Prayer is vital for the follower of Christ. That is a statement that goes without saying. Prayer for most people is a monologue of requests, with a possible praise statement or word of thanks in hopes that what I said will move God to a desired action. Think about your prayers for a minute. What are the major themes? Are you asking, telling, claiming, listing, begging, thanking etc.? In other words, we confess sin so not to have anything inhibit God answering our requests, we pray scriptures that hopefully provide us with a positive outcome, and believe by faith that God will answer what we tell Him we want Him to do for us and others. It is a prayer mindset that begins with us: Our heart, our agendas, our needs, our lists, for our benefit with the hope that we will move God in our direction. Prayer is not a magical ritual that allows us to bring the divine under our control. Only when give up fashioning God in our image and seeking God where we think God should be, only then will we truly perceive the Christ who stands in our midst and get on board with his agenda. You may not think your prayer life to be that selfish because you are really sincere when you pray, but visit it again and I believe you will see the underlining truth that your prayers begins with you to move God instead of beginning with God to move you in the direction and purpose that is on His heart. Look what Jesus says on the subject:
”Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. "Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:12-15 (NASB). It all begins with God, the works that He does in your life and in the life of others causes us to believe in Him, prayer asked according to His name, His heart and His purposes (will) will be answered. Our prayer life is for the sole purpose of glorifying the Father in Jesus not checking off our “God you do this list”. Asking anything in His name, isn’t simply covered with our typical prayer ending line of “in Jesus name”, it means the things you perceive, hear, and read what is on God’s heart for those people and life areas that you see Him definitely moving in and through; that is where you begin to pray in His name. Prayer can’t be measured on a scale of success of failure because it is God’s work and God always succeeds. When we have failed at prayer, it is because we decided what shape our prayer should have, and are now frustrated that there is nothing we can do to implement our ambition and thus move God accordingly. If you have communed with the Father, if you have heard His voice and it has moved you toward obedience, if you are able to discern His Spirit is your life situations, then you have been successful in prayer.
”Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. "Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:12-15 (NASB). It all begins with God, the works that He does in your life and in the life of others causes us to believe in Him, prayer asked according to His name, His heart and His purposes (will) will be answered. Our prayer life is for the sole purpose of glorifying the Father in Jesus not checking off our “God you do this list”. Asking anything in His name, isn’t simply covered with our typical prayer ending line of “in Jesus name”, it means the things you perceive, hear, and read what is on God’s heart for those people and life areas that you see Him definitely moving in and through; that is where you begin to pray in His name. Prayer can’t be measured on a scale of success of failure because it is God’s work and God always succeeds. When we have failed at prayer, it is because we decided what shape our prayer should have, and are now frustrated that there is nothing we can do to implement our ambition and thus move God accordingly. If you have communed with the Father, if you have heard His voice and it has moved you toward obedience, if you are able to discern His Spirit is your life situations, then you have been successful in prayer.
So now that I have given you a headache on something you thought you had wired, here are a few methods to consider as you strive to deepen your conduit of communication that we call prayer.
· Since God loves you unconditionally, come boldly to the throne room of grace knowing that you are always welcome to share what is on your mind. Come with a heart of humility reminding yourself that He is the Almighty and sovereign God and you are not.
· Since prayer is communication (a two way encounter of speaking and listening), take some time in silence before the Lord, maybe asking Him at the beginning to reveal what is on His agenda for the day and for those individuals you are praying for. Listen and respond to what He tells you.
· Since God dwells in you know and that He is ever desiring to be included in every aspect your day, acknowledge that fact and make space in your day for Him. Pray: “Lord, here is my schedule and “to do” list, I yield it to you; make any changes you would like so that I can best honor you.”
· Since God speaks through His word, allow Him to speak to you through the text, try not to manipulate your “word time” into a study method, but a chance for the Holy to invade you heart and mind.
Bottom Line: If your prayer life is connecting you closer and into a more intimate relationship with Jesus then what you are doing is truly prayer. If it is based on the percentage of how many things God answered from your list as successful then I would revisit who is on the throne of your life.
No comments:
Post a Comment