WHAT
IS PRAYER?
Prayer
is you or me talking to God with a sincere desire to enter into a
conscious and intimate relationship with Him, as a child with a
loving father.
Prayer
can take many forms and is not just for petition (asking for things).
It can also be to praise God, to thank Him for all He’s done for
you, to intercede for others, to confess your sins, and to submit
your will to Him (abandoning your own desires and surrendering your
will to God’s will).
God
is Love and He is omniscient! He knows what’s in your heart and He
knows your thoughts even before you speak. You can’t hide from
Him, con Him, or manipulate Him so be honest with Him when you pray.
If you’re happy, sad, concerned, even angry, tell Him so.
It’s
been said that Prayer is the highest use to which speech can be put!
To be an effective Christian, you should make prayer a part of your
life everyday.
Don’t
be like some people who only call on Him when they are in a crisis
situation.
Psalm
116:2 says
“Because
He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.”
Even
though God knows the condition of our hearts, He still hungers for
our fellowship. Revelation
3:20
says “Here
I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and
opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they
with Me.”
WHO
DOES GOD HEAR?
During
one of our Bible studies, we discovered five (5) scripture
references and points that answer this question:
1.
God
Hears The Humble.
Luke
18:9-14
says
“To some who were confident of
their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told
this parable: 'Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee
and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself
and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people -
robbers, evildoers, adulterers - or even like this tax collector. I
fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
'But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even
look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy
on me, a sinner.’
'I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home
justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be
humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
2.
God
Hears The Righteous.
Psalm
34:15-17 says “The
eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to
their cry; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to
blot out their name from the earth. The
righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all
their troubles.”
3.
God
Hears Those Who Fear Him.
Psalm
145:18-19 says
“The
Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry
and saves them.”
4.
God
Hears Those Who Please Him.
1
John 3:21-22 says
“Dear
friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before
God
and
receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do
what pleases him.”
5.
God
Hears Those Who Abide In Him.
John
15:7 says “If
you remain in me
and
my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done
for you.”
End
Of Post