Keep the conversation going: Prayer is an ongoing conversation and we can be confident that God hears and answers when we bring our cares to him. I cite pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and Philippians 4:6 to show that bringing requests, with thanksgiving, is part of a living relationship with God. I reject rigid prayer formulas and instead encourage natural, frequent conversation—reading Scripture, journaling, quick prayers through the day, and spontaneous praise. I share practical habits: starting the day with thanks, asking for help in small matters, and praying for big needs like healing. I invite you to draw close to our Abba, practice talking with him, and let that ongoing conversation deepen your faith.
Takeaways:
I remind you that prayer is an ongoing conversation, not a rigid formula.
We can pray continually by sharing small daily observations and needs as they arise.
I share many examples of praying for everyday needs and for others, including shopping finds, surgical prayers, and global concerns, to show prayer's practical reach.
I combine reading Scripture with talking to God and journaling to keep the conversation going.
I invite you to approach God as Abba, bringing fears, thanksgivings, and requests with honest childlike trust.
This is an encore presentation for the Hobo Soul podcast while the Bible 805 offices are being redone.
And our topic for today is Keep the Conversation Going, also known as Assurance of Answered Prayer.
I have two verses for you today for our little talk.
The first one is First Thessalonians 5:17 where it says "pray continually."
And the second one is Philippians 4:6 where it says "Don't be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
When we read the Bible, God's talking to us and it's only polite for it to not be a one sided conversation.
Prayer is when we talk back to Him.
Now, I'm not going to be suggesting some sort of prayer formula.
I really dislike those.
I remember when I was younger it seemed like every talk or article on prayer recommended that you use what was called the Acts formula.
This was the order and the different topics you were supposed to pray.
It went something like this.
First A Adoration Second C Confession Third T Thanksgiving Fourth S Supplication.
Now don't get me wrong, these are all good aspects of prayer, but I think forcing them into every conversation you have with God would be kind of like a wife saying to her husband in every conversation, Dear Husband, I do so adore you.
Your big brown eyes and strong arms and how hard you work and still find time to work in the garden with me.
Oh, I do adore you for that.
I confess.
I didn't do the errands you asked me to today.
Instead of getting the oil changed on the car, I decided to shop at Home Goods during my break from work.
Next, I want to thank you for understanding when I am grumpy after a long day and don't feel like making dinner.
You even if it is my night to cook.
And last of all, would you please help me get the shopping done this week?
Do the greeting at church and give me extra hugs when I'm sad.
That's all for now.
We'll talk again tomorrow.
And now, can you imagine a relationship like that?
How awkward, how stilted, how unnatural.
Do you really think God enjoys this sort of thing?
I love Pete Greg's teaching on prayer and one comment that he made I found particularly thought provoking.
It's when he said, what will you talk to God about in heaven when you don't have any requests?
Let's face it, that's what takes up so much of our time talking to Him.
Now, now, again, not all requests are bad.
God does in fact tell us cast all Your cares on him because he cares for us.
And he also says, don't worry about anything, instead, pray about everything.
Asking God for things is very important.
It's a part of our prayer life.
But there's so much more to it, so much more to a growing, loving relationship than just asking for things.
In any relationship, you get to know another person by conversation.
And the strongest relationships are those that have the most frequent and in depth conversations.
It's also important to have spontaneous, fun ones.
I was just outside in my garden before I came in to record this.
Now I have lots of succulents.
I have a bird bath that I filled with ones that are like big flowers.
And I've never seen this before.
They all had tiny little puddles of water in the center of each flower from a rain we had yesterday.
I've never seen anything like this.
And I couldn't help exclaiming to God how fascinating and beautiful they all were.
When we chat in the garden like this, and we do quite a bit because succulents to me are just such fascinating little creations.
When we do that, I feel like he smiles.
We grow in our relationship by chatting with God all the time about anything and everything.
Reading the Bible, of course, and then talking to God is a great habit to get into.
And when you combine it with journaling, putting in your thoughts, your prayers, your questions, they're sort of like written prayers.
You can also just talk to God throughout the day.
I like to start the day just by saying thank you.
I open up the curtains in my little home, look at the sky and plants in my garden, and I can't help but praise Him.
It's natural.
It's just an overflow of what I see.
I chat with him as I work on projects for the Bible 805 Ministry for Wisdom and insight, for help and focus.
And most recently I've had some really crazy computer issues and I'm praying for his protection and wisdom on that.
I'm very tech savvy, but I've had some very strange things and I can't help but think that it's enemy interference.
So I pray.
I pray when I shop that God will help me spend wisely and find what I need.
Now all my friends kind of kid me about this, so I'll share it with you.
I have fun chatting with the Lord when I shop at thrift stores.
I am quite the thrifter now.
I started doing well, actually, I've always done that as I've lived on a very limited budget.
But I started doing that when I was redoing the little mobile home I live in, it's over 50 years old and it needed all sorts of things, things that I couldn't afford to pay full price for.
I started to pray specifically for things that I needed before trekking down to my local Habitat for Humanity and Goodwill stores.
And again and again I'd find exactly that thing.
Now my friends tease me all the time about how I put in orders for God and he now politely and you know, always whatever he decides, but consistently he gives me what I need and just some wonder things that I've wanted most.
Recently, I needed a coat for the rainy season here in California.
I prayed about it.
Then I go down to my local bargain box and I got a beautiful still, had the tags on it, new black trench coat, really nice brand, fit me perfectly for $15 now, I could share many stories.
It's such fun though, to find and praise God for these gifts that I know come from Him.
Pete Greg says that praying for little things like this isn't foolish or unnecessary, but that it can build up our prayer muscles for praying for bigger things.
And it's good to pray for big things in the lives of others.
I have a dear friend that's having knee surgery this morning and last night and this morning I was asking the Lord for peace for her and wisdom and skill and healing wisdom for the surgeon, skill in what he does and that she heal without pain.
We pray for our world and the trauma and the pain that people go through and we never forget that our world is though it's really big and out of our control, that God is still in control.
But also we need to remember that the first thing that Jesus recommended we do when we pray the Lord's Prayer, which is the pattern for so much prayer, is that we say abba father, which as many of you know, was the familiar term to the English equivalent to daddy.
So today, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, climb into the lap of your Abba, your daddy and tell him your wants and needs, your fears and concerns, big and little and everything in between.
Simply draw close and chat.
Practice.
Praying like that in your prayer life will deepen and grow.
More than listening to a dozen and sermons about it, your Abba is waiting.
Just start talking.
That's all for this podcast, for transcripts, links to related material and much more to help you learn to know, trust, apply and teach the Bible, go to www.bible805.com for now, let me end with this benediction and prayer.
May you walk each day surrounded by the gracious love of the Father, guided by the gentle wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and conscious of the astoundingly real presence of Jesus, who will walk with you until you're no more a hobo soul, no more a transient, wandering heart, but at home in the kingdom prepared for you with your God forever.
