When it comes to prayers are yours all about you and your desires, or all about God and His worthiness to be praised?

Although Scripture tells us to come boldly before the throne of God and make our requests known (Hebrews 4:16), and Jesus even told us we have not because we ask not, there is a time and place to ask. Ecclesiastes 5:2 tells us, “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.” 

Prayer is ultimately communing with God and aligning our hearts with His. We can make sure our words are meaningful and honoring to God when we come to Him reverently and in awe. Once we acknowledge Who He is and His worthiness to be praised, we can then approach His throne with what we need. But here’s a way to get in the practice of first giving Him what He deserves: our adoration prayers and worship.

To adore someone means to show a deep love and respect for that person. Therefore, an adoration prayer includes addressing God Almighty with love, admiration, devotion, awe, and a high regard. Some practice adoration prayers by repeating back to God His attributes, acknowledging His worthiness, and praising Him for Who He is and all He has done. Because Scripture provides our basis for knowing Who God is, adoration prayers can be full of Scripture, and that’s one way to ensure that we are praying in His name and according to His will (1 John 5:14-15).

There are many adoration prayers throughout Scripture:

• In Psalm 8, David’s adoration prayer declares God as the Maker of heaven and earth. Then David compares humans to the majesty of God. Perhaps you’re familiar with his prayer because of a song you’ve heard or sung. David starts his prayer with: “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”
• In Psalm 18, David declares God as his Rescuer in an adoration prayer that praises God’s ability to protect His own. In the first three verses, David proclaims his love for God for His many rescues. Then after describing God’s powerful rescue, he proclaims: “This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?— (verses 30-31).
• Psalm 145 is a beautiful adoration prayer for God’s provision that I often use as a template when I teach young believers how to pray through God’s Word.

 You can pray one of Scripture’s adoration prayers word for word or paraphrase the verses to apply to your own circumstances, keeping the emphasis on God’s glory, not your response or situation. For example, Psalm 145:14-16 says:

“The Lord upholds all who are falling
    and raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
    and you give them their food in due season.
 You open your hand;
    you satisfy the desire of every living thing.”

You can pray through those three verses above and apply them to your life by paraphrasing them to make them more personal. For example:

Lord, You uphold all who feel like they’re falling and You raise up all who are humble and wait upon You to exalt them. Help me to be humble and wait for You, even when I believe I am falling.

And Lord You take care of every living creature. Help me with what I need, materially and financially this week. I know that You are the Only One who satisfies and when I look to You, You will always come through.

You can also pray adoration prayers by reading through the Psalms, or other portions of Scripture, and in every verse in which God is praised, pray it aloud to God, making it your praise to Him as well.

I guarantee you will get His ear and touch His heart.

What is your one line adoration prayer for God today? I’d love it if you’d share it with me and my other readers in the comment area below.

For more on praying to touch the heart of God, see my books, God’s Whispers to a Woman’s Heart, and When Women Long for Rest.