Communicating with Our Father: The Power of Prayer
Angie lives in North Carolina with her three children. Through her blog, she shares her story of how God has helped her through one of the darkest seasons of her life. Her desire is to help people see that God’s love is a constant source of peace and strength.
Are we there yet?? The inevitable (often annoying) question heard on a long trip. Recently, I started thinking about that question differently. I began to think about the question in relation to my prayer life. Do I “annoy” God with my prayers of what I want or need? Do I pray with urgency or with half-hearted mutters?
Pray Without Ceasing
The Bible is our prayer guide and continually states to “pray without ceasing.” The word ceasing means to ‘come to an end.’ We are to pray without ceasing, meaning we need to be in a constant state of prayer.
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV)
Prayer is one of the most powerful tools we have. Prayer moves mountains, heals sickness, and transforms lives. But the question is, do we pray with the urgency the Bible commands us to do?
If I were honest, my answer would be no. I often get trapped in thinking God knows my heart and what I want or need, “If I ask him, I’m reminding him of it. I need to be patient and wait – He has more important things to handle.” While yes, God knows our needs, and yes, we need to trust him, we need to continue to pray without ceasing.
God wants us to acknowledge his authority over our lives. We shouldn’t assume He will grant what we need, like a genie in a bottle. He doesn’t desire for us to treat him that way, nor does he deserve to be. He is our loving Father, but also our Sovereign God. We need to remember to stay humble and reflect on the cost of his love.
Jesus’ death is the reason we get to come to Him in prayer. Before his death, only the High Priest could come before God to pray for the people. Now we are blessed to go before God and seek him for all of our needs. Not only do we get to come before him, but Jesus is sitting at the right hand of God interceding for us, making sure our needs are heard. (Romans 8:34) How awesome is that? Jesus is telling God, “Listen, Father, they are calling out to you.”
Posture of Prayer
God has given us the freedom to pray wherever and however we would like, but a posture of prayer comes when we bow our heads, get on our knees, and pray. We need to humble ourselves and seek him, laying everything at His feet.
“Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.” Jeremiah 29:12 (NKJV)
Did you hear that word, GO? Go and make a point to find a place and pray. On several occasions during his ministry, Jesus snuck away and spent time in the quiet with His Father. We are to follow His example and still our hearts and seek God’s Word.
How do we pray?
There isn’t a wrong way to pray. God wants to hear our hearts.
Our tears are prayers, for he knows why they are falling. When we cry to him, we show God we have faith that he can help us through our pain.
Our uplifted hands are prayers when we don’t have words. We lift our hands to God and say, “Please take this from me.”
Our screams of frustration can be prayers. God can handle it. He knows when we are angry and can calm the storms of our hearts.
Listen to the prompts. A sudden thought of someone may be God prompting you to pray for someone who is hurting. Take a moment and ask God to touch that person and let them feel God’s presence.
We can even proclaim God’s Word and promises back to him. How wonderful is it to declare God’s words as prayers for our lives?
If you are lost on how or what to pray, we have an excellent example laid out for us in the Bible:
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Matthew 6:9-13 (NKJV)
I challenge you this week, examine your prayer life, as I will mine, and seek God in everything you do. He is waiting to hear from you.
