The Power and Intimacy of Prayer
Prayer is something that I had always tried to do, but I was inconsistent with. I only partially understood the power and necessity for it in my life. I struggled to figure out how to spend time in prayer without making it a religious box to check or feeling like I needed to do it to please the Lord. I was trying to find a balance between creating a discipline and not just checking a box. At the same time, I was trying to give myself grace when I wasn't able to sit down alone and spend quiet time in prayer.
It got to a point where I wasn't spending much quality time in prayer at all. I was feeling drained and exhausted a lot of the time. I wanted to spend time in prayer, but I was not making it a priority. In the midst of feeling so tired and depleted, the Lord began to speak to me gently. He started to take me deeper into the why behind needing to spend time in prayer. He began to reveal to me the truth and power behind it, and He fanned into flame a desire and passion in my heart for prayer, one which hadn't been there before.
He showed me that I don't need to pray to check a box or to make Him pleased, but I need to pray because I desperately need Him. I am depleted without Him, and the only way for me to be filled is to spend time with Him, sit in His presence, and hear His voice. I am desperate for Him. I had a revelation that THIS is why I need to make sacrifices to spend time with Him. It's not just because it's what we're "supposed" to do, but because it's what I truly NEED in order to be complete. He is the only source that can make me whole. It's not out of performance or striving… it's out of desperation.
With this new understanding, I no longer felt like I was falling short or not measuring up if I did not spend time with Him. That comes from performance. Instead, there was something inside of me that just felt empty, and He is the One to replenish and restore where I am lacking. I know that I can't do a single thing apart from Him. But with Him, I can do all things. I was reminded of John 15.
John 15: 4-7 "Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you."
I will go to Him for everything because apart from Him, I can do nothing. I can boldly come to the Lord because I know that my God satisfies everything in me, and every time that I am with Him, I never leave empty. In Him, I am satisfied, and in Him, I bear much fruit.
Hebrews 4:16 "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
Psalm 105:4 "Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always."
The more time I spend with Him, the more I know Him. This leads me to fall more and more in love with Him and realize just how desperately I need Him and how much I depend on Him.
If you are struggling to spend time with the Lord in prayer, I want to encourage you to ask yourself if you truly believe that you need Jesus. Are you in a place of desperation for Him? Is there something that is taking the place of God in your heart? Ask the Lord to reveal anything that is placed higher than Him in your life. Ask Him to remove those things that are in His place and to put the desire in your heart to know Him more and spend time with Him.
Not only had the Lord been revealing the power of prayer for me personally, but He also spoke to me about the importance of praying and contending for those around me. There is only so much that we can do in the physical to influence those around us. The biggest influence we are going to have is when we are on our knees in prayer, contending, and praying for those people. We cannot expect something to happen in the spiritual if we are not battling in the spiritual. We must go to the Father with confidence and faith, knowing that He hears the prayers and cries of His children.
Proverbs 15:29 "The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous."
We serve a big God who can handle all things. Let us come to Him in everything because He can handle it. In all things, big or small, we're called to bring it before the Lord. The Bible tells us to pray about everything! In every season, every circumstance, every situation, in everything.
Ephesians 6:18 "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests."
James 5:13-16 "Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."
Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
Colossians 4:2 "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful."
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
Romans 8:26 "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans."
The Lord also began to help me remove the box of what I thought prayer was supposed to look like. God is not confined to one space only during certain hours. He is with me always, everywhere I go. I started talking to my Heavenly Father more and more throughout the day. I realized that my prayers are just as valid when I am in the car driving, or going for a walk, or whatever it may be. He is present with me all day.
There is so much power in prayer, and there is a spiritual shift in the atmosphere when we pray. When we pray, we are placing our dependency upon God. The prayers of a righteous person are powerful and effective! (James 5:16) God hears and listens to us, and He answers. Let us remain in and fully depend on Him.
