Here are some easy tips for learning how to pray as a beginners. The main goal is to understand that prayer is a conversation between you and God. Just as you would talk to a friend, it is the same way you speak with God.

I pray out loud OR in my head. The way I pray depends on how I feel. However when I’m with people, I generally speak with God inside my head, because I don’t want everyone to hear my conversation. You should decide what makes you comfortable based on the situation. 

Christians seeking to talk to God and wanting to develop a closer relationship will find God. The Bible says, those who seek him will find him when they seek with all their heart. Jeremiah 29:13

4 Step Guide for Beginners Learning How To Pray

1. Set aside time and go somewhere alone to pray.

You want to avoid distractions as much as possible. You want a quiet place. “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.” Mark 1:35

However, you can speak to God anywhere — while you are at work, with people, etc. If I’m with another person and they hurt me, I pray in that moment. Or, there have been times I almost sinned and I prayed that God help me… And, things happened where the temptation was moved from me or I had the strength to resist! Thank you Jesus!

2. Pray about anything and everything.

You can ask God for anything, if you are asking from the right heart. How do you ask from the right heart? Pray that He would show you. You may not know that you are asking for a job just to show-off to your friends… He knows and He will show you. But, talking to God should be easy and natural. You talk to God the same way you would talk to family, friends, or your pastor.

3. Pray according to God’s will for the Earth.

In the Lord’s Prayer located in Bible, Jesus told the disciples to: “Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Matthew 6:19-23 This is the main  verse teaching us how to pray according to the bible.

4. Always Thank God

God is a good father and he deserves thanksgiving. Be sure to remain grateful even when things aren’t going well.

How should we start a prayer?

Jesus starts the sample prayer by acknowledging that God is our father and saying, “hallowed be thy name.” Hallowed means: “greatly revered and honored.” For this reason, I like to start my prayers with thanksgiving. Thanking God for the things he has already done. When you do this, it also reminds us to be aware of the great things he has already done when times are hard.

“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” Psalm 100:4

What should we say when we pray?

• Kingdom come. Pray that God would accomplish his plans on this earth. His plans are to bring people into relationship with him. He wants all humans to have a relationship with himself.
• Daily bread. Pray that we would all receive God’s wisdom and understanding daily. Fresh understanding of God and the Bible is needed constantly.
• Forgive our debts and debtors. Pray that we would love others and forgive.
• Protect us from evil. Pray that God would help to keep you from doing the wrong things.

I have a prayer journal. Do you? You should consider getting one. I write things down that I’m praying for. I write down questions I have for God. I write down things that are bothering me. I write down things that I’m praying for that are simple and may seem stupid or unimportant. But, God cares about EVERYTHING. He cares if I don’t feel smart or beautiful. As I look back on my prayers from 10 years ago, I see that He has healed my self-esteem. I now believe I’m beautiful and smart.

Related Article: 5 Tips To Be More Like Jesus OR 5 Secrets for Powerful Prayers That Get Answered!

I crossed off a lot of my questions and request from God, because he completed them…It’s nice to look back at what God has helped me through! It didn’t always happen as fast as I wanted, but it happened. So, Amen!

7 Steps To Praying Effectively

1. God does not want us to feel stressed or worried. Pray for His peace. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:6

2. Your prayers must be pure. Pray that God would help you to avoid sin. Just ask him in your head or out loud. I would say, “God I’m going to try not to sin. Can you please help me?” The Bible says, “the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”  Romans 8:26

Related Articles: 12 Secrets for Praying Against Temptations!

3. God will help you avoid sin when you pray for help. “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41

4. Don’t pray to show off. “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:6-8

5. Pray for the sick, sinners, forgiveness, and healing. “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.” James 5:13-18

Related Article: Pain & Trauma: Does God Care About Me?

6. Pray for wisdom to know what to do in life. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” James 1:5

7. God hears your prayers and will respond. “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” 1 John 5:14