Prayer and Supplication: What is the difference?
Posted: Wednesday, November 07, 2007
by Teresa Ortiz
Freelance writer/Speaker
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving make your requests known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7
For many, prayer is a natural part of their relationship with God. I would argue, the most important part. Simply put, prayer is conversation with God. However, as a new Christian and even for some who have been Christians a long time, it seems foreign and uncomfortable.
For me, it was weird at first. Talking to God was not a normal part of my life before I received Christ as Savior-except for that occasional "HELP ME GOD!" when I was in immediate danger.
As I went to church and Bible study, I would listen to the way others prayed. I would try to copy their phrases. Phrases like "Father God, I come before you" or "Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus". (There is nothing wrong with these phrases if they are sincere and come from your own heart.) Then I would listen to what they said and the order in which they said it--O' my! I would panic. How do they think of so much to say--how do they know so much Scripture?
There was no way I could compete. Nevertheless, as I continued to study the Bible, I came to know God. I learned about His character, His love, His grace, and never ending patience. The knowledge that was building up in my head began to sink to my heart. My relationship became more real, more personal. I had a friendship with God and I began to notice that my conversations with Him became natural. When I saw Him as a friend and not just the Almighty God in the sky (though He is), I was relaxed. I began to talk to Him about the weather, what I should wear that day and what He wanted me to do. My beginning phrase became, "You know Lord".
Over time, I stopped worrying about how my prayers sounded to someone else. I realized that prayer is not a competition. It's not about who can say the most and who can say it best. It's about sharing your most intimate thoughts and concerns with the God who loves you.
If prayer is new to you, don't be discouraged. One of the things that helped me get over the awkwardness of prayer was to write a Him a letter. Writing a letter seemed natural to me because I did a lot of letter writing to my friends. In doing this, my truest feelings of fear, joy, and wonder came out and flowed so naturally. I still write letters to God and it has become my most effective form of prayer to this date. My relationship with God has been enriched as a result. It took me a while to consider this, but the Bible is God's love letter to humanity. When I read it, I realize that God has answered every letter I have ever written to Him. Now that's friendship!
In learning more about prayer, I came to realize that the Bible speaks of two different kinds of prayer. As we consider Phil. 4:6, we see that Paul says with all "prayer and supplication". Why the two words? Do they have different meanings? They do. "Prayer" is defined as a humble and sincere request to God, while "Supplication" is defined as kneeling down, being bent over or doubled up while making an earnest request to God.
These definitions changed my prayer life. I began to study the different prayers in the Bible and I had fun labeling them. There is so much to learn from them. If you have never done this before, I encourage you to do so.
When I think of prayer, I think about my normal conversation with God; such as: Lord, bless my family today, keep them safe, thank you for loving me and saving me." When I think of supplication, I think about the times I cry out to God because someone is hurt, or seriously ill, or the time my daughter was in a car accident and the car flipped over. It was "God, please let her be ok!"
It's easy to understand once we take a good look for ourselves. For a Biblical example of what I am talking about, read the following passages: The story of Hannah can be found in 1 Samuel 1:1-18. Here, we see a woman who desires a child so strongly, that she is on her knees in earnest petition to God. In Psalm 18, we see King David having a conversation with God that is full of praise and thanksgiving.
In addition, as we pray and lay out our requests before Him, we need to remember that God is sovereign. He is in charge and knows what is best for us. So if we ask for something that may seem good in our eyes, remember that God see's the big picture, so if the answer is not what you expect, don't feel your prayer went unanswered. He just might have something bigger and better coming for you!
When you need a little reminder because things are tough, look to Hebrews 4:14-16 and Matthew 26:39. Your heart is sure to be encouraged as you learn to trust in God. After all, if He told us to talk to Him, He will be faithful to listen.
copyright 2006 Teresa Ortiz
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More commentsits so funny..i thought after praying tonight .."i really need to know the variables of this script ive been holdin on to" so as i layed down i jumped on google on my phone and typed "is there a difference between prayer and suplication " lol. thanks so much for your obediance. cant wait to check out more of your work when i can see the whole site on a comp. :) this gave me not only knowledge but a small tool that just might start to change my prayer life.Hi Bridget, I am so glad this helped you. I do hope it makes a difference in your prayer life. There are some great prayers in the Bible that show us the difference of the two - maybe I should add them here. Blessings to you as you grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ!
I could totally relate to your article Teresa! I too would listen to others pray and not feel competent and at times be a nervous wreck thinking, "please dont call on me to give the prayer" if i was in a group of people! "I wont sound as eloquent as they... i'll come off sounding like an idiot... they'll know my level of spiritual maturity... on n on...!! I think i express myself better in letters too... but you are right, prayer is conversation with God!!! He knows what we want to say even before we say it, so even if we come off sounding childish, He sees our heart and He knows when we are being sincere! I especially liked your part about, "The knowledge that was building up in my head began to sink to my heart!!" So true!!! From glory to glory... victory to victory... Praise God n God Bless You Teresa...Hello sister is Christ! Thank you for sharing your heart and for the encouraging words! And Yes, glory to glory...victory to victory! I've been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb and I am so glad that I am...all my sins are washed away, I'vd been redeemed"! Keep growing and keep the Faith! Blessings to you.Hello Teresa mighty woman of God, well my name is Teresa as well, I wanted to know the difference between prayer and supplication, and your article did a great job with helping me understand the difference, I am in bible college and preparing to go higher in Christ Jesus, so please keep me and my family in your prayers as I will do the same for you...God BlessHi Teresa! Thank you for taking a moment to let me know this article has helped you. Lord bless you as you continue to grow in grace and knowledge. How exciting to be in Bible college! I am praying for you and your family. Thanks for praying for me and mine. Blessings :-)
Hello Teresa, your article was well received with me in this time of need. I helps me to think that there are different types of prayer and communication with God depending on what is going on in my life, and even though I've been a Christian for awhile, I've never really had a healthy prayer practice. Breaking down supplication verses the routine praise and shout out to the Lord was necessary for me to better understand. God bless you!!! Much love.Hi Colleen. I'm so glad to hear this helped you. Developing a prayer life takes time. Just keep studying the Bible, and as you continue to grow, so will your prayer life. It's not only a command to commune with God, it is rewarding beyond measure. Please let me know if I can ever be of assistance to you. I will prayerfully do my best to help and lead you further to Jesus. Much love in Christ, Teresa
Simply: prayer and supplication is like water and rain or water and sunshine. Both are required and they are created by God. It pleases him and it is. We do not often think to believe that our righteousness is simply obeying him and seeking him as one would seek a hidden treasure that makes the US National debt equal a penny!
And remember in all this glee, one can do it openly and one can do if in the heart. Both are good. I love the words that owe up to this principle: Blessed is the man who regards the day unto the Lord, and blessed is the man who does not regard the day unto the Lord, both are unto the Lord.
How easy and peaceful!
Hi Frederick.
Thank you for sharing these great thoughts! I agree. I love how you say, "water and sunshine" what a beautiful picture of how filling and comforting prayer can be. Blessings! Teresa
l would say is a dialogue between God and man
THANK YOU!! What dictionary did you use? I really liked the definitions you had!!
Great article Teresa you are indeed correct prayer is a conversation with the Lord God.
Additionally, I found from studying and from personal prayers supplication has one permeating characteristic. This feature is evident in great supplications from Scriptures: Jacob, Hannah, David, Solomon, Daniel and Jesus all display this common feature in their supplication, brokenness.
Again you are right Teresa prayer is not about competition but the heart and supplication is about a broken heart before God. Great article!
I enjoyed reading this article. It was very uplifting. It was helpful to me because I never knew the difference between the two. I am just like Hannah and I know that God will answer my prayers. I have read Philippians 4:6-7 several times and when you used it in the beginning of your article, I was in awe because I needed that reminder. Thank you. I would recommend reading your article several of my friends to. Good job!
Hi Teresa,
I'm reading this article just in time. I'm about to pray and fast and wanted to find out how to my prayers more effective for God and I came across your article. The breakdown is so simple for one to understand but effective. I will; be using this as a guide from now on. Thank you so much for writing it.God bless you and your loved ones.
i luv you teresa thanks for enlightening me God bless you and i need your serious prayer.much love
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