Pray It Loud

Written by Remaliah Evans

It’s been said, “if we really believed in prayer, we would pray a lot more.” Each time that I hear this I am convicted because I realize that there are times when I don’t pray because I am not fully convinced that praying will solve the problem. This thought is false because James 5:16 in the Message Version tells us that the prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. The New King James Version reads that the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

We know that prayer is powerful but what kind of prayer? Do we need to pray out loud by verbalizing our prayers, or can we pray silently? I’ve been asked this question several times over the years and while I believe that we have the liberty to pray silently within ourselves, I have found that verbalizing prayer is more effective. Praying out loud increases our faith when we pray using scripture.

Romans 10:17 Then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Therefore, as we pray the word of God, our faith increases. It is entirely possible to pray without faith. We might pray something like, “Lord please help me, I really need your help right now. I know that You are able and that You are willing.” The words here are fine, yet it is more effective and it will build more faith to pray the scriptures out loud.  Instead, we can pray “Lord I am asking You for help because You are my strength and my refuge and a very present help in times of trouble (Psalms 46:10) and You promised that You never leave me or forsake me so I say boldly that You are my Helper, I will not fear. What can man do to me? (Hebrews 13:5-6) Father God I know that You are faithful to help me because You perfect that which concerns me (Psalms 138:8) and I know that You will give me wisdom to handle this situation because in James 1:5 You said that I can ask for wisdom and You will give wisdom to me liberally.” When we pray the verses out loud we are building our faith because we are hearing the word of God.

            There are many voices that influence us – our spouses, parents, friends, children, pastors, mentors, God, bosses etc. Of all these voices there is one voice that we believe the most, our own voice. Others may have great influence however it is our own voice that we hear most. What we say within ourselves, and what we say out loud shapes our lives. Proverbs 18:21 death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it shall eat it’s fruit. Praying and speaking the word of God releases life.

What we say aloud also reveals what is in our heart. Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. When we consciously listen to what we think and what say, we will hear faith or we will hear doubt, and we will also hear who we believe God is and what we believe God will do. Many times we hear doubt and we hear ourselves accusing God of failing us or not keeping His promises. This is another reason why praying aloud is critical.

            When we pray the scripture out loud daily, we build our faith and begin to believe what we are saying. In doing so, our thoughts start to align with the word of God. Praying out loud makes it easier to recognize when our thoughts, beliefs, or words contradict the truth of God. When we recognize this misalignment we can cast down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, according to 2 Corinthians 10:5. A preacher once said, “you don’t replace a thought with a thought. You replace a thought with a word.” We must verbally declare the word and/or pray when our thoughts are incorrect.

            Growing up my parents always told me that I was smart. I honestly believe that I did well in school simply because I believed my parents. As I grew older and entered the workforce I encountered many situations that required me to learn new skills quickly. Years ago I was promoted to operations manager in a sales company, and I had to learn operations, sales, office management, and contract negation simultaneously. I was overwhelmed and then I began to pray Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I would pray this verse everyday and say it several times per day when needed. God answered this prayer by sending me co-workers who graciously trained me and helped me whenever needed.

            Later I began managing two locations. Again, I was overwhelmed and consumed with fear of failure. I kept praying Philippians 4:13 and I also began praying Daniel 1:17 Lord I thank You that You have given me knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom, and You have given me understanding in all visions and dreams. The funny part about this prayer is that when I first started praying this verse I was not concerned about understanding dreams and visions, but then I started thinking that it would be nice to understand dreams. For years I have prayed Daniel 1:17 and the Lord has faithfully helped me learn many new things, including interpreting dreams.

            Job 22:28 instructs that we shall declare a thing, and it will be established for us; so light will shine on our ways. When pray the scripture out loud we are declaring. Likewise the Lord says in Isaiah 55:11 that His word that goes forth from His mouth, it shall not return to Him void, But it shall accomplish what He pleases, and it shall prosper in the thing for which He sent it. There is power in praying the word. In Romans 10:9 we see that we receive salvation by confessing with our mouth.

            Dilemmas and conundrums will arise, and when they do we must choose to pray the word of God out loud despite peril or disillusionment. Last November my doctor told me that I could not get pregnant under any circumstances. I was 32 years old with no children. At that moment fear and sorrow consumed me. What if died before I could marry and have kids? What if no one wanted to marry because I could not have kids? Why was this happening to me? It was a horrible moment and I cried…until I remembered what God had promised me through the Bible and through prophetic words. I remembered that He promised me health, a husband, and children. I still had to make a decision though, and I needed to make it quickly. I chose to trust God and pray the word. I see my doctor regularly and follow her instructions as I pray and trust God for my health and my children. I have not had a baby yet. Even so, I continue to pray the word aloud and declare life to my body because I know that the Father will fulfill His word and His promises to me.

In Genesis God speaks the world into existence. We are made in His image, and He also gave us the ability to speak life and change into existence. We speak life and change into existence by praying the word of God out loud.