John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."
I heard a story that is stuck to my forethought. It is about a woman who has lived an active life- she raised three beautiful children, enjoyed a career in her chosen field, and served Christ with full diligence. Matter of fact, Christ is the very center of her everything. In the same room, face down to the floor, she would spend the waking hours of her day in complete fellowship with Christ. Later in her life she became very ill. Her daughter, noticing her decline, quit her high paying job to take care of her.
One day while her daughter was at her side, tears began rolling down her face. Her daughter reached over to touch her and asked what the matter was. Her mother, still crying and trying to speak tells her daughter that she misses her spot on the floor…
My mouth remains on the floor in revelation of this woman- which is practically on her death bed- whose biggest complaint is that she can’t get on the floor to pray. WOW! I am visually reminded of the Book of Revelation, chapter 4:9.
” 9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
11 “You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being.”
This challenged me. It challenged me so much so, that I began to question myself: Do I pray enough? Do I really fellowship with the Lord in my prayer time or is it just routine? What would happen if I devoted myself to prayer in a new way? How would my faith change? What am I saying to God when I don’t pray wholeheartedly? I could list many more questions and find the answer to each one in the Word of God.
I began pondering the importance of prayer in other cultures, and was reminded of one beautiful afternoon; my friend and I decided to go to the lake and relax. Soon after we got there this gentleman shows up in a panic (as if he was late). He sets up a little table, and then pulls out a little idol from a black plastic bag. He places the idol on top of the little table. He then proceeds to kneel and pray to this idol, and he remained there until the sun started to go down. He could have chosen any spot on the miles and miles of lake here in Chicago, but he chose to do it right in front of us. The message was clear. People all over the world pray to gods that are made with the hands of men. They pray faithfully. Some of these individuals pray multiple times a day, and at very specific times. They pray heartfelt prayers to a god that cannot hear nor answer. Yet I serve the risen Savior. His name is Jesus, and I’m lackadaisical in my prayer life. All I can say is that upon revelation, which comes from the Holy Spirit, we can choose to make moments like this a marker of our repentance.
So this day, I choose to devote myself to a more focused prayer life. I will choose to pick a spot in my home where I will meet with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I will:
“…Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all other things shall be added unto you.” -Matthew 6:33
I will use the model of Solomon in 1 Kings 8:22, 54:
“22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven.”
“54 And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the Lord, he arose from between the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.”
I will also observe the model of prayer shown of your servant Daniel in Daniel 6:10
10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
I will do this because your Word says,
“For the eyes of the Lord are over the Righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers…”
When I don’t know what to pray I will pray according to the model given by Jesus,
“In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 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”
One Love, the Greatest…
Today’s-Devotional
This is a word in season and resonates in me. It makes the point crystal clear. “They pray heartfelt prayers to a god that cannot hear nor answer. Yet I serve the risen Savior. His name is Jesus, and I’m lackadaisical in my prayer life“. Shall I continue in mediocrity in prayer and expect grace to abound, God forbid. Great article!!
Very nice and inspiring write up. i saw a friend a couple of weeks ago who told me how grateful to God she had been since she could painfully struggle to get on her knees to pray again. She had a very bad case of athrites which kept her on the bed for some months last year and has left her legs deformed. just like me she said prior to that incident she usually pray seated on her bed, chair or pew depending on where she is, but the illness has made her realise that we need to be thankful for even the seemingly ordinary and common things of life.
No doubt, as chrisians we need to be better focussed, more purposeful and of course more commited to our prayer lives in terms of prayer content and willingness to share with others the authority and power available to us through prayers. May God help us even as we do so.
I can’t explain how blessed and inspired Iam with this message.it has really challenged and also encourage me to step up my prayer life and add more to the time I spend in the presence of my God.thank u
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this really touched me and inspired me ,i like the steps alighted with the bible verses , I need to step up my prayer life ,God bless you