A Life of PRAYER
Call to me, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.
āJeremiah 33:3
If the FOUNDATIONS are destroyed, What can the righteous do?.
āPsalm 11:3
Call to me, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know. āJeremiah 33:3
If the FOUNDATIONS are destroyed,
What can the righteous do? āPsalm 11:3
What can the righteous do? āPsalm 11:3
PART 1:
What Prayer Means to Me
Foundations are essential. Foundations are a vital part in building anything that is strong, substantial, and enduring. If we want to be great at anything, whether it be in a sport, business, music, marriage, or life, there will always be foundations that are fundamental to our success. We will never be able to build beyond or go forward beyond the strength of our foundations.
For those of us who have decided to pursue Godās will for our lives and to live our lives for His glory, certain foundations and fundamentals are also critical. One such foundation is the essential foundation of establishing a consistent, personal prayer life.
We all know that a personal prayer life is an important part of our Christian lives, but I think we often lack understanding as to WHY it is so important. āWhat is really happening when I pray? āWhat happens when I donāt pray? āDoes it really matter one way or the other? How have I been designed by God to function?ā How does God work His will and plan for me?
In preparing this material, the Holy Spirit revealed this thought to me:
āSo many of the problems and issues that we currently face are simply a result of PRAYERLESSNESS.ā
We get into trouble when we donāt take time to pray. We get out of Godās timing. āWe often move out ahead of God. āWe lack the spiritual discernment and strength to boldly step into those things that have been prepared for us. āThings get out of line and out of order when we donāt take time to pray.
Instead of subduing things around us as we should, we find ourselves subject to them. We find ourselves subject to the pressures around us, the will of other people, and even the weakness of our own flesh.
But the good news is this:
As we begin to give ourselves consistently to a life of personal prayer, things can begin to change and improve QUICKLY..
As we once again return to this fundamental of a consistent, personal prayer time we can almost immediately reap some of the following benefits:
- a greater peace of mind
- a greater sense of rest
- a greater personal confidence
- a greater sense of readiness
Do you have an established, personal prayer life?
Do you keep a consistent prayer time or prayer times with the Lord?
Many people think they do until they honestly and objectively look at how much time is really being spent in prayer. We donāt want to be self-deceived, thinking that because we know that we SHOULD pray that we actually DO pray. The Bible teaches us that only the doers of the Word of God will get results. When we know something but donāt do it, we only deceive ourselves.
I have written this material to share some personal revelations and realizations that have contributed to the development of this foundation in my own life. I am still growing in these things. I pray that they will also inspire you as you seek to gain consistency in developing a strong and consistent prayer life for yourself. I believe they will produce a revelation in you that will cause you to want to once again give attention to this essential foundation of a consistent, personal prayer life.
Prayer is “MY TIME with Him.”
The more I have this mindset about prayer, the more I find myself guarding my time of prayer and becoming possessive about it. Prayer is my time with God! I have come to realize that I cannot function optimally without it.
PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
PHILIPPIANS 4:6 (NLT)
Donāt worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Donāt worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
What an invitation! What an opportunity! I am invited to pray about EVERYTHING, making my requests known to the living GodāāāMy Father.
With this privileged opportunity in mindā¦
Prayer is no longer a duty for me. Prayer is A PLACE of fellowship which allows me the opportunity to establish my faith and trust in God!
Prayer is A PLACE. Itās a place I HAVE and a place that I TAKE. I am invited to come boldly to the throne of Godās grace! Prayer is a processing place, where I process things from my heart with my Father. Prayer is also my receiving place, where I receive mercy and grace.
HEBREWS 11:6
Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The prophet Elijah would often speak about the Lord God in this context, ābefore Whom I stand.ā [1 Ki 17:1] Now, through the blood of Christ and Godās perfect work of righteousness within me, I can say the sameāāāāMy Father God, before whom I stand.ā āHe has given me this honored place!
Prayer is a place of fellowship which allows me the opportunity to establish my faith. āWhat do I mean by āestablishing my faithā?
Well, I understand that faith in God doesnāt come through my prayers. āIn other words, I donāt pray for more faith. āFaith comes BY HEARINGāāāby hearing Godās Word to me personally. [Rom 10:17] This is also why I bring my Bible with me into prayer. āSo, although I donāt pray that God will give me more faith, I do understand that my life of prayer is a great contributor to me being in a place to hear what the Lord wants to communicate to me, so that faith can come! Prayer is a big part of my life of fellowship with God, where I can more easily pick up and discern His word, leading, and direction for me.
But beyond the benefit of hearing, Prayer gives me the opportunity to rehearse to God what I know He has said and to āget in faithā with Him from my heart.
My prayer time gives me ample time, place, and space to RELEASE my faith in God.
JAMES 1:6
But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
For my prayers to be effective, itās not enough for me to just utter words in prayer. Jesus taught us that we shouldnāt think we will be heard for our āmany words.ā [Matt 6] Itās vitally important that I pray āin faithā when I pray. Getting āin faithā doesnāt take forever, but it does require some time and focus. There is a spiritual exchange and transaction being made.
- Ask and receive, that your joy may be made full. [Jn 16:23]
- Ask in faith, with no doubting. [Jas 1:6]
- Make your specific requests known to God [Phil 4:6]
- Casting all your cares upon Him. [1 Pet 5:7]
We are told to āwork out our own salvation with fear and trembling.ā [Phil 2:13] It takes time to work things out! āHaving a consistent, established prayer time gives me this time.āAlthough I donāt pray for more faith, I now recognize that prayer is a main avenue through which I release my faith in God.
PROVERBS 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
For me, prayer is a place where I can āacknowledge Himā with various matters and receive His direction.
How do I acknowledge Him in all my ways? āOne way is to make all matters a matter of prayer. āOnce again this takes time and some diligence. āLiving a consistent life of personal prayer affords me this time. āLord, what about this? Lord, what about that? I acknowledge You with this decision. I acknowledge Your will in this matter. What say You, Lord? Thank You for directing me in this. I offer this matter to You.ā
Why would I leave matters to chance when I can make them a matter of prayer?
Why would I rely on my finite and limited understanding of a situation when I can benefit from the assistance of the One who knows all things?
Godās promise to me is that He will direct me in all matters that I take time to acknowledge Him with.
Without a consistent time of prayer I find that I am more prone to living life based upon my own understanding, rather than with Godās direction. This is where mistakes are made which donāt need to be made. This is where time is wasted which doesnāt need to be wasted. If only I would acknowledge Him first!
We often think we donāt have time to pray, but in reality we donāt have time not to pray! Our lives are short. They are but a vapor in light of eternity. We are instructed to redeem the time in the midst of these evil days where we now live. [Eph 5:16]
Rather than just pushing ahead with our plans, as Godās children we have the benefit of being able to acknowledge the Lord FIRST. He will be faithful to direct us if only we will spend enough time to check in with Him.
Prayer is a time of āsowing to the Spiritā which allows me to feel satisfied and on top of things in life, where I donāt feel like I am always playing catch-up.
GALATIANS 6:7-8
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed? Have you ever felt like you are consistently running behind? Have you ever felt like life was piling up around you, and you were being tossed around by lifeās circumstances, rather than being able to chart a constructive course forward, with solid, sound-minded decisions?
Have you ever felt like everything was moving too fast around you? This is not Godās plan for you! This is not His design!
For me, these are all signals that I need to slow down and pray. These are sure indicators that I havenāt been taking consistent time to sow to Godās spiritual realm through my prayers.
Keeping a regular prayer time helps me to ACTIVATE, to TAP INTO, and to LIVE from the flow of the Spirit of God that is within me.
JOHN 7:37-39
On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, āIf anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.ā But this He spoke concerning the Spirit…
The Holy Spirit knows all things! The Holy Spirit has been sent to teach us all things! The Holy Spirit has been sent to reveal the will of the Father and then to empower us to carry out that will. Living a life of consistent personal prayer helps me to walk in the Spiritās higher flow for my life.
I have been designed by God to live my life with the Spiritās empowering ability from within me.
Living a life of consistent personal prayer helps me to live according to Godās divine order for my life ā spirit first.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:23
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ..
I am designed to acknowledge the Holy Spirit inside me, and to allow Him to lead me, from the inside-out.
I am designed by God to live from the INSIDE-OUT.
PROVERBS 4:23
Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
MARK 14:38
āWatch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.ā.
I have been designed by God to spend the majority of my life purposefully and proactively ACTING at His direction and leading, rather than REACTING to lifeās circumstances. Living a consistent life of prayer enables me to do this as I take time to prioritize my inner man and sow to the spirit.
When I find myself merely REACTING in life and living from the OUTSIDE-IN it makes me feel uncomfortable. And I rightly should feel uncomfortable! Something is not right! This is contrary to Godās design for me. A consistent prayer life helps me keep things in the right order ā spirit first!
Part 2 Contents here
Part 3 Contents here
Part 4 Contents here
Part 5 Contents here
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