Digging into Synonyms of Prayer
Introduction to Series:
Over the course of my lifetime, I have greatly enjoyed the process of learning. In fact, I consider myself a
lifelong learner. Irrespective of the field of learning, there is great satisfaction in knowing you are growing in
wisdom. Wisdom when submitted onto the Lord is powerful! Throughout the years, I've often been told that I
have a gift of communicating through words both; orally and in writing. Particularly when I think about the
process of writing, I often recall spending time in my ninth grade English class with a teacher named Mr. Tom.
Perhaps in his early 30s, my teacher had a contagious zeal for the process of writing and helping students
maximize their writing potential. And while he meant well, as a 14-year-old; Mr. Tom was my least favorite
teacher because he demanded so much for me. I remember being irritated as I continued to receive multiple C
level scores on my essays. Finally fed up, I sought clarification on his thought process when scoring my
papers. His response still resonates with me today:
“Brandon, your papers that you write don't reflect the size of your heart…You're right we need to catch up with
your heart”
In other words, Mr. Tom was explaining to me that though I had great insight and perspective; the way I wrote
and the grammar I chose to use wasn't up to par with the level of topics I was communicating from my heart.
Overtime, I became more open and he went on to explain ways to expand my vocabulary. While there were
many phases to this growing process, the use of synonyms left an indelible impact on me. Mr. Tom explained
that synonyms are essentially words or phrases that mean exactly-or nearly the same thing as another
word or phrase in that same language. Reluctantly, I began to study synonyms for common words in my
vocabulary. What I found was that over time, not only did my vocabulary expand; but my overall understanding
of word-origins increased. The more I explored other words that equally demonstrated the thought processes I
was hoping to convey, the deeper my overall conviction that people would understand what I aimed for
became. Needless to say, my teacher wasn't trying to hold me back; and I ended up with an A- in that class!
As we begin Part 1 of our Bible study series on exploring prayer through synonyms, I thought it would be
beneficial to explore synonyms for the word “pray” found in scripture. It is my hope, that this will aim your mind
towards greater understanding intellectually of what prayer is. Growing in knowledge isn’t a bad thing! In Fact,
God blessed us with many gifts; one of them is our brain. Let us humbly posture our minds to grow in
knowledge; praying that God would send the Holy Spirit to move what we are learning in our minds to the
depths of our heart. For in the end, it is our heart that He is truly searching for. Let us begin.
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PART ONE | To Pray is to Seek the Lord
Opening Prayer:
Abba father, open my eyes so that I may see the glorious truth out of your word. Align
my heart to your testimonies, and give me life in your ways. I long for your
righteousness, in your mercies grant me righteousness. Satisfy me in this study with
your steadfast love. It's in your beautiful name that I pray. Amen.
The First Synonym for the Phrase “To Pray” is: 'SEEK THE LORD'
Seeking the Lord has various meanings depending on the context of the specific scripture. Below I have given
you a table to better assist you in understanding 5 different facets of seeking the Lord. Each symbol correlates
with the information located next to it.
+-Seeking the Lord for the sake of receiving God himself; but not for what he can give us.
�-Desiring the Lord’ aid when ever present difficulty
⚫�-desiring the Lord's wisdom and ever present difficulty
⚪�-complete dependence on the Lord
♠�-desiring intimacy with the Lord
Below I have provided 20 verses that depict prayer through the synonym of “to seek the Lord”. Use the
chart above to help you understand what type of “seeking” is being shown in each verse.
1. David sought the face of the Lord 1 Chronicles 16:11 �
2. Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always 2 Chronicles 16:12+
3. ... even in his illness he did not seek help from the Lord. 2 Chronicles 20:3 �
4. ... The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town
in Judah to seek him … 2 Chronicles 26:5 �⚫�⚪�
5. ... they who seek the Lord will praise him ... Psalm 27:8 +⚪�
6. Hezekiah prayed for them ... 'May the Lord, who is good, pardon everyone who sets his heart on
seeking God ... 2 Chronicles 30:18f+�
7. In his distress he sought the favour of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of
his Fathers. And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea …
2 Chronicles 33:12,13+�
8. Josiah ... began to seek the God of his father David 2 Chronicles 34:3+ ◻
9. So the Israelites ... separated themselves ... in order to seek the Lord Ezra 6:21+
10. ... they who seek the Lord will praise him ... Psalm 22:26+⚪�
11. My heart says of you. "Seek his face!" Your face, Lord, I will seek. Psalm 27:8+⚪�♠�
12. I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me ... Psalm 34:4�
13. The people have not ... sought the Lord Almighty Isaiah 9:13+
14. Seek the Lord while he may be found ... Isaiah 55:6+
15. The Lord is good to ... the one who seeks him Lamentations 3:25+
16. Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God Hosea 3:5+
17. They will seek my face; in their misery they will earnestly seek me. Hosea 5:15+
18. Seek me and live ... seek the Lord and live Amos 5:4,6+
19. ... those who neither seek the Lord nor inquire of him Zephaniah 1:6+
20. 'Let us go at once to entreat the Lord and seek the Lord Almighty. I myself am going.' And many people
and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord Almighty and to entreat him. Zechariah
8:21+
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1. How do these versus support your understanding that seeking the Lord is synonymous with
prayer?
2. Which verse in particular resonated with you the most and why?
3. What can you change in your prayer life to incorporate what you learned today?
While these biblical scriptures primarily focus on seeking the Lord Himself; some may be confused as to
exactly how this is an example of prayer. To assume that prayer is as one-dimensional as asking the Lord to
forgive us and simply GRANT our needs; is to minimize the vast purposes God has intended for prayer.
Seeking the Lord is synonymous with prayer; because it is a crucial portion of why he created it. In fact,
whatever you can get from the Lord is incidental and secondary at best; because prayer is much more about
seeking greater relationship with the Lord than anything else. Can't you see? If prayer is primarily about what
you need; doesn't this support why we struggle to pray when we are in good seasons? On the other hand,
when we become desperate in prayer during moments of crisis; are we not confusing our search for what we
want him to do with actually desiring to find him alone? We must grow in our understanding that prayer is
primarily about seeking the Lord with the hope to find him and be satisfied as opposed to getting
something from him. When this becomes our reality; prayer takes on the nature of a habit; serving as the
means of communication with our creator as opposed to a genie in a bottle type relationship.
1. Examine your prayer life. How have you primarily utilized prayer?
Read: Matthew 5-7 Sermon on the Mount
Question
1. Considering what you learned above; how has your understanding of prayer altered your views
towards the sermon on the mount?
2. How might you use the sermon on the mount differently to impact your life specifically?
Can't you see? Jesus made it clear where our number one priority should be: 'seek first His kingdom and His
righteousness ... ' (6:33). To seek God's kingdom and God's righteousness is to seek God Himself, to be
completely committed to Him. And while many other aspects are mentioned within the sermon on the mount
such as:
•
•
•
•
•
Our perceptions of our own righteousness (5:17-32)
Our desire to be believed (5:33-37)
Our desire for revenge and 'justice' (5:38-48), our perceived need to display our goodness and be thought well of
(6:1-19)
Our earthly 'treasure' (6:19-24)
and our anxieties about our physical survival (6:25-34)
In truth, they all come in last place compared to the beauty of seeking, finding, ultimately having a relationship
with Jesus Christ our Lord. And this is what makes prayer so amazing. Hopefully part 1 of this series has
helped you to aim your affections to supremely value the supremely valuable! See you soon for part 2.
Brandon K. Rachal