1/4/2015 4 Keys to Prayer
The operation or workings of prayer have been a mystery to some through the ages. For some prayer seems to be some mundane Christian civic duty; a check off list, if you will, of something that needs to be done. For others, prayer seems to be elusive; difficult to understand the concept of and even more difficult to do.
Good news! Prayer is not either of those things. Prayer is something that is given to us as an honor; as a way to reach the heavenly Father personally, one on one. How awesome is that? Prayer is as essential to the Christian life as breathing or eating. It is necessary to stay spiritually nourished in Him.
So, when Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, He gladly obliged because He Himself knows the significance and power in prayer. In this lesson there are four key components that can help us have a more powerful prayer life. The good news is, we’re learning from the best. We are sitting at the feet of Jesus and taking in these points as He shares with His disciples. Blessings ~
Luke 11:1 How awesome it is for the disciple to see such a one as He doing the miraculous and being identified as the Son of God, still find a need for prayer? It’s huge! It lets us know that if Jesus needed constant contact with the Father to do life on earth, than so do we. Perhaps this is why a disciple of His questioned Him on prayer and wanted to know more on how to do it? Asking to be taught the ins and outs of this valuable resource was the beginning of a great discovery that Jesus was all too willing to share.
Key #1: One has to have Acknowledging Prayer
Luke 11:2-4 When one acknowledges something or someone they are ascribing or giving them credit that they deserve. Here, opening up His teaching on prayer, Jesus jumps in without hesitation, stating, “When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven.” Now, notice first that Jesus didn’t say “if” ye pray. He point blank expected that His people should have an active and working prayer life so He said, “When ye pray.”
Starting with the statement, “Our Father which art in heaven,” Jesus acknowledges to whom one’s prayers should be directed. And, in the verses following God gets the credit for everything! This is acknowledgement.
“Our Father which art in heaven,” points one in the right direction.
“Hallowed be thy name.” Respects His holiness. We are seeking His holiness on our behalf. Heaven knows how to treat His name, they said “Holy” 3 times! Isaiah 6:3
“Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.” Accepts His will, His control, His plan.
“Give us day by day our daily bread.” Not that we can’t provide for ourselves, but our sufficiency is in God’s provisions for us. We have no real worries for we know God will provide.
Acknowledging prayer knows that forgiveness comes from God. 2 Chronicles 7:14 declares, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” God wants to spiritually heal people from their sin sick ways. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness,” (1 John 1:9).
In return, we are expected to offer forgiveness to those who ask for it. Gulp! Yes, forgiveness in any form can be a hard pill to swallow. But, let me ask you this. How many times has God said no to us whenever we sought healing and restoration for the wrongs we have done? Exactly, He hasn’t! Forgiveness, much like love, is nothing to be played with. It is not a lip service to please others rather, it is a heart service to the Lord. It is, in a sense, showing to others the same grace and mercy that God showed toward us. And, we acknowledge that this is His will for us.
Key #2: One has to have Persevering Prayer
Luke 11:5-9 Jesus uses this scenario to teach us the power of persevering prayer. One cannot easily give up so easily. We have been afforded the privilege to come before the throne of grace “that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need,” (Hebrews 4:16). We must be persistent in that privilege.
Jesus told the parable of the unjust judge and the widow to illustrate His point: “Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me,” (Luke 18:5). Jesus then asked, “Shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:7-8, emphasis mine).
Key #3: One has to have Expectant Prayer
A powerful key component of prayer is not to give up too quickly.
Luke 11:9-10 When one prays expect to receive an answer; expect to see some sort of fulfillment to come from your prayers. Look for something to happen as a result of your praying.
He doesn’t tell us to “ask” without the expectation of receiving something. No, He says if you do this, then this will happen; and so it goes with the other instructions to “seek and knock.”
Even if the answer doesn’t look the way you imagine it should, your prayers do not fall on deaf ears. Be confident that God hears you. God is attentive to you. God does not leave you in a state of wanting. David said, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want,” (Psalm 23:1). There will be results.
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him,” (1 John 5:14-15). Therefore, we can expect to see results.
Key #4: One has to have Believing Prayer
Luke 11:11-13 Believe in the goodness of God. Believe in your relationship with Him as a child of the heavenly Father. Believe that He always seeks to give you His best (ex. John 3:16). I often refer to God in my personal prayer as the Good Father who gives good gifts to His children. It’s something we must hold on to and depend upon.
Believe that God knows how to answer our prayers, in His time, in His plan for our best interests. This is where a child like faith comes into play. This is a trust issue with Him. “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus,” (Philippians 4:19). He is well able and wants to answer our prayers. “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive,” (Matthew 21:22, emphasis mine).
Believe it today. Ask with a believing heart and He WILL give!
Ask
Trust & Believe
Expect