PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE PRAYERS by Bola Olu-Jordan
All prayer must be directed to the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ and in His Name. Your mind and heart must be directed to the Father not on the person, thing or situation you are praying on, otherwise, it becomes mind contrrol.
Before you pray, yield to the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ Name and ask His Spirit to pray through you.
You must know the will of God concerning what you want to pray for, otherwise, you cancel it it "let your will be done.". Its important you know His will before embarking on prayer. You know His will through His words. Search the scriptures. Commune with God. Develop confidence (faith) that it is the Father's will to give what you are asking for.
Pray in faith, otherwise, it is needless praying at all. You must believe that God is faithful to give you your heart desire in His will and in His time. Back your prayer with faith (trust in Christ). Faith moves God’s heart and hand to act on your behalf. Faith must be unwavering. Reject doubt. It doesn’t take any more effort to believe than not to believe and stand on your choice.
In warfare, it is important but not compulsory to speak your prayers aloud into the air to nullify the devil’s power. He is the prince of the power of the air. Your faith-filled words (faith confession) spoken under the anointing are spiritual power packets which, when in line with God’s Word, moves the Holy Spirit to come into agreement with them. He waters these seeds of faith (your words), and empowers, bringing the “guaranty” , “evidence” of things unseen (that is things from the Spirit-realm into the physical realm).(Heb. 11:1)
Pray “through” that is, with persistence, until you receive and see the result. Two of the strongest forms of prayer are praise and “tongues” (praying in the Spirit). The Psalms tell us that the Lord inhabits our praise and that praise releases angels. In addition, tongues confounds the enemy because Satan cannot understand tongues. When you do not know how to pray for a problem, always pray in “tongues”. The Holy Spirit will pray a perfect prayer according to the will of God for your circumstances or that of others, and therefore, He will be better able to bring forth the answer or solution to the problem, perhaps, quicker than you can. Note also that “tongues” always brings revelation when persistently prayed (so does praise).
Remember that when you are praying the prayer of Binding and Loosing, you bind Satan first, then the ruler spirit assigned to the person, then the demonic spirits below the ruler spirits, and you loose the person, church, circumstance, finances, etc. (whoever or whatever affected), always “in the Name of Christ Jesus”. The word “bind” means “to tie up”. The word “loose” means “to untie”. Therefore you do not “bind and loose” the spirit afflicting the person, but you bind the spirit and loose the person.
Pray for the needs of others first, before praying for your own needs.
Avoid selfish prayers, prayers motivated by self, ambition or the desire for self-indulgence, self-recognition, or self-promotion. Such prayers are from the “flesh” and not from the Spirit, and Jesus says that the things of the spirit are Spirit (John 3:6)
Pray on the offense against Satan and the powers of darkness, and also on the defense as the Holy Spirit leads, always asking or commanding “in the Name of Christ Jesus”.
Do not pray the problem, pray the solution. Pray what the Word of God says about your
circumstances and what God promises that He will do on your behalf. Back it by faith. Believe (trust) that you receive. Make these things your faith confession.