Principles of Prayer

By Charles G. Finney and L. G.,Jr. Parkhurst

Learn How to Pray with Power



Charles Finney's ministry rolled like a spiritual shock wave across the American landscape in the nineteenth century. He attributed his effectiveness in large part to prayer. Now his superb insights are condensed and collected in a single book.



Principles of Prayer provides a 40-day devotional study for those desiring to pray with power and see results. Each daily reading--through meditation, application, and prayer--will help you grow to Christian maturity.



Charles G. Finney, widely acknowledged as one of America's foremost evangelists, was a great man of prayer as well. Over half a million people were converted under his ministry in the 800s.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
• Release date: Mar 1, 2001
• ISBN: 9781441205476

Charles G. Finney

Charles G. Finney (1792-1875) is recognized as the most effective evangelist of the 19th century. It is estimated that more than half a million people were converted to Christ through his evangelistic ministry. After becoming a lawyer he carefully explored the claims of Christ and was powerfully converted in 1821. An avid student of the Bible, he soon engaged in preaching and teaching throughout many eastern and southern states. The result was a revival which altered the course of American history.

Book preview

9781441205476_0001_001

Books by

Charles G. Finney

FROM BETHANY HOUSE PUBLISHERS

Autobiography of Charles G. Finney1

Finney’s Systematic Theology

Principles of Prayer2

1Condensed and edited by Helen Wessel

2Compiled and edited by Louis G. Parkhurst, Jr.

CHARLES G.

FINNEY

9781441205476_0003_001

Compiled and Edited by Louis Clifford Parkhurst. Jr.

9781441205476_0003_002

Principles of Prayer

Charles G. Finney

Compiled & Edited by Louis Gifford Parkhurst, Jr.

Copyright © 1980, 2001

Louis Gifford Parkhurst, Jr.

Cover design by Eric Walljasper

Cover photo: Copyright © 2001 Warren Marr/Panoramic Images, Chicago

All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise identified, Scripture quotations identified NIV are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION.® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. The ‘‘NIV’’ and ‘‘New International Version’’ trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.

Scripture quotations identified KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

Published by Bethany House Publishers

11400 Hampshire Avenue South

Bloomington, Minnesota 55438

Bethany House Publishers is a division of

Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Printed in the United States of America

ISBN 978-0-7642-2476-8

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Finney, Charles Grandison, 1792–1875.

Principles of prayer / by Charles G. Finney ; compiled and edited by Louis Gifford

Parkhurst, Jr.—Rev. ed.

      p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 0-7642-2476-X (pbk.)

1. Prayer—Christianity—Meditations. I. Parkhurst, Louis Gifford, 1946-

II. Title.

BV213 .F56       2000

248.3'2—dc21

00-012141

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To

Patricia Ann, Jonathan Edward,

and Kathryn Elizabeth,

who enrich my life with

every word and action.

CHARLES G. FINNEY was America’s foremost evangelist. Over half a million people were converted under his ministry in an age that offered neither amplifiers nor mass communication as tools. Harvard Professor Perry Miller affirmed that ‘‘Finney led America out of the eighteenth century.’’ As a theologian, he is best known for his Revival Lectures and his Systematic Theology.

LOUIS GIFFORD PARKHURST, JR., is a pastor in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. He garnered a B.A., an M.A., and an M.L.I.S from the University of Oklahoma and an M.Div. degree from Princeton Theological Seminary. He has published more than thirty books in English and other languages, including the Finney Principles series with Bethany House Publishers. He is married and the father of two children.

Contents

Introduction

Prevailing Prayer

Day 1: The Truth and Prayer

Day 2: Pray for Something Definite

Day 3: Pray for the Will of God

Day 4: Pray Submitting to God’s Will

Day 5: Pray With Worthy Desire

Day 6: Pray With Right Motives

Day 7: Persevere With the Holy Spirit

Day 8: Pray Often, Renouncing Sin in Christ’s Name

Day 9: Pray in Faith

Day 10: Why God Requires Strong Desire

Day 11: Prayer Brings Unity and Blessing

Day 12: Follow the Holy Spirit’s Leading

The Prayer of Faith

Day 13: What to Believe When You Pray

Day 14: Pray for God’s Promises

Day 15: Pray for Prophetic Declarations

Day 16: Pray When Signs Indicate a Blessing

Day 17: Prayers of Faith Obtain Their Object

Day 18: How to Pray a Prayer of Faith

Day 19: Consecrate Your Whole Life to God

The Spirit of Prayer

Day 20: Why We Need the Holy Spirit

Day 21: The Holy Spirit and Scripture

Day 22: The Holy Spirit and Salvation

Day 23: The Holy Spirit and Providence

Day 24: Distinguishing the Holy Spirit

Day 25: The Holy Spirit Enlightens Our Mind

Day 26: To Receive the Spirit’s Influence

Day 27: Prayer and the Church

Be Filled With the Spirit

Day 28: You May, and Must, Have the Spirit

Day 29: What Prevents Your Being Filled?

Day 30: The Results of Being Filled

Day 31: The Holy Spirit and Conflict

Day 32: The State of the Ministry

Day 33: The Blessings of Being Filled

Day 34: The Effects of Spiritual Emptiness

Day 35: The Necessity of Divine Influence

Day 36: True Christianity

Meeting for Prayer

Day 37: The Purpose of Public Prayer

Day 38: How to Conduct Public Prayer

Day 39: Hindrances to Public Prayer

Day 40: The Necessity of Public Prayer

Appendix: The Principles Born of Prayer

Sources

Bibliography

Introduction

Why should every Christian become a master of Charles G. Finney’s principles of prayer? Because every Christian wants principles that are true to the clear teaching of Scripture, that are sound and reasonable, and that have been verified by experience. Millions have been blessed by these principles, countless multitudes brought to the Savior, and great work for His kingdom has been accomplished. In his memoirs Finney wrote that during his revival efforts he spoke to Christians and ‘‘endeavored to make them understand that God would immediately answer prayer, provided they fulfilled the conditions upon which He had promised to answer prayer; and especially if they believed, in the sense of expecting Him to answer their requests.’’* When a Christian brings faith in the Lord to the conditions outlined in this book, God will answer every prayer. Finney’s principles of prayer were themselves born from much labored prayer, and the appendix to this book illustrates some of the great effects of prayer in America and England.

I have edited this book because I believe Finney’s time-honored principles will transform the lives of individuals who are searching for a trustworthy guide to Christian prayer. These principles, likewise, will transform any church when practiced by one or more members. Charles Finney mastered God’s Word, and he applied the principles of effective prayer to every endeavor. God’s Word and prayer will unlock the door to valuable service in the kingdom of God for every Christian today just as they did for Finney and the Christians who supported his work. Finney bowed beneath the authority of Scripture because he found Scripture to be reasonable, life changing, and true—the very Word of God. Consequently, Finney applied