Examples of Prayers in the Bible:

It helps us to learn how when we hear others pray who have known the Lord for a long time. I heard a story from Africa. One young man prayed so good and fervently that others in the village were curious as to how he had learned to pray so good. They watched him as he regularly went into the bush by himself and called upon God. They said, "We know now; he practices."

Some great examples of actual prayers prayed and recorded in the Bible are:

1. Jesus (John 17).
2. Solomon, at the dedication of the newly built temple in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 6:12-42).
3. The apostles (Acts 4:23-30; Psalm 51; many other Psalms).

What About Selfish Praying?

1. Some make their prayers so wide and so general and sometimes contrary to Scriptures that common sense tells a person that God will not hear and answer all that nonsense. One prayed, "Lord, make all the bad people good and all the good people nice." That might be desirable and not make that bad of sense, but the Bible tells us that "evil men and deceivers will become worse in the last days, deceiving and being deceived" (2 Timothy 3:13). Read also the same chapter from verse 1, on, as well as 1 Timothy 4:1-3.
2. I don't think any of us would be so selfish as to pray this prayer that I heard about: "God bless me and my wife, our son John and his wife--us four and no more. Amen."
3. God is not impoverished by giving; neither does it enrich him to withhold. He has told us to ask as a son would ask his father. He loves to give good things to those who obey Him.
4. We do not have to feel that we are being a bother to the Lord in a way that might cause us to pray like the man after being shipwrecked at sea and was on a life raft: "God, I've never asked anything of you before, and if you help me to be rescued now, I'll never ask another thing of you!"
5. We ought to be careful about just giving the Lord a lot of instruction about things we want Him to do and, then, not listening to know what His instructions for us are: When we pray, "Lord, speak to this one" or "Lord visit that one," He might want to ask us to do that and He will go with us and then use His Word that we convey or something that we say for the Holy Spirit to speak and bring conviction or comfort.
6. Someone wrote a poem telling us that we cannot pray the "Lord's Prayer" selfishly:

You cannot pray the Lord's prayer

and make one selfish plea.
You cannot pray the Lord's prayer

and even once say me.
For it is our, our, our,

and it's us, us, us.

And the fourth time it's our,

and the fourth time it's us.
You cannot pray the Lord's prayer

and even once say I.
You cannot pray the Lord's prayer

and once say my.

You cannot pray the Lord's prayer

and pray not for another,
For when you ask for daily bread,

you must include your brother.
For it's us, us, us,

and it's our, our, our.

As free from selfish motives

as the fragrance of a flower,
For others are included

in each and every plea
For from beginning to the end

it does not once say me.

--Unknown

Experiences You Have Had In Praying: