Friday, February 24, 2012

WHY WE PRAY!

I hope to see you all tonight as Now Faith Int’l Ministries host “60 Minutes with the Father” Midnight Prayer. Held at Another Level Ministries ~ 8839 Walker Mill Road, Capitol Heights, MD~ 12am-1am

THERE IS A CONVERSATION taking place in the spiritual realm. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were part of it. Throughout the history of humanity others have joined it, and there's something in each of our hearts that tells us we were created to be part of it as well. We long for it. We yearn to be in on it. ~Dr. N. Cindy Trimm
This big conversation concerning our lives is taking place in heaven and the only way we can be a part of it is if we connect with our Father in Prayer. Anyone can pray, anywhere and at any time. Whether we're kneeling, sitting or standing, praying out loud or silently, praying in groups or by ourselves, God will hear and answer us. Prayer is so easy and so simple we might not appreciate what a privilege it is. It is a direct line of communication with our Heavenly Father who wants to help us with all of our problems and questions. Though He may not always answer right away or in a way we expect, we believe the scriptures when they say, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Matthew 7:7).

The Power of Prayer
We are commanded to pray often because the more we speak with God; the more open we will be to His guidance through the challenges we face. The Holy Spirit that lives inside of you is waiting for you to ask for His guidance, He is not an “it” but He is a very important part of the Trinity. The more you speak to Him, use Him, and activate Him in your life the closer you become to the Heavenly Father. The power of prayer is not the result of the person praying. Rather, the power resides in the God who is being prayed to. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him." No matter the person praying, the passion behind the prayer, or the purpose of the prayer - God answers prayers that are in agreement with His will. His answers are not always yes, but are always in our best interest. When our desires line up with His will, we will come to understand that in time. When we pray passionately and purposefully, according to God's will, God responds powerfully!
Jesus gave us the Lord's Prayer, as a model prayer and Jesus himself often went off to pray, setting an example for us to do the same. In Matthew 14:23, it says, "And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone." (KJV) If Jesus needed to go off and pray, how much more do we need to? Praying should not be something we do out of duty and routine. Prayer is talking and listening to our loving, all knowing, heavenly Father.

The book of James tells us to pray for wisdom when we don't know what to do (James 1:5).

In Philippians 4:6, 7, prayer is connected with receiving God's peace.

In Ephesians 6:18, prayer is a very important part of battling the forces of evil.

We are also told to pray for those in Authority over us (I Timothy 2:1, 2).

In the midst of our busyness let's remember how much we need God and need prayer and make a daily practice and our first resort instead of our last.
Keep the Faith,
Rev. Bert
Hebrews 11:6

1 comment:

Ebony said...

My spirit is in agreement with what you shared!!! Prayer is all we have. In times of trouble, Pray! In times of Bliss, Pray!!! The more diligent I became in communicating with The Father, the more things began to open up in my life. Just to name a few,prayer has stopped me from being homeless, my cousin from being killed, and the enemy from taking my son's mind! Even though our lives are so busy and we quite often neglect praying, The Father is there waiting for us. Cast your cares upon Him because he cares for you.

Step out of fear and into Faith!

Step out of fear and into Faith!