I thank God, whom I serve
from my forefathers with
pure conscience, that without
ceasing I have remembrance
of thee in my prayers night
and day; greatly desiring to see
thee, being mindful of thy tears,
that I might be filled with joy;
when I call to remembrace the
unfeigned faith that is in thee,
which dwelt first in thy grandmother
Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I
am persuaded that in thee also.
2Timothy 1:3-5
Prayer: What is it? Every religion has prayer and those within each religion pray to God or a god, and even within Christianity, those that include the name Christian in their religion prays to the God of the Bible. Prayer is an allusive activity inasmuch as much of our requests go unfulfilled. Why? Important question! Even non-religionists will pray under difficult circumstances hoping to get answers or relief because they are at their ropes end. Is this prayer that is acceptable to God? Even on a person's death bed they often pray to God, they not only do not want to die, they expect by this prayer that God will forgive them for their life of sin and all the years that they ignored God. Will He? Much of prayer is asking God to do, or give, requesting to God as if He was a vending machine. Even many will point out to God how much they have been serving Him and expect by this service that they somehow have an inroad to God and God is required to answer their prayer. "God find me a job!" How often I hear this request for prayer: really? God find me a job? Did not God give you a brain, the ability to look for a job? Maybe God has opened a door to a job(s) and you are so busy asking God for a job that you do not walk through the door. Often we ask for traveling mercies: really, then we drive fast, reckless at times, but we know our friends are asking God for traveling mercies so we ignore the rules of the road, the speed laws, and expect God to answer their prayer while we go about sinning, breaking laws. Isaiah wrote: "And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him" (Isaiah 59:6). No intercessor, and this is what prayer is for the most part, it is a prayer of intercession, but this does not have the ability to cause a person to feel good about prayer, it is for someone else, for maybe even someone they do not have a liking for, and they are looking to God for themselves. Then..........prayer does not seem to be answered and many leave off praying. Why?
The reason many of us leave off praying and become hard towards God is because we have only a sentimental interest in prayer. Oh, we read books on prayer, especially those books that say prayer is beneficial, that our minds are quieted and our souls uplifted when we pray: but Isaiah implies that God is amazed at such thoughts of prayer.
Worship, and I do not mean some euphoric exciting form or worship, as in much of the little ditties being promoted as spiritual designed to be easy to sing, and be sung over and over and over, or some sentimental feeling being drawn out of a person by a speaker, not that a speaker should be dry, but whether or not the design of the message is all about the Gospel and not designed to make you sentimental. For pray is worship and intercession, they go together, the one is responsible for the other. What is intercession? It is that we rouse ourselves up to get the mind of Jesus Christ about the one for whom we pray. How often is our prayers constructed by us, with statements about how prayer works, and we use this outline which we have constructed for our prayers. Is our prayer worship, or is it just requesting, or even disputed with God: example: "I don't see how You are going to do it." This is a pure sign that we are not worshipping God. Do you not believe that nothing is impossible for God, and that God providentially controls all the universe, even you, and even for the one we make intercession for, this then is to lose sight of God and often then we become hard and dogmatic. We often are just hurling down our own petitions at the throne of God and dictate to Him as to what we wish Him to do. This is not worshipping God, and this is not to seek the mind of Jesus Christ. From this hardness towards God comes hardness towards others.
Question: Are we worshipping God so that we rouse ourselves up so that we may lay hold on Him and that we may come into contact with His mind about the ones, or the thing, for whom or what we pray? All this begins with this: we must be living a holy life, to have a pure relationship with God, if not, we apt to become hard and dogmatic and our prayers will fall on deaf ears. Why would God answer you prayer if you are not living in a right relationship with Him?
Isaiah was asking: "But there is no one interceding properly...", is this you? Come to be the one who is worhipping God and living in a right relationship with Him. Now by this you can get into the real work of intercession. Yes, this is hard work that will tax every power; but it is a work that has no snare. Preaching the Gospel has a snare for it reveals that we need a Savior and that we need to change from the Inside/Out to live as an Authentic Christian, but intercessory prayer has no snare.
Examine your prays, and make them a time of worship and then a time of intercession. Do you need something from God, ask, but rely on Him to give to you what you need and not what you want.
Seek the LORD, and His strength:
seek His face evermore. Remember
His marvellous works that He hath done;
His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth.
Psalm 105:4-5
Trust in God: He is ever knowing
Richard L. Crumb
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