What is prayer?
Prayer is first of all the expression of our relationship with God. It is that which connects us to the Father on a day-to-day basis.
“It is a 2 way conversation. ”
It represents the fact that we are always in touch with God.
It emphasizes the importance of a regular habit of talking to God in the midst of all our circumstances.
It means that we should, if possible, do everything we do all day with conscious reference to God.
Will we ever reach this habit or pattern completely? Maybe not. But, is this habit worth pursuing?
Your answer will probably depend on your view and understanding of who God is and what kind of value you place on developing a personal relationship with Him.
We can be sure that Paul placed a high value on prayer as he gave instructions to young believers who were currently going through difficult times and persecution: PRAY CONTINUALLY.
Why does Paul instruct the new believers at Thessalonica to pray continually?
When we have a close relationship with someone, we usually develop a habit of talking with that person regularly. This may be what Paul had in mind when he told the Thessalonica believers to pray without ceasing.
When our relationship with God reaches the level of intimacy, we will want to carry on a continual conversation with Him, share our thoughts and feelings with Him throughout the day.
We should even reach the point when we freely admit our wrongs and sins because we have His promise that He will always forgive us.
We just completed a preaching series on the attributes of God. What did you discover or learn about Him? We proclaimed that He is a good God, a merciful and kind God. He is just and impartial; He accepts anyone who comes to Him. He is powerful, He has created a plan for history and is bringing everything to completion according to His will. He has revealed Himself to all mankind both in His Creation and through His Son and through His written Word.
If those attributes we just studied really do describe the God who is, a better question might be, why wouldn’t we want to be in a personal relationship with Him, in an ongoing conversation?
Since there is so much that is outside of our control, we need to be praying continually, talking to and listening to the God who is and loves us and who has all things under His control.
How difficult is it for us to sincerely and honestly agree in our hearts when we recite the Lord’s Prayer in which Jesus teaches us to pray for
His Kingdom to come, not mine
His Will to be done, not mine.
His Father to receive Glory, not me.
We are facing many struggles to live lives that please and honor God, and are outside our control and therefore, we absolutely need to be praying continually.
What are some of the benefits we can expect to receive as we develop this habit to pray continually?
First, there is
“the benefit of recognizing and admitting that I am not in control and therefore, I am in desperate need of depending on God daily, hourly.”
This is a good benefit that God desires us to accept.
We are reminded of Paul’s confession that he was not in control of himself as he expressed in Romans:
For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing (Romans 7: 18-19).
Paul provides us with an answer of hope at the end of the chapter, but it is not found in himself, rather in God.
But thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 7:25).
He and we also, are not delivered by more will power or self effort, but by the humble acceptance that just as it was God by His grace that saved us, it is God through His grace and His Spirit now living in us that provides us with the strength to live a life pleasing to Him.
And this leads us to the second benefit of praying continually,
“growth in genuine and God-honoring humility.”
As we grow in our prayer life, developing an accurate biblical understanding of prayer and its role in our lives, understand more deeply what God is like, we will also grow in a humble attitude that pleases God.
A final benefit of the many we could mention as we grow in the habit of praying continually is that
“we will grow in a thankful spirit and attitude towards God for all that He has done for us and given to us. ”
So many of the Psalms mention and recount God’s mighty works in creation. And it is there for our enjoyment. We should recognize His works, praise His name and thank Him for this beauty.
There is an expression that David used repeatedly in some of his recorded prayers in the books of the Chronicles. He said, who am I oh God that You should bless me so.
This short expression of David’s in a small way captures the spirit, attitude of a man who was continually at prayer and had grown in the benefits of prayer in his dependence, humility and thankfulness to God for all that he, David, had received from the hand of his generous and merciful Father.
The verse that captures the heart and desire of God to have a deep, personal, continual relationship with all of His Children:
Here I am. I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person and he with Me (Revelation 3:20).
