We pray because we love God. We pray because we depend on God. God is our source – He is our life!!
Colossians 3:4 KJV “When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”
Through prayer we receive the comfort, the strength and all the other resources that we need in life – both naturally and spiritually. Prayer is our relationship to God – without Him we are nothing.
I was raised in a Christian home. My father was a Pentecostal preacher and a cotton farmer. We all worked in the fields picking cotton, helping any way we could. During times of drought, my folks would often pray for rain. Then, when there were times of excessive rain, my parents would pray for the rain to stop. Prayer was a pivotal part of our lives.
One year there was a huge hailstorm that knocked all the balls of cotton off the stems threatening a possible crop failure. At that time we had no insurance. My dad would go out into the field that we named the “40” and spend time alone with God and pray fervently. Sometimes he would be there for hours praying and seeking God. But, by the time he returned home, he always had the assurance that everything would be okay because He had gotten a hold of God.
I was raised to allow the Holy Spirit to move in Church. After church people would come to the house and we would pray sometimes all night and see the power of God move. The amount of time was not important. The important thing was to pray. Many were set free and their lives were dramatically changed.
My Dad would read the Bible and pray often into the late hours of the night. He wore out several Bibles until the pages would fall apart. Are we that generation? Is my generation getting stronger or are we a generation that has gotten weaker. Have we failed to teach our children how to pray? Do we know how to seek God’s face? Do your children know how to repent and ask God to forgive them when they do wrong?
DO YOUR CHILDREN EVEN KNOW THE TEN COMMANDMENTS??
We have children and grandchildren growing up in a world that has dramatically changed. The kids go to school and see and hear all kinds of things that were unheard of when I went to school.
The Lord says, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. (Matthew 26:41)
Lack of prayer lessens our strength, weakening us toward the wiles of the devil. We must go before the throne of God for our family, our nation, our schools and our churches. Jesus told us, to ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be open unto you. (Matthew 7:7)
Prayer is the greatest resource we have. It is a power that we simply are not using very much today. As Christians we pray together on that one special day, but, how much greater and effective could our prayers be if everyone decided to begin praying every day?
Matthew 18:19-20 says: “Amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to ray, it shall be granted to them by my Heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them.”
God promises to hear your prayers.
Psalm 91:15 KJV “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.”
Psalm 50:15 KJV “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.”
Commit to praying about everything that concerns you and your loved ones.
James 5:16 KJV “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
We serve a Good God! He wants to bless you because you are His child. And many of your blessings come as a result of prayer! Keep praying and expect an answer because God chooses to work through the prayers of His people.
Prayer also develops your intimacy with the Lord. Prayer is a two-way street. We pray, and then we listen. When you pray biblical prayers, in accordance to the will of God, it brings results! Prayer ushers in the will of God into the earth and into your life. Instead of saying “Keep on trucking” let’s say, “Keep on praying!”
Our God loves for us to pray His Word because we are praying the solution and agreeing with Him. God delights when His people look to Him for help instead of trying to work through situations without Him. The Word says that we have not because we ask not! Our Lord is always willing, able and ready to help in any circumstance. He waits patiently for us to ask for His assistance.
And that is why we pray!!
Praise Him!
