A Good Passage on Answered Prayer 2 Chr. 7:14 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO of prayer after backsliding.

2 Chr 7:14 is a passage doctrinally for Israel. Yet, it is a good passage on prayer after backsliding.  Now, keep in mind, this is not a recipe for how to pray every time you pray.  And this is not some ‘best selling’ passage like “The Prayer of Jabez”.  This is a simple passage that illustrates a good way for you to “get a hold” of God after you have strayed away from him a bit.  This is a good outline for prayer after backsliding.  After you have backslidden, you’re not sure whether God wants to hear from you or not.  When you want God to hear you after you have strayed:

Keys to Prayer After Backsliding

Reaffirm that God is your Father.  “If my people, which are called by name”.  Be sure whether you are a backslidden Christian getting right with God or a lost person coming to the Lord for salvation.  In either case, it is important to realize that you have come to your Father.

Humble yourself before him.  “Shall humble themselves”.  If you really come back to the Lord, you will humble yourself in his presence when you realize his greatness, his goodness, his longsuffering, his majesty, his mercy and his love.  Many people try to justify themselves and their sin in the presence of God.  This is not humility; this is pride.

Effectually and fervently pray.  “And pray”.  Pray for the Lord to show you the wickedness in your life, to show you his perspective.  And when he does, confess these things before God.  Agree with him about your sin.  And then communicate with him in prayer.  You have been away from him far too long.  You need to spend time with him in prayer.

Seek his face.  “And seek my face”.  Make sure that there is nothing between you and the Lord.  You have strained your relationship with him by your inattention.  So, now it is time to rekindle your friendship and to make sure that he is the best friend that you have in the world.  Love him with all of your heart and suffer the loss of whatever interferes with your love for him.

Turn from your wicked ways.  “And turn from their wicked ways”.  At some point you came to a fork in the road and chose rebellion, stubbornness and disobedience over God.  Go back to that place where you turned away and get back on that spiritual, narrow, Biblical, upright way.  Realize that there are many things that God calls sin that you thought were not affecting your life.  They did and they are and you need to turn from these.

Conclusion to Prayer After Backsliding

Then God will hear your prayer as he promised to Israel and he won’t seem like he is “a million miles away”.  You’ll rejoice that you started praying again after backsliding away from God.