Genesis 48

And he blessed Joseph and said, May God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who fed me all my life to this day, the Angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads. And let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow like the fishes into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
(Gen 48:15-16)

We can learn a lot about prayer by observing the prayers of Godly men in the Bible. Here at the end of his life, as we have already observed, Jacob made the transition from leaning on his own flesh to trusting in the Lord. His prayer here in chapter 48 is a wonderful example to us. Lets look at a few things in this prayer that can help us as we seek to communicate with the Lord.

“Before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked” – He begins with a little history, recognizing the faithfulness of God in times past. When we remember what God has done in the past, we build and strengthen our faith in Him! We recognize that God has always been faithful, and that increases our belief that He will be faithful in our lives as well.

“The God who fed me all my life to this day” – He continued in an attitude of Thanksgiving… recognizing God’s PROVISION for all he needed. So often we go to the Lord and right away it’s “I want this” and “I want that”, maybe even a little “Don’t give me any of THAT”. What we need to learn here is that God wants more than a to do list, He wants a relationship. In this short prayer of only two verses, Jacob spends most of his time thanking God, and remembering all that God had accomplished in his life. God has truly blessed each one of us, but do we thank Him for it?

“The Angel who redeemed me from all evil” – He thanked God for His protection. Looking back over his life, Jacob could recognize all of the times God had intervened on his behalf and protected him. It is so good for us to recognize not only what God has provided us with, but what He has protected us from. Whenever I take the time to remember the things that God has protected me from, I am reminded in a very real way of how much He loves me! It is one of the most encouraging things we can do!

“Bless the lads” - Not a vague request, Jacob is SPECIFIC in his request… It doesn’t just stop with BLESS THEM, but he shares the details of HOW he wanted to see them blessed! He wanted God’s name to rest upon them, for them to be known as God’s Children. He wanted the history of the PROMISE to rest upon them, for them to continue living under the covenant of Abraham and God. He wanted to see them grow and multiply by God’s grace. We should be specific in our requests as well. Not a vague “bless them”, but a real request for specific needs!

In all of this I am not trying to give you a formula for your prayers, you should be Spirit led. I am only attempting to point out some principles that may change the way you approach God’s throne. As you read through the Bible take note of the way men pray, and ask yourself if there is anything you might learn from them.

Take some time today to get quiet before the Lord and just thank Him. Thank Him for what He has done in the past, for His provision, and for His protection. I guarantee your faith in Him and love for Him will be increased!