A. Stir yourself up; call on God wholeheartedly:

1SA 15:11. It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.

1SA 15:16. Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.

ISA 64:7. And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.

JER 29:13. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

DEU 4:29. But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

LAM 2:19. Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the LORD: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street.

LUK 22:44. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

HEB 4:16. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

HEB 5:7. Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;

JAM 5:16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

PSA 61:1. Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.

PSA 61:2. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

PSA 119:10. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.

B. Praying fervently & desperately for others:

ROM 15:30. Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;

ROM 15:31. That I may be delivered from them that do not believe in Judaea; and that my service which I have for Jerusalem may be accepted of the saints;

COL 4:12. Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

C. Don't give up; be persistent:

GEN 18:23. And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?

GEN 18:24. Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?

GEN 18:25. That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?

GEN 18:26. And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.

GEN 18:27. And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the LORD, which am but dust and ashes:

GEN 18:28. Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.

GEN 18:29. And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake.

GEN 18:30. And he said unto him, Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.

GEN 18:31. And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the LORD: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.

GEN 18:32. And he said, Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.

GEN 32:24. And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

GEN 32:25. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.

GEN 32:26. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.

GEN 32:27. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.

GEN 32:28. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

LUK 11:5. And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;

LUK 11:6. For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?

LUK 11:7. And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.

LUK 11:8. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.

LUK 11:9. And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

LUK 11:10. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

LUK 18:1. And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

LUK 18:2. Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:

LUK 18:3. And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.

LUK 18:4. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;

LUK 18:5. Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

LUK 18:6. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.

LUK 18:7. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

LUK 18:8. I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

ROM 12:12. Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

EPH 6:18. Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

JAM 5:16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

JAM 5:17. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.

JAM 5:18. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

1KI 18:2. And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.

1KI 18:41. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.

1KI 18:42. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,

1KI 18:43. And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

1KI 18:44. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down that the rain stop thee not.

1KI 18:45. And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.

D. Demand that God keep His Word & answer prayer:

2KI 2:14. And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

ISA 45:11. Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me.

EXO 32:11. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand?

EXO 32:12. Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

EXO 32:13. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.

EXO 32:14. And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.

E. Sometimes you can change God's mind through prayer:

GEN 19:17. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

GEN 19:18. And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my LORD:

GEN 19:19. Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:

GEN 19:20. Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.

GEN 19:21. And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken.

EXO 32:9. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people:

EXO 32:10. Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation.

EXO 32:11. And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand?

EXO 32:12. Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

EXO 32:13. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever.

EXO 32:14. And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.

2KI 20:1. In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.

2KI 20:2. Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying,

2KI 20:3. I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.

2KI 20:4. And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying,

2KI 20:5. Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.

2KI 20:6. And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.

AMO 7:1. Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.

AMO 7:2. And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

AMO 7:3. The LORD repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.

AMO 7:4. Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.

AMO 7:5. Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.

AMO 7:6. The LORD repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord GOD.

JON 3:4. And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

JON 3:5. So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

JON 3:6. For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

JON 3:7. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:

JON 3:8. But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

JON 3:9. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

JON 3:10. And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

F. Repeating your desperate prayer:

1KI 18:42. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,

1KI 18:43. And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

MAT 26:44. And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

G. Fasting & prayer:

EZR 8:23. So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was intreated of us.

JOE 2:12. Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

MAT 17:21. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

DEU 9:9. When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which the LORD made with you, then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights, I neither did eat bread nor drink water:

DEU 9:18. And I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread, nor drink water, because of all your sins which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.

ACT 13:2. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

ACT 13:3. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.