Praying Like David

“David may have lived many centuries ago, but the things we can learn from him are as current as this morning’s sunrise.” - Chuck Swindoll

This month, our focus will be on the Psalms and how we can use them to structure our prayer. My prayer life has evolved throughout the years and as I have become attuned with the way I ought to pray, I have finally learned that prayer is a way for me to have my life align with God’s will. I used to just give Him my laundry list of petitions and pleas on behalf of those I love. Of course, we know that it is ok to pray for our loved ones, but I finally learned to ask the Lord to align my will and my desires to His will for me. I finally learned how to really seek His will. I finally learned to ask for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. I finally desired His will over mine. 

I also love to pray scripture back to God, and I thought the Psalms would be a great place to focus our attention for this month. Each week I will focus on a different aspect that describes some of the types of worshipful prayers in the Psalms.

If you are new to the study of the Psalms or the Bible in general, you might find it interesting to note that David is thought to have authored 73 of the Psalms.

David is a great place to start because after all, he was called a man after His own heart, and the Lord appointed him as ruler over His people. He grew up in the city of Bethlehem, and it is estimated he was born sometime around 1040 B.C. His name David, means beloved, and he was the 8th son of Jesse. During his lifetime, he had many different jobs such as shepherd, musician, and armor-bearer, he led armies and was a King. One of his greatest traits was that David loved and was obedient to the Lord.

In my prayers for my children, I have asked the Lord to give my children the desire to pursue the Lord and to design them as children after His own heart. It is my prayer that they are passionate about their walk with Christ, and they desire to follow after Him all of the days of their lives. Like David, we are human, and we all fall short and slip up each day, but what a great mentor to have, to look to and learn from in David.

DId you know there are 66 chapters in the Bible dedicated to David and 59 references to his life in the New Testament? He is mentioned in the Bible 983 times. Clearly, he is an important person to study in the Bible. In his book, “A Man of Passion and Destiny: David”, Chuck Swindoll discusses three priorities for God-appointed servant leaders. Spirituality, humility and integrity are the character qualities that the Lord found in David.

These qualities are applicable and necessary for us today and something we should pray for each of our loved ones. This month we will focus on the Psalms and how we can pray as we ask the Lord to shape us into people who desire to be called a man or woman after God’s own heart. In my prayers for my children, I have asked the Lord to give my children the desire to pursue the Lord and be obedient to Him. I also pray that He will instill in them the desire to be children or young adults after His own heart. It is my prayer that they are passionate about their walk with Christ, and they desire to follow after Him all of the days of their lives. Like David, we are human, and we all fall short and slip up each day, but what a great mentor to have, to look to and learn from in David.