Joy
in Prayer
Hello
to you,
There
are two beautiful people in my life that are very ill. One is my
Aunt Mary. The other day my cousin asked, “ Can’t you just pray and
she’ll get up?” I believe with all my heart and soul the answer is
“YES”. A loud and boisterous “YES”. God is still working the
miracles of restoration and healing. He still heals the brokenhearted
and the sick. If you are His child, you know and I know that sometimes
it is His will
not to do so. Is it our lack of faith? I think
not, for our faith lies in knowing that He can heal and has healed.
So, “What
difference does it make when we pray?” “Why pray at all if God is
going to do whatever He wills to do?”
I once
read:
“
Our prayers may be awkward.
Our
attempts may be feeble.
But
since the power of prayer is in the one who bears it
And
not in the one who says it,
Our
prayers do make a difference.”
Let me
begin with a ‘JOYFUL’ proclamation:
Death
to flesh – Life to Spirit
It is
your Spirit that prays according to what God has done not what God will
do! As His child we are seated with Christ. “Spiritually seated”.
Walking and standing with God on His promises, not on our requests.
I don’t mean physically walking and standing but seated in the knowledge
of His power.
Only
the Spirit can pray. There is a war going on between flesh and spirit.
We must crucify the body and bring our body into a place of submission.
Submission is to pray according to His will; His Spirit will show you how
to pray.
A few
days ago I awoke early, showered and readied myself for work. As
I was beginning to put my make-up on, my husband turned over and commented
that I had showered. I thought that strange since I shower every
morning at that time before work. I turned on the television to watch
the morning news as I normally do and there it was right in front of my
face. It was Sunday morning, not Monday morning.
I then
smiled and remembered my shower that morning. It had been spent in
prayer. Prayer for cleansing of a home that I knew needed cleansing.
My prayer had been for protection at every door and window and heart of
a family that I know. My prayer had been for the Spirit of God to
permeate that home with hope, peace, and love. My prayer had included
asking for a special someone to receive the gift of God’s son ,Jesus, so
this entire family could become children of God.
Did I
wake up accidentally? No; my Spirit was drawn by God’s
Spirit to pray. Does it make a difference when we pray? Yes.
Praying
is not a “coke” machine, where you put in the correct amount and push the
button for the specific soda that you desire and out it pops. Prayer
is not a self-seeking action. It is more. So much more.
Prayer
is a place where no flesh is allowed. It is a place where God is
present. We ask from our flesh for the needs in our life or the lives
of others. We speak words. We seek and pray so we will not fall into
temptation. We speak words. We knock- no words are spoken here…this
prayer comes from the Holy Spirit.
“… the
Spirit helps us in our weakness, We don’t know what we ought to pray for,
but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot
express.” Romans 8:26
Jesus
has asked us to pray, not for our own selfish desires and needs but for
God’s will to be done in our lives and in the lives of those around us.
He hears all our prayers, the asking ones, the seeking ones, and the knocking
ones.
“Ask
and it will be given to you, Seek and you will find, Knock and the door
shall be opened unto you.” Matthew 7:7
In the
Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed several times before He finally submitted
to the will of God. In fact He said, if there be a way, let this
cup
pass from me. It’s not always easy to die to self. It’s never
easy!
Do I
quit praying because He doesn’t answer the way I want Him to? Does my faith
waiver because I don’t think He’s hearing me? No! Definitely
not. I continue to pray without ceasing
(1 Thessalonians
5:17), rejoicing in the things to come and rest in the knowledge
of God’s love for me and for you.
When
I pray sometimes I beg and I plead because I want my way. But most
of all I want His will-God’s perfect plan.
I often
say I would have campaigned to set Jesus free. I would have griped and
put up posters and gone to the highest court to stop this death of my Lord.
However, this was not God’s plan. He silenced those that might do
this for He had a plan for you and a plan for me.
“For
God so loved the world (that’s you and me) that He gave His ONLY Son, that
whoever will believe in Him will not die but will have eternal life.”
John 3:16
Eternal
life begins at the point of your belief. “Whoever calls on the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ will be saved.” Romans 10”17
Does
it make a difference when we pray? Darn right it does. Just try it.
Ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you. Ask Him to show you His work
in your life. I PROMISE HE WILL!
Joy to
you,
Martha
Read
the book of John- find the prayer where Jesus prayed for you!!!
