of trust in Him to respond according to His wisdom. Lately, I’ve been asking God to open the right doors for my son as he prepares for college and to provide the financial means we’ll need. Asking reminds me that God sees and knows what I cannot. Asking is not about dictating terms to God but about expressing dependence on Him as the one above it all.
Jesus encouraged this kind of prayer when He said,
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find. — Matthew 7:7–8
The Spirit can provide for your physical, spiritual, relational, intellectual or financial life. It’s ok to ask! But prayer does not stop at our own requests — but also look to the needs of others in the last kind of prayer.
5. Fight (Intercede) – When you stand in the gap for others
Intercession is fighting in prayer on behalf of someone else. It’s standing in the spiritual gap and asking God to act where you cannot. There was a woman in a group I led who couldn’t get pregnant for thirteen years. After seven days of a group fighting for her with prayer and fasting, she returned six weeks later with a positive pregnancy test! We can use our faith and prayers to fight for God to act in the lives of others! God doesn’t always work this directly — but sometimes He does if we ask!!
Abraham interceded for Sodom (Genesis 18), and Paul repeatedly fought in prayer for churches and individuals. Intercessory prayer partners with God’s heart to fight for healing, justice, and restoration on the earth.
Putting It All Together
These five kinds of prayer — Praise, Thanks, Confess, Ask, and Fight — give us a framework for intentional conversation with God. Some days I pray one; some days I pray all five. Scripture shows real people praying this way, and the message is clear:
God is present, listening, and faithful.
Jesus asked,
What do you want Me to do for you? — Mark 10:51
Sometimes the answer is “just listen to me say thank you.” Sometimes it’s “guide me.” Sometimes it’s “free my family.” Whichever prayer you pray today, naming it can give focus and power to your time with the One who is always listening.
Written for Devotionals Daily by Alli Patterson, author of Spirit-Led Bible Study.
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Your Turn
What do your prayers sound like? Do you have a method while praying? Do you work off a list so you remember to thank God, praise and worship Him, confess the things you should never have done, said, or engaged in? Are you praying for others you love? Get praying! God is listening! ~ Devotionals Daily