It would be folly for us to pray one way and to act out of harmony with the request.

4. What should we do to please the Hearer of prayer?

⁴ Those who loyally observe his commandments have the assurance: “The eyes of Jehovah are upon the righteous ones, and his ears are toward their supplication; but the face of Jehovah is against those doing bad things.” (1 Pet. 3:12) If we ask for forgiveness, then we must practice forgiving, from the heart. (Matt. 18:35) If we pray for God’s kingdom, we ought to seek it first in our lives. (Matt. 6:10, 33) If we are seeking more Scriptural knowledge from God, then besides praying for it we should set aside regular times to study his Word, the Bible.

Verbal expressions carry little weight with God if our actions are not in harmony with our entreaties. By being careless one may undercut the effectiveness of one’s petitions to God. Hence, husbands are admonished: “You husbands, continue dwelling in like manner with them [your wives] according to knowledge, assigning them honor as to a weaker vessel, the feminine one, since you are also heirs with them of the undeserved favor of life, in order for your prayers not to be hindered.” (1 Pet. 3:7) This shows that even in one’s homelife one can do things that affect a favorable transmission of one’s prayers to God. This fact should alert all of us to be most sensitive to walk in the right way in every aspect of life, never presuming upon God’s mercy and compassion.