How David Prayed

"Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said:" II Samuel 7:18a

Lately I have been conscious of my prayer life and aware of some glaring inconsistencies between what I want and plan to do and actually end up doing, when it comes to prayer.

I have come to believe over the years that my practice of praying must include spontaneous prayer, what I call Godtalk and specific appointments to pray about specific things.

David is a good model of prayer because after all "David was a man after God's own heart", right? David prays spontaneously, has an ongoing, open conversation with God (Godtalk), and prays by appointment about specifics. He wants to know God's heart and to please and follow Him.

In the verses before and after II Samuel 7:18a, we see some reasons why God's heart was accessed by David. I will list the reasons and you can make the appropriate applications. 1) David takes counsel from the prophet Nathan. 2) David sat before the Lord and shared openly. 3) David first humbly and transparently described himself. 4) David counted His blessings. 5) David surrendered to God's will. 6) David exalted God. 7) David claimed God's promises. 8) David exalted God again. 9) David asks for God's continued blessing. 10) David thanks God. 11) David lives victoriously.

Quite a list huh? No wonder God says that David is after His heart. We can learn from David's discipline, faith, humility and obedience. Today, have an open-ended talk with God. Also, pray spontaneously as the Spirit leads and make an appointment to sit before the Lord and go through the list like David did with God.

We too often want victory without the preparation and the battle. Isn't gonna happen. Pursue God's heart in prayer and He will take care of the rest.

Prayerfully Yours,
Pastor Fred

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