The study on prayer has brought the greatest growth in my spiritual life. There are so many scriptures in the Bible encouraging us to pray. Prayer is simply having a conversation with Father God, encompassing acts of worship, praise, thanksgiving and supplication for one’s self or others. One can pray for various reasons; to ask for help or to intercede for others is one of those reasons, but it can also be to express thoughts and feelings, to seek spiritual guidance or to build a relationship with the Trinity.
I have found that the more I study God’s word and know what is on His heart, the more comfortable I am to share what is on my heart. In Job, 22:21 (AMPC) it says, “…acquaint now yourself with Him (agree with His will) ) and be at peace; by that you shall prosper and great good shall come to you.” Then in verses 27-28 it says, “You will make your prayer to Him and He will hear you…You shall also decide and decree a thing and it shall be established for you and the light of God’s favor shall shine upon your ways.”
Wow, what a promise! So first it is for me to acquaint myself with Him, get to know Him, His heart, His ways and His promises. Then as I do that, I can come into agreement with Him and His promises for me and others. Father God is interested in the details of our lives, so I will find His promises – the scripture that pertains to those needs. Then I can pray and personalize those promises, putting the appropriate pronouns or name right into that scripture. For example, changing ‘you/your’ to ‘me/my’ in Ephesians 3:16 looks like this: “May He grant you [me] out of the rich treasury of his glory to be strengthened and reinforced with mighty power in the inner man by the Holy Spirit. (Himself indwelling your [my] inner most being and personality.)”
In 1 John 5:14-15, we are given another great promise as it says: “And this is the confidence, the assurance, the privilege of boldness which we have in Him; (we are sure) that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan), He listens to and hears us. And since we positively know that He listens to us in whatever we ask, we also know (with settled and absolute knowledge) that we have (granted to us as our present possessions) the request made of Him.”
Digging deeper into prayer for me means learning all that I can about His promises. Books on prayer have become some of my favourite reading. Mark Batterson has written the book, The Circle Maker explaining and expressing how to pray circles around our biggest dreams and greatest fears. He writes, “Having vision beyond your resources is synonymous with dreaming big, and it may feel like you’re setting yourself up for failure, but you’re actually setting God up for a miracle. How God performs the miracle is His job. Your job is drawing a circle around the God-given dream and promise,” (pg. 63). For me it is first highlighting the verses in my bible, then claiming and memorizing them. He writes that the Almighty is moved by big dreams and bold prayers.
That takes me to Ephesians 3:20 which expresses God’s heart for us (again, I personalize this and claim it for myself and others). It says: “Now, to Him, Who, by (in the consequences of) the (the action of His power that is at work within us), is able to carry out His purposes and do super abundantly, for over and above all that we (dare) ask or think (infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires thoughts, hopes or dreams).”
Another WOW! Knowing all of that of and that God has thoughts and plans for our lives (as it says in Jeremiah 29:11) gives me an even greater desire to study and go deeper into prayer. Jeremiah goes on to say that God’s heart is to “…bring us into prosperity and peace that gives us hope in our final outcome.” In verse twelve he goes on to say, “THEN,” – [I love when I read a THEN] – “you will call upon Me and you will come and pray to Me and I will hear and heed you.” Another “THEN” comes in the beginning of verse thirteen: “Then you will seek Me, inquire for and require Me (as a vital necessity) and find Me when you search for me with all of your heart.”
This tells me how important it is to dig deeper, to keep learning and pursuing after God in prayer and His word. I believe that as I come into agreement and state authoritatively God’s promises, the more effectual my prayers will be. Isaiah 55:11 says it so clearly and plainly: “So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth; It shall not return to me void but it shall accomplish that which I please and purpose and it shall prosper in the thing for which I send it.” This tells me also that as I pray God’s word, it is reliable and active and will achieve its intended purpose, and meet the need prayed for.
Digging deeper in prayer really is digging deeper into God’s word, to find what He says about my need and the needs of others. Then, declaring and decreeing those promises in prayer to Father God; this is what I will do in my own prayer life, as I continue to dig deeper.
Pastor Heather Wiebe
kamfullgospelblog.ca 