POWERFUL PRAYERS

POWERFUL PRAYERS
September 15, 2017

Prayer: Lord teach us to pray powerful prayers.

Scripture: Rejoice always ; 17 pray without ceasing ; 18 in everything give thanks ; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NAS

Prayer can be much more complicated than many people understand or imagine. True, that prayer is a conversation between you and God made possible by Jesus, inspired and translated through the Spirit. How difficult can a conversation be? Just ask someone to pray aloud that has little or no experience at praying for and with a group where they can be heard and you will see how difficult prayer can be.

How many times have you wanted to pray but did not know what to say? Maybe you did not know what to ask for. In our desire for, “God’s will to be done,” have you ever hesitated to ask for a complete healing or some other miracle? Are you ever afraid that God’s reputation will be ruined or you will have to defend His power if God does not give you what you ask for, so you don’t ask? Is your motive humility or doubt?

Wrapping our hearts and minds around who God really is and what He is capable of, is impossible for us as finite individuals. Only in heaven, will He reveal more than we ever dreamed or imagined. Until then, God wants us to trust that He is all that He says, and believe that He loves us in a way far beyond anything we can measure. With these two things in mind, please allow me to challenge you in your prayer life this year.

Quiet times are important in helping you to open your Bible and pray. They help us to spend some intimate time with God at some point during our busy day, but Scripture tells us to pray continually. Open your eyes to opportunities to pray throughout your day, even with your eyes open in a crowd, or silently before you make a decision or respond to a situation.

Praising God for Who He is as well as thanking Him for what He is done is essential in prayer. We tend to come asking for blessings, direction, prosperity and health or help for others in need but we forget to say thank you for all that He has been and done for us every day. If you spouse or children treated you in this way, you would not be very motivated to be and do more for them. God does not owe us anything and cannot be manipulated. He loves us, He wants us to talk and listen in prayer, He wants to love and bless us; but He is not our servant – we are His.

Our prayer should include an eternal perspective. We tend to pray for today. We tend to pray for earthly wants and needs. We tend to pray “our will be done” and then question, doubt, or even get angry when things do not turn out the way WE planned. Here are a few words to prompt you in prayer:

Relational – Do my prayer express relationship? Do my heart and my words express love, trust, and obedience? Are my expressions and expectations relational or demanding? Ask yourself, “How would I feel if someone I loved came and spoke to me this way?”

Radical – Are my prayers based on the need for the One true God to move mountains, drop jaws and open hearts and minds. Ask yourself, will what I am asking for change hearts, lives and behaviors to love and glorify Him alone? Am I asking in radical trust or am I playing it safe, “just in case…?” Are my thoughts God-size or weak and whiney?

Revealing – Am I asking God to reveal Himself, to glorify Himself, to be delighted and blessed in my prayers? What am I revealing about my heart and thoughts towards God in this prayer?

Responsive – Am I being responsive and responsible for what God has asked me to do and believe? Has God prompted or commanded me to do something that I have not obeyed? Am I shrugging off my mission? Have I responded to the opportunities and the power of His Spirit in me with all of the gifts and promises He has bestowed and my prayer is just an extension of that trust and obedience or am I hoping He will perform whatever needs to be done while I just watch from the sideline? Am I willing to be a part of the answer to my prayers? If I ask God to save the lost will I be willing to share the Gospel? If I ask for provisions for missions will I give first? If I ask to glorify Him am I willing to suffer or only give Him credit in my prosperity and victory? Do I really trust God enough to respect His response as I pray relational, radical, revealing prayers?