The apostles asked the Lord to teach them to pray (Luke 11:1) and the apostle Paul exhorted God's people to pray without ceasing (I Thes 5:17). Yet is is true that the hearts of God's people often wax cold and that our prayer lives are less than they should be. In this sermon God's people everywhere are exhorted to pray by being mindful of 4 areas of our lives that should be fertile grounds for subject matter which can be remembered using the acronym HOPE.
Homes - wives, husbands, children, immediate family
Others - friends, other family, those in need, those in power
Personal Life - praying about what we should be and what God would have us to be, presumptuous sins, besetting sins, secret faults, patience.
Everlasting Kingdom - the church, preaching, preachers, deacons, elders, understanding, baptism, attendance, laborers. |