Do you know how to pray when you don’t know what to ask for? I guess the first thing we should note is that prayer is not always asking, but for now, let’s go with asking. If you struggle with that, take a closer look at a prayer by King Asa.
In 900 BC, an army of Ethiopians marched against King Asa. It was the original Million Man March. The Ethiopian army consisted of 1,000,000 soldiers and 300 chariots. Outnumbered by 400,000 soldiers, King Asa did the only thing he could do. He prayed!
“Then Asa called to the Lord his God and said, ‘Lord, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this vast army. O Lord, you are our God; do not let man prevail against you.’” (2 Chronicles 14:11).
Here are Asa’s three essential parts of his prayer.
First, he praised God.
“LORD, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty.” Great prayers ought to start with praise to God. In the model prayer of Jesus, he begins with “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” When you pray, the first thing you do is praise God.
Second, he asked for what he needed.
“Help us, O Lord our God.” After you praise God, tell him what you need. Of course, God already knows, but He waits for us to ask.
Finally, he told God why he was praying.
There were four reasons. (1) We rely on you. There is no one else who can really help us. (2) We are in this battle to honor your name. (3) You are our God. (4) This is really about you so please, “Do not let man prevail against you.”
There is one more secret to this prayer. Asa knew he needed help, but he left the details to God. He didn’t tell God how to be God; he just said, “Help us, O Lord our God.” Our thinking is so limited that we are better served to just ask God for help and leave the details to Him.
Asa’s prayer worked. “The Lord struck down the Cushites.” (v12) As James 5:16 says, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
Lonnie Davis