Prayer is a popular subject of books and sermons. But in its simplicity, prayer is an ongoing conversation with God, the result of our relationship with Him. A relationship that He initiated.
I think “You want to have a relationship with me, God? Really?” It seems impossible, yet the Bible says YES.
God, who loves us, gave His son not only as a provision for our sin but also that we could experience a relationship with Him, now, as well as in eternity. The Creator of all wants to have a relationship with us. The Bible tells us He loves us with a lavish, everlasting love, and this love draws us to Himself. This is at the heart of who God is.
Prayer Develops Our Relationship with God
Prayer can be as simple as “Lord, can we talk?” or as brief as one word: “Help.” But also, as profound as “Lord our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth.”
God made us with the basic need to be known. Not superficially but deeply. This God-given need is fulfilled through relationships built on communication. Prayer is how we develop this relationship with God. With God, we are safe to share all our concerns and joys. We see this in David’s relationship with God. He pours out all his longings, fears, praise, and thanksgiving. He holds nothing back. At times, his prayers are like a petulant child, and at other times, he falls before God in wonder and awe. God wants us to be free to bring all our concerns to Him and then to rest in His presence free of concern, as a little child rests against its mother (see Psalm 131:2). And on the other hand, He desires that we recognize Him as Creator of the universe, which is full of His glory as expressed in Psalm 19.
If we sat quietly for 10 minutes a day, no phone, social media, computer, or TV, would we hear him? Would we be able to receive and really comprehend His presence in our lives? In his book, Why Pray? John Devries states, “Prayer is a relationship in which we first of all recognize who God is and how greatly He is to be praised. And prayer is the means by which we do that. All of our communication with God is prayer. In prayer, we are enfolded into God, and God is enfolded into us.” This is consistent with John 17:20-21. Jesus prayed for the disciples the night before He went to the cross, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
The Privilege of Prayer
The desire of Jesus was that we would be one with the Father as He was one with the Father. This oneness develops as we engage not in “a duty” to pray but in the ongoing privilege of prayer.
When we pray, we can experience what Peter describes as partaking of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:3-4). “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these, He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
But in order to participate in the divine nature, we must engage with our divine God. We do this through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus promised to send to us as a helper and comforter in John 14:16-17. When we receive Jesus as our savior, the Holy Spirit comes and makes His abode with us. Prayer opens our hearts to the power of the Holy Spirit, who has been given to comfort and empower us. But if we don’t make prayer part of the natural outpouring of our love for Jesus, we will miss out on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In a world of spiritual darkness and spiritual battles for our mind and soul, it is the empowering of the Holy Spirit that makes it possible for us to shine the light of Jesus in dark places.
All of us have electricity in our homes, but if we don’t turn on the switch, it won’t do us any good. We will live in darkness, not light, coldness, not warmth. It is the same with the Holy Spirit. Prayer turns on our spiritual light switch, enhancing our relationship with Jesus and our impact on the world.
Twice a month, I attend a morning of prayer and meditation with women from my church. After the devotional offering, we sit in silence for 15 minutes. At first, this was difficult for me, but as time passed, I often found myself softly crying as God ministered to me during the time of silence. Sometimes, He would reveal a need for healing or give me a deeper sense of His love. I no longer dread it. Like Samuel, in I Samuel 3:9, I have learned to say “Speak Lord, I am listening.”
God Answers Prayers
Often, I am afraid to pray in case God doesn’t answer as I want. But God always answers. It may be Yes, No, or Not yet. His No or delay is never because He doesn’t love me, but because His plan for me may not be the plan I have.
Never be afraid to pray. Will you get everything you pray for? Probably not. That is not the point of prayer. The purpose of prayer is 1) to have a relationship with our heavenly Father, 2) to be empowered by the Holy Spirit, and 3) to be transformed into the image of Jesus. These three purposes enable us to experience being one with the Father, as Jesus is one with the Father. Our oneness will lead us to know God’s will for our lives, to enjoy Him, and to participate in the divine nature through our ongoing relationship with Jesus.
Sometimes, God surprises us with an unexpected answer to our prayer. A few months after my husband died, I awoke about 1 AM. I peppered God with questions. What am I doing? Am I supposed to keep writing, speaking? Does anything I write make a difference? Eventually, I got up. I was restless. In the middle of the night, I looked at my emails.
At the very moment I was praying and questioning God, an email arrived from a woman who had read my blog, “Listen to the Music.” She shared some recent losses, then let me know that what I had written had encouraged and comforted her and pointed her to the scriptures and prayers she needed.
That night God saw fit to answer the prayers of two women, miles apart, who didn’t know each other personally. It wasn’t because our prayers were so powerful or special, but because He is faithful. He knew both our needs and met them in the middle of the night. The purpose was to bring glory to Himself and to remind both of us that He loves us and cares about our questioning and hurting hearts.
Would God still be working even if I hadn’t been praying? Absolutely. But my faith wouldn’t have grown because I would have missed the opportunity to see His hand in my life. I would have missed out on participating in God’s divine nature.
In Psalm 78, God admonishes Israel for failing to tell their children about His wondrous deeds. He tells them not to forget His works, to keep His commandments, and He reminds them that they have not prepared their hearts for God.
How to Prepare Our Hearts for God
How can we prepare our hearts for God? By praying and then proclaiming His work in our lives. Our prayers of praise, thanksgiving, supplication, and lament are all heard by God.
Prayer can be formal, where we stop everything and pray. We can be alone or in a group. Prayer can be informal, short, long, or sometimes a heavy sigh. The Bible says even when we don’t know how to pray, the Holy Spirit (our Helper) intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
How is this possible? Because God knows before we utter a word what is on our hearts. Psalm 139:2 “You understand my thought from far away. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold Lord, you know it all.” Incredible! But this is our God. He wants us to know Him and be one with Him.
Most of us recognize the voice of those we love because we have spent time with them. It is the same with Jesus. How will we recognize His voice if we don’t spend time with Him?
If you struggle with prayer, I encourage you to start with prayers from the Psalms, where every human emotion is expressed. Pray your favorite hymn. Prayer is not a formula. It is talking to Jesus in the car, a chair, at church, at work, or with friends.
God is always present and listening, 24/7. He’s always speaking. We just need to be still long enough to hear, pay attention, and engage.
Today, make time for God. Enjoy His presence and get to know Him a little deeper than before.
Blessings,
Personal Parables Questions
- What one change will you make today to make time for God?
- What wonderous deeds of the Lord will declare to your family or friend today?
- How will you encourage others to enjoy the presence of Jesus?
Prayer
Today Lord, my heart’s desire is to be one with You. Help me to be still in your presence. I don’t want to miss your voice. Amen.
Scripture for Meditation
Psalm 131:2 NASB20
I have certainly soothed and quieted my soul;
Like a weaned child resting against his mother,
My soul within me is like a weaned child.
Psalm 19:1-4 NIV
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
Music for Reflection
