The Importance of Prayer: 7 Reasons Why We Should Pray

In this article, we will dig deep into God’s Word and answer why is prayer important. These 7 reasons will bring clarity and show you the importance of prayer for believers.

Have you ever wondered why we should pray? Or why it’s important to our walk with God? Prayer is an important part of the Christian life, and it is a way for us to pour out our hearts to God as His children. 

When we pray, we are communicating with God; we are worshipping God, and also let Him know what we would like from Him. 

We are to pray all the time and not only when we need something from God. He is our Father and our joy should be to come before Him in awe, and tell Him how much we love and adore Him. 

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; – Philippians 4:6

The Importance of Prayer

Prayer is seen all throughout scripture. There isn’t a book in the Bible doesn’t mention someone calling on the name of the Lord. 

In the four gospels, Jesus is seen many times hiding away to pray, and he even taught His disciples about prayer. He wanted them to learn how to pray the right way. (Matthew 6:9-13) Jesus knew the power and importance of prayer and wanted his disciples to understand this as well. 

In Mark 11:24, He said that we should believe that we have received the thing for which we have prayed.

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.- Mark 11:24

This means that when we pray, it is important to believe that you have received your prayer request. 

God answers prayer, and sometimes it takes time, but that does not mean that He has not answered. If we are patient, we will see the answers to our prayers. 

Now, let’s look at 5 reasons prayer is important in the life of a Christian. 

Why is Prayer Important 

1 . Prayer Is Important Because It Provides Solutions

When we are in trouble, we pray because we want God to intervene on our behalf. We want Him to provide us with a solution to our problem.

 Being children of God does not exempt us from trials and challenges in life, but through prayer, we can invite God to help us deal with them. 

Jesus said that in this world we would have trouble, but we should take heart because He has overcome the world (John 16:33). This is God’s promise to help us whenever we encounter problems in our daily lives. 

When we pray for others, we also invite God into their situations so that He can bring His will to pass. We should always pray for ourselves and others, keeping in mind that we are praying for solutions to our situations so that we can receive breakthroughs. 

2. Prayer Is Important Because It Helps Us Overcome Temptation

We are to watch and pray so that we will not fall into temptation because our spirits are willing, but our flesh is weak. 

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. – Matthew 26:41

Sometimes we get disappointed in ourselves because of giving in to the temptation to do things we are not proud of. What we probably don’t always remember is that we can pray for ourselves beforehand so that when temptation comes knocking, we can overcome it and avoid sin. 

This is what Paul talks about when he tells us to put on the full armor of God. (Ephesians 6:10-18)

That we may be able to stand. We do this praying! 

When we pray before leaving home for work, dates, school, events, etc., we strengthen our spirits to avoid temptations and the fiery darts of the enemy.  

3. Prayer Is Important Because It’s Obedience to God

Ephesians 6:18 tells us to pray on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests for the Lord’s people.

 When we pray we are obeying God’s command to pray for everything and everyone we can think about in our surroundings and around the world. 

Prayer is part of our walk with God and it enables us to go before God with our needs and those of others. There are times that others cannot pray for themselves and our prayers give them the breakthroughs they need. (This is called intercession…you can learn more about the different types of prayer here)

Daniel was a man of prayer. One time, the king passed a decree that anyone found calling on any god or human being other than the king would be thrown into the lion’s den. 

Daniel prayed to God and ask for help (Daniel 6:11). When word got to the king that Daniel had disobeyed his decree, he had him thrown into the den of lions. Daniel survived because God sent His angel to shut the mouths of the lions. God had come to Daniel’s rescue because he prayed for help. 

This is just one of many stories in scripture, not to mention tons of testimonies from Christians around the world that have experienced God answering their prayer. 

Pray Is Important Because We Communicate With God

When we pray to God, we are communicating with Him and this is how we build our relationship with Him. Just like our earthly relationship. Communication is vital for the health and growth of a relationship. 

 The outstanding thing is because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we have permission to approach His throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16). 

We can talk to God anytime that we want to open our hearts to Him, and trust that He will respond to our prayers with His love and grace. Praise God!!

As much as we pray to God when we go to our prayer closets, we can also talk to Him anytime. There is no set time when we can talk to Him. His door is always open day and night, and we can tell Him anything.

5. Pray Is Important Because We Gain Wisdom

James 1:5 tells us that if we lack wisdom, we should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault. Through prayer, we access God’s wisdom, which is unlike that of the world. It comes to us through the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:13) and we know things we would otherwise not know with our human minds. 

We need God’s wisdom to navigate the issues we face in life, many of which are beyond the understanding of the human mind. With God’s divine wisdom, we can gain spiritual insight into situations and know how to deal with them effectively. God imparts His wisdom to us when we pray and ask for it. 

6. Prayer Is Important Because It Changes Our Perspective.

Many times we will enter prayer with certain emotions and feelings towards a situation and/or person. Prayer has the incredible ability to bring us into God’s presence and change our perspective on those situations and people.

It’s like we go into prayer with something on our glasses. We see everything through those glasses, including that ugly spot. When we enter God’s presence, it’s like He cleans our glasses so we can see clearly and see what He sees. 

This is painted beautifully in Psalm 73, when Asaph is having a hard time understanding why the wicked prosper. He even says in vain he has kept his heart pure. Asaph is having a bad day! But tucked into all of that frustration is a little verse…

till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. – Psalm 73:17

When Asaph entered the presence of God everything shifts for him as he sees what God sees! Then the rest of the psalm changes its tune from Asaph’s revelation. (read the whole psalm here)

This is exactly the we need prayer. Prayer is necessary because it helps Christians to be able to see what God sees. 

7. Prayer Is Important Because It Allows Us to Hear His Voice.

I mention this in my What Does It Mean to Wait On The Lord, but I believe it’s worth saying again. Prayer is about communication and that communication draws us closer to Him.

If you are 50 feet away from a friend who is talking to you in their normal talking voice. You won’t be able to hear them, well or not at all. But if you are only a foot away from them you can hear them clearly.

This is how prayer works. It brings you closer to Jesus so that you can hear Him more clearly.

This doesn’t just mean you talk the entire time in prayer, this means you give Him room to speak while in His presence. He may highlight a verse to you or show you something. (For more ways he speaks…check out: 11 Ways We Can Hear God)

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We Need to Pray

Prayer is important and the above seven reasons highlight this truth. To learn how to pray the right way, learn the principles of prayer from the Word of God. 

We can be sure that God will always answer our prayers, and if there are any hindrances, we can identify them when we read the Bible. 

To have a steady walk with the Lord, prayer has to become a daily practice for us so that we can always know His will for our lives. When we pray, things definitely change! 

If you would like you, can leave me a comment below and share what God is doing in your life. I would love to know!