Despite our parents’ good intentions to bless us as kids, most of us probably knew there was a right and wrong time to ask Mom and Dad for that new pair of skates. We scanned for clues to determine when we’d be more likely to receive a “yes.” Were they in a good mood? Did they sigh or roll their eyes when you asked for money? Maybe you were more covert and waited until they were distracted or too tired to argue—and then you slipped in your request. In other words, you didn’t have the confidence to ask them directly, so you learned to approach carefully.
Sometimes, without realizing it, we bring that same hesitation into our prayer lives with our heavenly Father. We wonder if he’s pleased with us, if our requests are too small to bother him with, or if he’ll answer at all. Maybe we prayed before, and he seemed silent. Or maybe besetting sin makes us reluctant to draw near. Whatever the reason, we can approach God cautiously rather than confidently.
But the Bible gives those who are in Christ a very different picture. We are his children, invited to “draw near to the throne of grace” with confidence (Heb 4:16). And Ephesians 3:12 says that through Christ, “we have boldness and access with confidence.” Our confidence in prayer is not based on our merit, good strategy, or eloquent speech. Rather, it rests on Christ, who has given us access to the Father.
Praying with confidence is a privilege for believers. Here are 20 verses about your confident access to God through prayer.
20 Bible Verses About Praying With Confidence
- 2 Chronicles 7:14 (ESV)
If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. - Psalm 86:7 (ESV)
In the day of my trouble I call upon you, for you answer me. - Psalm 145:18–19 (ESV)
The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them. - Jeremiah 33:3 (ESV)
Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. - Matthew 7:7 (ESV)
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. - Mark 11:24 (ESV)
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. - Luke 11:9–10 (ESV)
And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. - John 14:13–14 (ESV)
Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. - John 15:7 (ESV)
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. - John 16:23–24 (ESV)
In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. - Romans 8:26 (ESV)
Likewise the 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. - Ephesians 3:12 (ESV)
..in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. - Ephesians 3:20 (ESV)
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us. - Philippians 4:6–7 (ESV)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. - Hebrews 4:16 (ESV)
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. - Hebrews 10:22 (ESV)
let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. - James 1:5–8 (ESV)
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. - James 5:16 (ESV)
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. - 1 John 3:21–22 (ESV)
Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. - 1 John 5:14 (ESV)
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.
“Our Father”
In the Lord’s Prayer (Matt. 6:9-13), the first thing Jesus teaches us about prayer is to address God as “Our Father.” Unlike our fallible, human parents, he’s our good, good Father “who is in heaven.” Because he’s our Father, we should be emboldened to approach him. Our access to God and the blessings we have to communicate with him in prayer are almost an embarrassment of riches. We have a Father who welcomes us (Heb 4:16), the Spirit who helps us pray as we ought (Rom. 8:26), and Christ who intercedes for us (Heb 7:25).
Our parents generally wanted to do us good, but often fell short. But God, who is never too busy for us, never without resources, and always knowing what’s best for us, delights in answering our prayers. So enter into his presence with confidence. He welcomes you in!
Cara
Related Posts:
- 20 Bible Verses About God Answering Prayers
- 20 Bible Verses About the Power of Prayer
- 20 Bible Verses About Spiritual Vigilance
- How to Get Your Prayers Answered
- Pray Hardest When It’s Hardest To Pray
- He Prays for Us When Satan Desires to Sift us Like Wheat
- Be Killing Sin: The Spirit-Filled Fight for Life