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| Section: Basic Christian Living:
courses for new Christians |
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Beginning with God |
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4.
Conversations with God: |
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Prayer |
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Ephesians
6:18 'Pray
in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the
saints.'
In touch
with God
In Old Testament times, people
couldn't come directly to God. They had to go through a priest.
But all that has changed now. Jesus has opened the way so that
every Christian can stay in touch with God. In that respect we
are all priests and can come to him in prayer directly:
Revelation
1:5-6 Jesus 'loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood,
and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his
God and Father.'
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On
the listening end
It's important to remember
that prayer is not just you talking to God; it's also him speaking
to you. Prayer is two-way communication.
So there will be times when
you remain silent and listen, waiting to hear God speak to you.
Like the boy Samuel, you can say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant
is listening' (1 Samuel 3:9). Having said that, you must then
listen! But how does he speak?
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It's possible, though unlikely,
that you'll hear an audible voice. More commonly, God will speak
to you:
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 | Through
the Bible. As you read
and meditate on Scripture you'll find certain verses 'jumping
out of the page' and grabbing your attention.
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| Through preaching. Already
you'll have been in meetings where it seemed as if something the preacher
said was tailor-made for you.
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| Through the Holy Spirit inside you.
You may sense him steering your thoughts and inclinations in a certain
direction. Gradually, for instance, a conviction may build up in your
heart that a particular course of action is the right one.
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| Through
spiritual gifts. A
prophecy, for example, or the interpretation of a message in
tongues may be God's means of speaking to you.
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| Through counsel. A church leader or more experienced
Christian whom you consult for advice may become a channel of
God's word to you. |
With experience, you'll learn to 'tune in' better and be able
to distinguish God's voice more clearly.
Two kinds
of prayer
1. Any time,
any place
A husband and wife don't need
to make an appointment with each other before they can talk.
They are friends and naturally chat about anything and everything.
The Lord and you are friends, too (John 15:15), so you can talk
to one another at any time and in any place:
Exodus
33:11
'The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks
with his friend.'
In the supermarket, driving
the car, facing a difficult interview-you'll find him always
available and ready to hear your spontaneous prayers. The Bible
records how Nehemiah once prayed this way when in a tight spot
(Nehemiah 2:1-6). More recently, a boy who had just scored a
goal in the school football match was heard to say, as he ran
back to his position, 'See that one, Lord?'
2. A focused
time
The busy nature of modern life
means that, sometimes, a husband and wife have to decide to unplug
the telephone and not answer the door-bell in order to have undisturbed
quality time together. We need to do that with the Lord. Jesus
said:
Matthew
6:6
'When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to
your Father.'
Be practical, and build into
your personal schedule a regular time when you can give God your
undivided attention in prayer. Jesus did this:
Luke
5:16
'Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.'
Since he had no home of his
own during his public ministry he would find a quiet spot out
in the country. You could do the same, though it may be more
sensible or convenient to pray at home. Try to choose a time
when you'll be alert and when you're unlikely to be disturbed
by children, visitors or the telephone.
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Drawing
near to God
Thanksgiving and praise
is always a good way
to start your planned prayer-time (Psalm 100:4). You can then
go on to bring your requests to the Lord, but be sure
to mix your thanks even with those:
Philippians
4:6-7
'Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer
and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will
guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.'
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It's easy to become self-centred,
so always pray for other people and situations as well as for
yourself and your own needs. And remember: God isn't a slot-machine
guaranteed to produce the answer you want, when you want, just
to please you. He's a person and wants you to develop
your relationship with him.Our
prayer-helper
Sometimes, when you're in difficulties,
you will find that, while you feel the need to take the situation
to God in prayer, you don't really know what to pray. The good
news is that God understands, and has provided a wonderful helper:
the Holy Spirit himself! We are to 'pray in the Spirit' (Ephesians
6:18), that is, as directed by him:
Romans
8:26-27 'The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we
ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with
groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts
knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for
the saints in accordance with God's will.' |
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The Holy Spirit
will help you to pray according to God's will:
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your thoughts along certain lines.
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| Or he may prompt you to pray
in tongues. In this case, your mind won't know what you are praying
but you'll have a deep conviction in your spirit that you are
praying in line with God's will (1 Corinthians 14:14). |
Either way, your prayers will
reach the Father through the Lord Jesus. That will lift the pressure
of the situation and bring you peace.
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Prayer:
getting into the habit
You'll have no problem with
the 'any time, any place' kind of prayer. It has probably already
become as natural to you as breathing.
But getting into the habit
of more focused prayer, where you deliberately get alone with
God, may take a bit of time-and some self-discipline. If you
haven't already done so, make a start this week:
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