Prayer is a way for someone like you or me to communicate with God, to connect with God. Often prayer helps God-followers, and God-believers to get through tough times, and receive comfort and peace, or guidance and direction when they need it.
But how does prayer bring us closer to God?
Prayer is a sacred conversation, a moment of communion with God. As we speak to God, He listens. During prayer we open our hearts to God’s presence, allowing His love and wisdom to permeate our being. Prayer nurtures our spiritual growth, strengthens our faith, and deepens our relationship with God, drawing us closer to Him.
In this sacred interchange, prayer is more than a mere recitation of words or presentation of requests; it is an intimate dialogue, a heart-to-heart conversation with God.
It is in these precious moments of vulnerability and openness that we lay bare our innermost thoughts, fears, and desires, fostering a profound connection with God and, in turn, drawing us ever closer to His divine embrace.
In this article, I seek to explore this spiritual query, delving into the essence of prayer and its transformative power in nurturing a deeper, more intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father.
I invite you to share any questions you might have about our faith and in the comments below. We want to hear about your prayer journey with God. Keep on praying!
Does Prayer Bring Us Closer To God?
If you’re talking with the Creator, and also listening for what God has to say back to you, then you will naturally grow closer to God over time. Allow yourself to see the many ways that you can grow deeper in your relationship with God through prayer.
How Prayer Brings Us Closer To God
Prayer can bring you closer to God in a number of ways. As you pray to God, prayer can provide answers for you and your life, offer direction, give you strength, accept God’s will for your life, and grow your compassion and empathy.
Let’s take a closer look!
Prayer Provides Answers
One of the biggest reasons you pray to God is to get answers to the questions you are asking, like, “God, what am I supposed to do now?” Why would you go to God in prayer if you did not trust that He would respond to you?
As you seek answers in prayer, God will meet you in those moments. He might answer you directly, or more likely, God will give you an answer through scripture or your circumstances. Isn’t it a blessing to know that you can grow closer to a God who hears you when you pray, and answers you as well?
Prayer Offers Direction
I know when I have prayed for direction, I have always received guidance. It may not have looked like I thought it would, but I didn’t know what my next step was, as long as I prayed and trusted God.
That’s not to say it was easy; it wasn’t. In fact, trusting God for direction in my life has been quite challenging. But, as I’ve prayed for direction, I’ve grown closer to God because I’ve had to trust Him. If I hadn’t prayed, I’m fairly certain I would not have had good guidance on my own.
Prayer Gives Strength
As the old Sunday school song goes, “When I am weak, He is strong.” Being a human is to be in a state of weakness at different points in life. You know what I mean. You’ve faced a scenario that was bigger than you, or seemed more than you could handle.
You needed strength, so you prayed to God.
Prayer can give you strength just in the sense that you are turning over a big worry or concern to Someone bigger than you. You are trusting God to help you through this situation. You are acknowledging that you are weak and you need God’s strength.
Whenever I have admitted my weakness, God has met me in His strength. Continue to pray and you can grow stronger through God.
Prayer Helps You Accept God’s Will
God is God and you are not, which means that oftentimes, what God wants for you may not match up with what you think is best for your life. As you pray to God and listen for God, His will can be revealed to you. His will for your direction in life, or the next step in your journey.
Praying to God brings you closer to Him and allows you to more readily accept God’s will without arguing about it, or fighting against Him. Hear this wisdom from the Prophet Isaiah:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55.8-9, NIV).
Prayer aligns your heart with God’s heart, and puts your will under obedience to God’s will.
Prayer Can Teach You Compassion And Empathy
Empathy is being aware of other people’s emotional experiences and attempting to feel (or at least identify with) those same emotions from their perspective. Compassion is the desire to take action to help the other person–you want to meet them where they are.
As you pray for others, you will find yourself identifying with what they are feeling, with what they are going through. Prayer helps you take your eyes off yourself and see other people as God sees them. You can grow in your empathy and expand how you show compassion.
Bible Verses About Prayers That Bring Us Closer To God
From the time in Genesis when God created humans, and all throughout the Bible, you can see that God wants a relationship with you. I’ve included a sampling of scriptures that can help you understand how prayers can bring you closer to God.
Read through these and let the Spirit speak to you as you focus on the truth. You may want to use one of these verses as a prayer to God.
- “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded” ( James 4.8, ESV).
- “The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth” ( Psalm 145.18, NKJV).
“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” ( Jeremiah 29.13, NIV).
- “I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me” ( Proverbs 8.17, NIV).
- “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul” ( Deuteronomy 4.29, NIV).
- “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” ( Hebrews 11.6, NLT).
How Can I Strengthen My Prayers To Get Closer To God
The best way to strengthen your prayers is just to be honest with God. You can’t impress God with fancy words or by trying to be someone you’re not. Prayer is a direct conversation with the Almighty, so just say what you need to say.
Some suggestions that can be of help to you are to use Bible verses to speak God’s Word to God. Praying on a regular, or even scheduled rhythm, can get you used to communicating with God. You can also do yourself a favor and minimize distractions.
Use Scriptures
Whether you use the preceding verses, or pray the Psalms, incorporating scripture into your prayers can give you greater confidence and comfort. As you allow the truth of the Bible to pour out of you in prayer, you will likely find yourself feeling closer to God.
The more you immerse yourself in God’s Word, the more you can hear from God, as He tends to speak to us through His Word. You can begin to discern truth from falsehood. You can begin to learn where God is guiding you.
Make Praying A Habit
If you only had a conversation with a friend a couple of times a year, and only for a few minutes, it’s not likely you’d feel close to that friend. Praying is a way for you to talk to God and listen for what He has to say to you, just like you would with someone you love and care for.
Praying regularly is to make it a habit. A spiritual habit is simply a way for you to do what you want to do to grow as a disciple of Christ. Praying is a custom, a pattern, a routine that you build into your daily life–not as something to check off your to-do list, but as a must-have.
You want to habitually pray because you know you won’t be the same if you don’t. You want prayer to be something you need, not something you engage in to impress God or others. You want to converse with God because it’s like air for your soul. The more you pray sincerely, the closer you will grow to God, over time.
Minimize Distractions
Think about when you’ve had an important conversation with someone. Did you make sure to have it in a place and circumstance so you wouldn’t be interrupted? So it is with prayer.
While you can pray at any time, anywhere, it’s a good idea to really focus on God and your relationship to Him as you pray. That will be hard to do if you’re watching TV, playing a computer game, or scrolling through your phone all the time.
It doesn’t mean you have to have complete silence or anything. It does mean that if you’re talking to God, you want to be fully present in that moment. You’re talking to God, the One who made you and redeemed you, after all.
Let the power and vibrancy of those prayer moments capture you and envelope you in His love and grace.
Closing Thoughts
As you can tell, the practice of prayer emerges as a cornerstone, a vital conduit through which the depths of the human soul find a direct link to God. Across the vast tapestry of history, believers have turned to prayer for solace in times of distress, strength in moments of weakness, and guidance amidst the uncertainties of life.
You can find that same guidance and comfort in prayer. You can grow closer to God as you listen for Him, as you allow yourself to be vulnerable with Him. God will meet you where you are and has promised to never abandon you. May prayer bring you along into that life-changing truth!
If you have a question about what you’ve read, please share it with us in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you!
