Feb 15 2009
How Is Your Prayer Life?
I have heard it said a person’s prayer life reveals the depth of their spiritual life. This is a sobering thought. We all know a few ‘prayer warriors’ - usually widows who seem to have a direct line to God. For the rest of us, however, while we may have times and seasons of prayer (particularly when we or someone we love is experiencing difficulty), prayer is often not a part of our lives.
Oh, we might thank God for our food. We might even yawn a good night prayer as we fall asleep. We might whisper ‘thank you’ when we avoid life’s close calls or when something makes us extremely happy. When you get down to the nitty-gritty, however, an honest look often reveals a shallow or nearly non-existent prayer life.
If the above statement is true, this ought to not only make us ashamed, it should cause us grave concern. The Bible says quite a lot about prayer. Two things which have come to my attention lately are somewhat revealing, especially in light of my opening statement.
While we are seldom commanded to pray, prayer is, none the less, a duty. “Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfast in prayer;” (Rom 12:12). In the middle of Paul’s exhortation to the Roman’s to ‘behave like Christians’, he tells them their prayers should be steadfast.
“Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.” This introduction to Jesus’ parable on the persistent widow reminds us of our need to pray - always. “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.” (1 Peter 4:7) Peter hear points out an important point - we are not only to pray, but our prayers are to have a purpose, a driving force, a point.
Prayer is not only a duty, it is a compulsion. It flows out of our hearts.
The Psalmist was driven to prayer. “I entreated Your favor with my whole heart. . ” (Ps 119:58) “I cry out with my whole heart. . .” (vs 145) It is unlikely someone told Saul, after meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus, to go pray. Yet, this is exactly what we find him doing. “. . .one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold he is praying.” (Act 9:11)
Prayer is a natural response to our environment. It is generated from deep within us by the Holy Spirit. “. . .God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’” (Gal 4:6)
Pastor John MacArthur put it this way. “The measure of a person’s spirituality is not how well they conform to the demand to pray, but how internally compelled they are to pray simply because their passion for others and God’s kingdom is so strong.”
Prayer is not a ritual we perform. In fact, while it is a duty, it is the compulsion to pray which reveals the real issues which matter to us. Because prayer reveals the deepest longings of our heart, it is wise to not only look at how ‘often’ we prayer, but ‘what’ we pray about. If our prayers are “all about me”, our focus is self-centered. If our prayers are infrequent, we have a cold heart.
Dear Lord, ignite in our hearts a passion for the lost. A passion for your kingdom. Zeal for your word. A love for our brothers and sisters in Christ. A love for our enemies. A deeper, stronger, more committed love for You! Give us praying hearts, oh Lord, that we might have true communion with you, our Father.
