Prayer 101

What would you do if you had the President of The United States' ear? What if we were able to call him directly and plead our case for economic reform? How about the welfare of our loved ones? World affairs? How quickly would you access him?

There is a story of such a man in Scriptures. He may not have had access to the rulers on earth but he had access to the King of Kings, the Creator. His name was...Moses. He spoke to God directly..."face to face" when he went up the Mountain. He spoke so intimately with God, that God changed him...God's desires and Glory became Moses’ whole life, purpose and prayers. He pleaded, interceded and rejoiced with God. He had complete confidence in God's faithfulness to accomplish all He had purposed for His people. Moses had God's "ear".

In Exodus we also learn that God heard the crying out of the Israelites in bondage (Ex. 3:7).
God hears His people.



This is what prayer is...humbly speaking with God and He hearing us. Hebrews talks about us coming to the “Throne of Grace”...We can enter the Heaven of Heavens with confidence because we are ushered and announced by Christ. Christ gives us access to the Father and prayer is the means of communication with Him.
What does Scripture say about prayer?
The first thing is that we are instructed and admonished to pray.
Paul tells us to “pray without ceasing”. 1 Thess. 5:17
Is. 55:6 tells us:
“Seek the Lord while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near”
We are told to “pray everywhere” in 1 Tim 2:8.
Paul exorts us to :
“Be anxious for nothing, BUT in everything BY prayer and supplication WITH thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Emphasis mine.

Prayer is not the end but the means to the end. It is through prayer that we find strength, direction, wisdom and power to persevere. Prayer changes us…it gets us refocused on God. Prayer also takes our eyes of our circumstances and sets them on Christ.

Who can pray?
Everyone can pray, but only when we are in Christ, do we have assurance that God will respond to our prayers.

Ps. 10:17
“Lord you have heard the desires of the humble,
You will prepare their heart,
You will cause Your ear to hear”
In Revelation 5:8, we see a beautiful picture of The Lamb opening the scroll. Those in attendance there have golden bowls filled with incense “which are the prayers of the Saints” We who are in Christ are called saints. Do you ever think that all your prayers for redemption are being stored up in heaven? God hears every one of those prayers and keeps them. The aroma of incense is often a picture of our prayers rising to heaven. (Ps. 141:2) It please God to hear from us...it shows our dependence on Him and our desire for Him


What hinders prayer?
We are told to pray with confidence and boldness but Scripture also tell us to come humbly and cleansed.
David in Psalm 66 recognizes that if he had held sin in his heart God would not have heard him. He needed to confess his sin to God before God would even hear him.
Is.1:15-16 says rebukes the Israelites:
“When you spread your hands
I will hide myself from you
Even though you make many prayers
I will not hear…
Wash yourselves clean,
Put away the evil of your doings…
Cease to do evil,
Learn to do good.
Seek justice
Rebuke the oppressor
Defend the fatherless
Plead for the widow”
Later in 59:2 he once again warns:
“But your iniquities have separated you from God.
And your sins have hidden His face from you.”

Often we hear the question, does God hear the prayers of those who have not put their faith and trust in Christ? I will let Scripture speak for itself.
John 9:31
“Now we know that God does not hear sinners, but if anyone is a worshipper of God and does His will, He hears him.”

Two thing we understand from this passage: God does not hear sinner. And He hears only worshippers who hear and do his will" What sets apart a true follower/worshipper of God? One who does His will. If Christ's obedience to the Father is what we are to follow, that must be our distinct way of life.


So why do we pray? First, it honors God. Second, prayer is a source of power for growth and perseverance in our spiritual lives. Third, it aligns our mind and will to God's. Prayer is not easy...it takes diligince, purpose and a plan. What more could the enemy want than to keep God's people discouraged, confused and ineffective?

Ravi Zacharias tells a story of a young man fighting in the Koren War. He was with his troop and some of the soldiers were out in an open field. The bullets were flying and many of his friends were wounded. His officer commnaded him to go out to bring back to the shelter the wounded men. The young man looked at his watch. Again, the commander ordered him to go out. He paused and looked at his watch again. A third time he was commanded and this time he looked at his watch and immediately darted out into the open field to retrive his wounded friends. One by one he brought every single wounded soldier back. He weaved his way through bullets to bring the last one in...safely. His commander asked him why he did not move out at the first command? He responded that his mother, before he left, had told him at what hour of the day she would be praying for him and he was waiting for that very minute to begin! Prayer goes before our children, our husbands and our loved ones to seek God's best for them. Prayer often is a protective covering over them...it is our secret weapon against the enemy who wants to destroy. Can we begin this weekend to have a disciplined time for prayer? Let's not forget the preparation for prayer...confession. Let's commit to the three P's...Prepare, Pray and Persevere!

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I am going out of town this weekend and will leave EARLY Friday morning (4:00 a.m.) So I appologize for no post on Friday. I covet your prayers for me and so many others who will be gathering for a BSF Retreat. Pray for safety as we travel and for God's rich equipping.