The Power Of Prayer
by
Rev. Suzanne L. Taylor
One of the most important things we need to know about prayer is, God always listens. Whether the prayers are for our own personal needs, or they are prayers of intercession to benefit others, God is there. He may seem distant and unreachable at times, but He's always close enough to hear our prayers.
There are many ways to pray, but there is no more wonderful way to come into God's presence than to begin with praising His Holy Name. Ephesians 5:18,19 tells us, "And do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation: but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." There's no need to develop some elaborate formula, or ritual, by which to praise and worship God. When you want to feel His presence simply play some worship music, sing hymns and psalms, or just raise your hands and praise His name. One suggestion Pastor Joyce Meyer makes as an effective way to feel close to the Lord is by calling on His name: Jesus, Jesus, Jesus! "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.." (Isaiah 55:6). Let your heart, soul, and spirit be lifted up into His presence by the Holy Spirit.
"If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you" (John 14:15-17). Why did Jesus send the Spirit to indwell God's people? So they would have power to work all the works of the kingdom, and that includes prayer.
Are you in a church that preaches "once filled with the Spirit, always filled?" In one way that's true. Once we have accepted Jesus as Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to make His home in us, the temple of God ("Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" [ I Corinthians3:16])? That's the first blush of love. That's the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but it's not the power of the Holy Spirit to affect your life, or the lives of others. To be filled with His power takes work. We need to spend time daily in the Bible looking to see what God has for us, and we need to spend time in prayer. As our relationship with God, through these tools, deepens, the power of the Holy Spirit strengthens in us. Our prayers become more effective. We can touch people and see them healed. We can speak the truth about Jesus with boldness and never back down from what we believe. As the apostle Paul told Pastor Timothy in II Timothy 1:7, "For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."
Acts 1:8, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Power for what? Power for preaching, teaching boldly, and power for living according to the Word of God. The Bible is the Word of God, the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), and is given to enable us to defeat the enemy - satan. How do we sharpen the blade of that Sword? With prayer.
When we fail to keep our swords sharp with prayer, we open ourselves up to oppression which leads to sin. Sin renders our prayers less effective. To be filled with the power of the Holy Ghost, and to accomplish good things for the Lord, takes effort. It takes prayer.
Let's look at Romans 8:26. "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." Although Paul was speaking this to Christians, he made it very clear they didn't know how to pray correctly. Sometimes things happen in our lives that make prayer the hardest thing in the world to accomplish. All we can do at such times is groan from our spirits. When that's so, the Spirit of God takes over for us, and He prays in a language that is so deep and profound that our groanings become His, and they are beautiful words to God's ears. That's power in prayer.
Moses changed the destiny of the people of Israel many times through his heartfelt prayers for them. He petitioned the Father for them using his knowledge of what God wanted for them from the beginning when He called them out of Egypt: He wanted to bless them, and not curse them. And, because Moses knew this was God's heart for Israel, he was able to formulate his prayers accordingly. Take time now to read Exodus 32:7-14 and Numbers 21:4-9.
J. Hudson Taylor, missionary to China, said, "Move man through God by prayer alone."
Leonard Ravenhill, an outdoor evangelist from Britain, said, "Prayer goes far beyond using God as a means of escape or relief. It is seeking a love for the will of God among men, for manifestation of the power of God among men, and for the recovery of glory of God among men."
Many good books have been written about prayer. It would behoove you to take some time to read some of them. By prayer mountains can be moved, people can be redeemed, families can be reconciled, and nations can be healed. Remember that our most effective prayers are those said in the power of the Spirit. Never forget to invite the Spirit into your prayer times. The more you practice Spirit-filled praying, the easier it becomes to pray this way in all circumstances. When you are joyous, it's natural to praise God. When you are down or upset about something, this sort of prayer becomes difficult. Keeping the Spirit involved in all our praying, be it praise and worship, intercession, or prayers to have our needs met, makes access to God easier. If the Spirit is working with us, God can work through us.
To God be the Glory!
