Beloved in Christ, Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ!
If you want to hear God’s voice clearly and you’re uncertain, then remain in His presence until He changes that uncertainty. Much can happen during this waiting for the Lord. Sometimes He changes pride into humility; doubt into faith and peace. Why come to the Lord in prayer? God does amazing works through prayers that seek to extend His grace to others. Now I would like to use this platform, to share with you on how the Lord taught me to pray:
Repentance:
I may not be perfect, but I strive to live a life of repentance and holiness. The question is, really, whether or not God will answer a person’s prayers while he is abiding in sin? On the other hand, God certainly and answers the prayers of the sinner who commits to repent. So therefore, I come before the Lord in prayer daily by repenting for my sins, so that my prayers will not be hindered. Afterwards, I give him thanks for everything, whether my day was good or bad, “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1st Thessalonians 5:18
Focused Prayer:
The main goal and priority is to meet the Lord. In order for this encounter to take place, one key element is to stay focused. Before the Lord used our pastor to teach about prayer, I used to walk back and forth during prayer. Prayer does not follow a specific formula, but I found out that the prayer position/posture matters to the Lord. Thank God that our church has prayer stools and kneelers that I can use. Then how am I able to focus? I get on my knees with hands raised to Heaven, and with my eyes closed to avoid being distracted by things or others. To help me connect with Him, I begin imagining the Lord in front of me, knowing that He is right there; by faith.
The power through our hands, (explaining more about hands raised high):
Some have wondered, why is this so? You see your extremities, such as your fingers, which are spiritual points or openings; they are spiritual vents for either entrance or exits for the Spirit. When we stretch our hands, the anointing is released through our hands. It’s the Spirit that gives the anointing, who lives in you. He, the Holy Spirit, transfers, or imparts the anointing through your hands. The anointing is a special power. It’s the power of God that He delivers, removes burdens, and causes people to prosper. The anointing destroys the yoke of bondage and opens doors to the blessings of God. You have something to give; you have something to transfer to others or to cause a change to your environment and regions beyond. The Bible tells us that, by the stretching forth of the hands of the apostles, many signs and wonders were wrought among the people. So this means, through the stretching of the hands, hopes were restored; burdens were lifted, sickness and diseases were healed; destinies were mended by the Holy Spirit. The same Spirit is within us today; and the blessings of God for others can be released through your hands. Sometimes in a church service, a call is made to stretch out your hands in prayer towards someone, a group of people or a particular direction; do so with the knowledge and understanding that the power is released through your hands.
In the book of Exodus 17:11-13, “So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set. So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.” This is a demonstration of how powerful the raising of the hands is. And in similar context, the Lord uses my hands to fight when there is strong warfare. “Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;” (Psalm 144:1)
Praying according to His will:
Jesus taught His disciples how to pray in Matthew 6 “…‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,..” And also 1st John 5:14-15, “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.” We honor God by asking for great things when they are a part of His promise. We dishonor Him and cheat ourselves when we ask for “mole hills” when He has promised “mountains.” We should always ask according to His will, for He has what’s best for us. Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you…”
God has a plan for each of us, so let us lay down our own plans and seek His.
Praying in faith:
“And without faith, it is impossible to please God.” Hebrews 11:6 Mark 11:24 says, “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.” So this is my philosophy, “Prayer is not right if it does not spring from faith.” It’s good to spend time in prayer, but the length is not of most importance if it is not backed by faith. You may pray powerfully in tongues, but if you don’t have faith in what you pray for, it's only superficial - at the end of the day, you may suffer physical infirmities. When we pray, we must believe. In order to see our prayers come into fruition, we must believe what we prayed for and praise Him for what we asked of Him. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the [assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Faith in faith is pointless. Faith in a living, active God moves mountains; assurance that God has answered my prayers. Things that seem impossible in the natural, having faith in God has granted me to see the possibilities in miracles.
Perseverance:
When it comes to persevering in prayer, this is my motto: (P.U.S.H)
Pray Until Something Happens. God tests our patience in prayer also, I do not give up until I receive the answers to my prayers. So Jesus taught, that perseverance is the essential element in prayer. “For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.” Hebrews 10:36
Unceasing prayer is, in essence, continual dependence and communion with the Father.
Paul commands in 1st Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing.” After you have prayed, wait on the Lord, stand still and refuse to retreat. God answers in due season, if you will persevere.
Godly Attitude:
“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8 Attitude is all – important, let the soul take a quiet attitude of faith and love toward God, and from then on, the responsibility is God’s. He will make good on His commitments. Beloved do not allow your thoughts to be hijacked by the negativity that seems to dominate our troubled world. But rather, focus your thoughts and energies on “whatever is commendable.” “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;” Hebrews 10:23. Remember, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
In Christ, Son of Faith