Heavenly Father, I praise You for sending Jesus to teach us how to pray and for the example He set to show us how valuable prayer should be in our lives. I praise You for the desire You have and the one in me for us to have a relationship built on faith and trust. Help me today to take command of my morning and day and to shake all evil out of it.
Holy Spirit, Christ said, “Take heed, watch and pray. For you do not know when the time will come.” When the disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray, He said, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. [Mark 13:33; Matthew 6:9-13] Of all the disciples could ask Jesus to teach or show them they asked how to pray. If you truly believe in Your heart that Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit are three in one and the God of all creation and the God of salvation, mercy, and grace then prayer becomes the essential cord of communication that connects us to the one being that is outside of time and the great I Am. Christ always took time to get away and pray. That should be the first indicator of how important prayer is. We also have the example of David establishing the watchers on the walls of Jerusalem who would watch for danger, pray, and quote praises out loud of all the promises God made to Israel. Many of the authors of the New Testament admonish us to pray and to seek prayer for multiple reasons. But at the very core why prayer? Prayer is what helps me establish my day, and connects my mind and heart with the Holy Spirit. Opens the door to receive promptings and yes even a few times direct words on how to face my situations. Prayer helps me stay focused and to avoid sin. We are instructed that prayer is to be for healing, wisdom, knowledge, salvation, and learning to abide in Christ. We are told by the Hebrew writer that when we pray, we enter the throne room at the feet of Jesus through the Holy Spirit to lay open our hearts and give our petitions. It was the new way, that replaced the Levites entering the temple's inner chamber to call on God for Israel.
As I have grown in prayer and even wrote prayer books I have learned there are many kinds of prayer. What I have learned is prayer should be honest, humble, direct to the point, and after you have learned to forgive. Prayer should never be a “chore” or a dreaded time of work. It does not have to be long, or even use proper grammar. God knows your heart. He knows your inner being, You can’t hide who you are, what you are, or how you think, but yet He desires to talk to you, listen to you, and be a part of your life. I have learned to use scripture to help me say what I seek like the men who walked the walls of Jerusalem, but that is how I do it. Everyone was uniquely made by God and as Paul said, “…work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For God is the One working in you, both to will and to do His good pleasure.” “Therefore, I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—testimony given in its proper time.” [Philippians 2:12&13, 1 Timothy 2:1-6]
So, when you take a moment to speak to God, close your eyes and picture a throne room where just you and Christ are present and He looks to you to speak your heart, your desires, your passion and wants to truly hear you, you only. Be ready for when He speaks to your heart it will probably mean a change in what you are doing, how you are doing it, and why you are doing it. It will be love, correction, grace, mercy, and wisdom all intricately weaved together to flow through and over you. Be ready for the God of the universe, who created you, desires to listen and to speak to just you. Quit worrying about the words you use and worry more about the heart of who you are and what you are when you stand before him. Let Him love on you while you give love back to Him. Thank You, Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit for the journey you have taken me on to learn that prayer is just who I am to just who You are. Amen and Amen.