Fear & Praying Out Loud

Last night, in our Life Group, we had a conversation about the things in our relationship with Christ that are prevented from growing because of fear. One of the most commons issues people struggle with is praying out loud. (Can I get an "Amen" brother or sister?)

Here are but a few Truths to remember about our struggle with praying out loud:
-When we pray, our audience is God only, not the other people in the room with us.
-If God is our only audience, then pray from the heart, using words that are authentic and sincere. Just be yourself!
-Our model for prayer is what is found in Scripture only. The model or standard of prayer is not the eloquent prayer that "Joe Schmo" across the room just prayed.
-If the reason why I don't like to pray is that I am fearful of what others may think of me, the words I choose and how I pray, I must recognize that all of those reasons are based in vanity and pride - which is not from God.
-If my conflict to pray out loud is rooted in fear, then I know that is not from God. God is perfect (Matt 5:48). God is love (1 John 4:8). Perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).
-While the Bible gives us instruction to pray humbly in private (see Matthew 6:5-6), the Bible is also replete with examples of people praying for others out loud which infers that we, too, are called to pray out loud. For example, Jesus placed His hands on children and prayed for them in front of the disciples (See Matthew 19:13-15).
-Praying for someone out loud creates a supernatural, divine connection between you and that person.
-Scripture nowhere condemns public prayer, but rather how to do it appropriately.

Here are some simple tips on growing in this area of your relationship with Christ:
-During your devotional time, practice praying out loud by yourself instead of praying silently.
-Practice praying out loud at opportune times like before meals.
-Know that the full Word of God is in no single person, so realize that there is no such thing as a perfect prayer that has been uttered from man's mouth.
-When you run out of words to say and you're just not sure what to pray next, remember Romans 8:26-"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express."