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How to Pray: Developing an Intimate Relationship with God
Since he committed to begin every day in prayer, pastor Ronnie Floyd's life, family and his ministry have been revolutionized by the power therein. In this book, Floyd invites believers to join him in "Prayer 101," an introduction to a life-long journey of intimacy with God.
240 pages, Paperback
First published May 11, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 10, 2017
What a great book this was! Pastor Floyd's purpose of this book was to go over the basic principles of prayer. I believe he was able to cover the most critical topics about prayer in his book just over two hundred pages. As you read this book I would definitely recommend to take notes, and have your own Bible out at the same time. He has a great prayer outline as well at the end of the book, and states that "You can no longer say, I don't know how to pray." There was many topics throughout the book I wanted to do more research on and read about. Particularly with the barriers to prayer (Chapters 12-14) This is a subject that I believe requires more scripture and homework for those who really want to review possible barriers in their own lives. I'll list some versus that I read over and was interested in going a little deeper into concerning possible barriers to prayer. James 4:3, Psalm 66:18, Isaiah 59:2, proverbs 1:24-28, Proverbs 28:9, Proverbs 21:13, Isaiah 1:15, James 1: 6-8, James 1: 6-7 and 1 Peter 5:5, 1 Peter 3:7 John 6:37, John 9:31, Luke 23:42, Luke 18:11-13, 1 John 1:9.
January 25, 2014
There are certainly some good things to be learned from this book: Why we pray, praying according to God's will, being diligent in prayer, etc. But there were a couple of points that I don't necessarily agree with. For instance, on page 163, Dr. Floyd states, "God will not answer your prayers if your relationships with other people are strained". This seems paradoxical to me. If God will not answer my prayers if I have strained relationships, then I can't pray about these strained relationships because God will do nothing about them. So then I must rely on myself. But throughout the bible we are told to rely on God.
I am not discouraging anyone from reading this book. Read it and draw your own conclusions.
I am not discouraging anyone from reading this book. Read it and draw your own conclusions.
April 9, 2019
Even in Christian circles, everything that was old is new again — and Christians are just as susceptible to buying things rereleased and repackaged. Ronnie Floyd’s How to Pray is a book that is 20 years old, and is being given new life in an anniversary edition. According to his own words in the introduction, Floyd says he has rewritten the whole book top to bottom and the 20th-anniversary edition, now being released, is a wholly different product than what was published two decades ago. Well, Floyd is either a good liar or he needs a better editor because there’s a coded reference to Bill Clinton to being the current president of the United States in the book.
How to Pray is the sort of book that I knew walking into it that I probably wouldn’t like all that much, if I can be candid. It has less to do with the contents than it does the author — at least, as was the case with my first blush encounter with this book. Ronnie Floyd, for those of you who don’t know, was a past president of the Southern Baptist Convention, a group responsible for the religious culture wars in the States and the product of more division and disunity than you can shake a stick at. He’s also a spiritual advisor to none other than the good ol’ adulterer and current U.S. President Donald Trump — though he has gone on record, to his credit, to say that if Hillary Clinton had won the vote, he would have gladly worked for her, too. He’s also been the President of the U.S. National Day of Prayer, and, the same week that this book came out in 2019, stepped down as the pastor of the church he had ministered at for 30 years or so, in order to take a job in the Southern Baptist Convention’s executive council.
Read the rest of the review here: https://medium.com/@zachary_houle/a-r...
How to Pray is the sort of book that I knew walking into it that I probably wouldn’t like all that much, if I can be candid. It has less to do with the contents than it does the author — at least, as was the case with my first blush encounter with this book. Ronnie Floyd, for those of you who don’t know, was a past president of the Southern Baptist Convention, a group responsible for the religious culture wars in the States and the product of more division and disunity than you can shake a stick at. He’s also a spiritual advisor to none other than the good ol’ adulterer and current U.S. President Donald Trump — though he has gone on record, to his credit, to say that if Hillary Clinton had won the vote, he would have gladly worked for her, too. He’s also been the President of the U.S. National Day of Prayer, and, the same week that this book came out in 2019, stepped down as the pastor of the church he had ministered at for 30 years or so, in order to take a job in the Southern Baptist Convention’s executive council.
Read the rest of the review here: https://medium.com/@zachary_houle/a-r...
August 22, 2019
Overall, an exceptional book on prayer. “How to Pray” is a practical guide to developing an effective prayer life. Though not as comprehensive as some, it is a great introductory guide for those interested in growing in their walk with God through prayer. I found it simple, yet challenging; pragmatic, yet Christ-exalting. Dr. Floyd walks the difficult line of challenging the reader with his own advanced life of prayer, while avoiding the appearance of boasting.
I’d have given the book five stars were it not for Dr. Floyd's awkward handling of “speaking in tongues” in relation to “praying in the Spirit.” His explanation of praying in the Spirit was worthwhile, until he attempted to eliminate praying in tongues as a form of praying in the Spirit. To try and accomplish this, he provided sloppy, biased exegesis of Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 14. He neglected to mention 1 Cor. 14:15, where (in context of the chapter) Paul clearly equates “praying in the Spirit” to “speaking in other tongues”. In the meantime, he unnecessarily alienates hundreds of millions of Christians. How much wiser and more inclusive he would have been if had simply chosen not to write about something he doesn't understand. Otherwise, I recommend “How to Pray” and (minus the flaw) would place it on the list of my all-time top 10 books on prayer.
I’d have given the book five stars were it not for Dr. Floyd's awkward handling of “speaking in tongues” in relation to “praying in the Spirit.” His explanation of praying in the Spirit was worthwhile, until he attempted to eliminate praying in tongues as a form of praying in the Spirit. To try and accomplish this, he provided sloppy, biased exegesis of Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 14. He neglected to mention 1 Cor. 14:15, where (in context of the chapter) Paul clearly equates “praying in the Spirit” to “speaking in other tongues”. In the meantime, he unnecessarily alienates hundreds of millions of Christians. How much wiser and more inclusive he would have been if had simply chosen not to write about something he doesn't understand. Otherwise, I recommend “How to Pray” and (minus the flaw) would place it on the list of my all-time top 10 books on prayer.
March 22, 2017
This book was just what I have been looking, and praying, for.
If you have felt like you needed to pray about something but didn't know how, then this book is a godsend. Dr. Ronnie Floyd is a pastor, author and current president of the Southern Baptist Convention. In this book he draws on his years of experience in leadership roles to explain in clear and concise language what prayer is and how to do it, and he devotes several chapters on roadblocks to prayer.
He explains reasons why people do not pray and various things that keep our prayers from being heard by and responded to by God. If you have ever felt like your prayers were not getting through to heaven or ever wondered why it seemed that God was not answering your prayers, Dr. Floyd gives many great reasons concerning why and what you can do about it.
The book is rounded out at the end by a chapter devoted entirely to developing a plan on how to pray daily. The plan is easy to use and easily customizable to suit your own needs and prayer style.
I can easily and highly recommend this book. It took me several days to read it because of the need to fulfill other obligations and also due to the fact that I am a very slow reader. However, I would say that for the average reader this book would be a quick read. Remember, Ronnie Floyd wants you to focus your time on praying effectively, not reading books (including his own). By all means by, read and use this book. I believe it will transform not just your prayers but your life.
If you have felt like you needed to pray about something but didn't know how, then this book is a godsend. Dr. Ronnie Floyd is a pastor, author and current president of the Southern Baptist Convention. In this book he draws on his years of experience in leadership roles to explain in clear and concise language what prayer is and how to do it, and he devotes several chapters on roadblocks to prayer.
He explains reasons why people do not pray and various things that keep our prayers from being heard by and responded to by God. If you have ever felt like your prayers were not getting through to heaven or ever wondered why it seemed that God was not answering your prayers, Dr. Floyd gives many great reasons concerning why and what you can do about it.
The book is rounded out at the end by a chapter devoted entirely to developing a plan on how to pray daily. The plan is easy to use and easily customizable to suit your own needs and prayer style.
I can easily and highly recommend this book. It took me several days to read it because of the need to fulfill other obligations and also due to the fact that I am a very slow reader. However, I would say that for the average reader this book would be a quick read. Remember, Ronnie Floyd wants you to focus your time on praying effectively, not reading books (including his own). By all means by, read and use this book. I believe it will transform not just your prayers but your life.
July 20, 2017
This book is not really all that well written, and I disagreed with some of the author's assertions (e.g. God will not answer your prayers until all of your relationships are in order) but it was a good reminder of the importance of prayer and did have some good practical points.
April 13, 2018
Relationship changer!
Really great book. I thought that it might be a little dates, but I can seriously say that my relationship with God has changed. I feel like I am more on his radar, in a good way, now that I am doing my part to read the Bible and pray.
Really great book. I thought that it might be a little dates, but I can seriously say that my relationship with God has changed. I feel like I am more on his radar, in a good way, now that I am doing my part to read the Bible and pray.
May 14, 2017
I learned nothing from this book that I did not already know. As all of Paige Patterson alcolytes Floyd is right proud of himself.
November 14, 2020
Will change how I think about and approach prayer for the rest of my life
August 30, 2017
Great spiritual growth and lots to learn💙
September 1, 2021
Very practical book that covers an array of needs about prayer. This will help the one beginning to pray and the one who is experienced. Excellent read for those seeking a deeper relationship with the Lord.
October 5, 2016
Extremely valuable advice on enriching prayer time. This information is so encouraging and enlightening that I'm sending copies to both of my children; I wish I understood more about prayer at their age. I will also be reading through the book again, to "make it stick". As emphasized in this book, my relationship with God is directly linked to prayer, along with reading His Word. His peace and joy are the reward :)
January 26, 2013
I've read through this book twice now. There is a ton of information on what prayer should be and what it isn't. At the end is a template on how to make a prayer journal. I highly recommend it for everyone.
February 12, 2015
This is one of my personal favorite books on prayer. It challenges me out of my "traditional upbringing" in such a healthy way.
January 10, 2022
Had to read a little and a time it was so good and thought provoking. One I will keep on my shelf and give to people.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews