Praying silently or praying out loud?

[trofimus]

Is there any significance when prying out loud?

Bible seems to indicate that we are expected to pray out loud:

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"But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you."
Mt 6:6

What would be the reason to go home, into your room and shut the door, if you can pray simply silently, in your thoughts, wherever you are?

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Also, why did Daniel prayed loudly in his room, knowing that spies will be around, why did he risk it...

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"He said to them, "When you pray, say: "'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come..."
Luke 11:2

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I do not have any firm beliefs about it, so I will appreciate your opinions.

 

[Muzungu256]

cant God hear us if we dont say it out loud????????? i do pray outloud if im alone......... or sometimes whisper (hope God can hear whisper)........... what volume is required.........

those verses do say that u should say out loud, guess ill move on to doing that.............

 

[BeyondET]

Into your room, could be of symbolic, the room of a person's heart, to pray from the heart without distractions.

 

[Namiette]

I don’t know ifI’ll be right but I’ll try to explain my opinion, my point of view.

Of course we can pray silently wherever we are. But in my opinion, when we pray like this we are not 100 % concentrated on God. For example if you are at work and you’re doing something, you can pray in your mind, but your thoughts are disturbed by what you are doing (writing, putting something somewhere, etc).

But when you come into your room, you close the door, take your Bible, and pray loudly,it is only you and God. There is nothing else what you have to pay attention to. And also, when you pray out loud, you can better realize that God is for you more than some invisible being far away from you. That He is really present with you. When you speak loud, you usually speak to someone who you can see, who you can touch, whois next to you. And maybe this is why God wants us to pray aloud, He wants us to perceive His presence, as we perceive the presence of other people we are talking to.



As I said, I don’tknow if I’m right, it is only my opinion.

 

[p_rehbein]

Doesn't matter if it is silent (in the heart) or out loud ............ what matters is that you pray

 

[Joidevivre]

When with people, I have often prayed in my mind silently for them. My thoughts are very strong at that time, and I know they are heard.

At the dentist when my teeth are being worked on, I have centered my thoughts on the Lord, and talked to Him. He gives me thoughts of comfort many times in return.

But, there have been even more times when I love to pray aloud (especially when praying as I read the bible). In worship, it is good for Him to hear your voice.

I have even prayed without words by just using my hands to express my prayer. He always knows what is in my heart, and there is an added dimension by using my hands like pantomime.

When playing the piano, I have expressed my prayer in the sounds of music.

Prayer is after all only a focused time of being in the presence of the Lord. Sometimes, just being with Him with no words is all that is needed. And other times, just your tears is a prayer.

God looks at the motives of our heart, and He knows!

 

[Stephen63]

When we pray by the leading of the Spirit, it seems to be always out loud so that others can hear & be blessed.

There's been times a sinner came under conviction for listening to a christian pray, corporate & personal.

Of course the motives of the heart makes/breaks that witness.

 

[NoNameMcgee]

1 Thessalonians 5:17

17 Pray without ceasing.




i do believe we should pray silently when in public in most cases


but when we are in our prayer rooms

it doesnt hurt to cry out

^_^

 

[Depleted]

What would be the reason to go home, into your room and shut the door, if you can pray simply silently, in your thoughts, wherever you are?

In my room, I'm not praying while being distracted by all that's going on around me.

 

[Jerusha]

Why should the volume of the prayer matter? I've heard people pray loudly, pretending to be spiritual, trying to create a image for other people to observe how spiritual that person is. As stated before, God looks at the heart. Us as humans look at the outward appearance. (Things like volume)

As long as a prayer is sincere, I don't think that volume matters.
1 Cor 8:8
I am not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity of your love also.

 

[Locutus]

I'm guessing it's all about why it's done:


Matt 6:5 they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

 

[DustyRhodes]

You can pray wherever you want. In the shower, driving down main street, walking
the dog. And you can pray out loud or in silence or simply listen to God where you
need to be in total solitude to hear.

 

[BeyondET]

[video=youtube;j9RsTlMBsVc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9RsTlMBsVc[/video]

 

[CherieR]

Whether silently or outloud, God hears his children when we pray. I do believe when it comes to a person receiving Jesus as Savior, he needs to speak outloud and ask Jesus to save him.

Romans 10:9-10:That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

 

[oldethennew]

our 'prayers', our link/connection to our Saviour - I wish I could understand the joy
that this must bring to Him from His children whom He has called...

 

[mar09]

Hi trofimus,
Often i have prayed quietly when in the room, but in congregational prayer, we can also reply in whisper or loud enough when we say Yes, Lord or Amen, etc. When reading Scripture as part of prayer, i like to hear the words aloud and speak them. when listening to worship music in general and i am prompted to pray, i sing the song aloud in prayer=). I cant stand singing in my head alone esp some songs i know by heart or at least whose words speak what the heart is also saying like Renew my heart, Lord Jesus or We lift our voices...

Ah, and let me add, there were some unpleasant times when there were some disagreements at home and the atmosphere just wasnt good and guys not talking nicely. I just burst in song as a prayer somewhere in the house, and soon the ugly stuff were gone. The Lord truly inhabits the praises of His people.