I cannot imagine anyone even attempting to become spiritually mature and not trying to have an intimate relationship with God. We know that it is God who not only is ultimately responsible for our spiritual growth, but He also has taken a personal interest in us to the point that He has made Himself available to us twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Our writer informs us that “the key to intimacy with God is through a disciplined, regular pattern of communication with God through prayer.”
PURPOSEFUL PRAYER
If God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving, why do we have need to pray? Matthew 6:31-32 assures us that God knows what we need even before we ask for it. Believers need to understand that the purpose of prayer is not to try to change God’s mind, but to align our will with the will of God (Matt. 6:10). When we are in the will of God in our requests to Him, we have the assurance that He will hear us (1 John 5:14).
COMPONENTS OF A RICH PRAYER LIFE
Daniel, David, and even Jesus Himself are just a few people who have the testimony of having rich prayer lives. When we examine them and other godly men and women; we note that there are certain components in their lives that characterize them as people with rich prayer lives:
- WORSHIP –
1 Chron. 16:29 reminds us: “ 29 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.:
- CONFESSION –
13 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.
14 And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.
15 And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?
16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
17 And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.
18 And many that believed came, and confessed, and showed their deeds.
- ADORATION –
Observe this example of adoration shown in 2 Sam. 14:4: “ And when the woman of Tekoah spake to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, Help, O king.” Simply because of who the King was, this woman showed adoration to him. We are to give the Lord such obeisance and adoration simply because of who He is!
Saying that we love the Lord because we keep His commandments is not enough. Deut. 11:1 says this: “ 1 Therefore thou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.” This verse lets us know that our adoration (or love) for the Lord should go beyond our obedience to His commands (expound).
- PRAISE –
1 Chron. 16: 34 – O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever. 35 And say ye, Save us, O God of our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from the heathen, that we may give thanks to thy holy name, and glory in thy praise.
- THANKSGIVING –
THANKSGIVING: A TIME OF GRATITUDE
Text – Deut. 16:9-11; 13-14; 16-17; Psalm 145:4-12; Luke 14:12-14
Introduction – We have been celebrating Thanksgiving in this country since about 1841, but this is not the only country that has a particular time to celebrate and openly express their gratitude and thanksgiving to the Lord. As far back as the book of Deuteronomy we find that God told His people to set aside certain days to show God thanks and gratitude. Yes! We need to understand that thanksgiving and gratitude go hand-in-hand. God began to teach us how to truly celebrate Thanksgiving.
Deuteronomy 16: The Festival of Weeks
9 Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. 10 Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. 11 And rejoice before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites in your towns, and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows living among you.
The Festival of Tabernacles
13 Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. 14 Be joyful at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns.
16 Three times a year all your men must appear before the Lord your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles. No one should appear before the Lord empty-handed: 17 Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.
Take note of this Psalm of praise by David. Many times we have people that we are grateful to; it may be our spouses, children, other family members or loved ones . . . or even people we don’t really know. What good is being thankful for someone; or even grateful to (or for) someone if you don’t tell them? That warm spot you have in your heart for that person means nothing if you don’t let them know. When you go to someone and tell them “you know how I feel about you,” don’t be surprised when they turn around and say: “No I don’t! How can I? You’ve never told or expressed it to me.”
Psalm 145
4 One generation commends your works to another;
they tell of your mighty acts.
5 They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.[a]
6 They tell of the power of your awesome works—
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
7 They celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.
8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
9 The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
10 All your works praise you, Lord;
your faithful people extol you.
11 They tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
12 so that all people may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Let us re-examine this Psalm by David . . . (expound)
When we want to express our thanks at this special time we already have our guest list prepared or in mind. Have you ever given thought to Jesus’ guest list? Check His list out in Luke 14:12-14 . . .
Luke 14
12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
- INTERCESSION –
1 Tim. 2:1-2 reminds us that we are to intercede for others; especially those in authority: “ I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; 2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
- REQUESTS –
1 Peter 5:7 lets us know that we can bring all of our requests to the Lord:
“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” And another verse I like for this is Phil. 4:6: “ Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”