Prayer

Prayer opens doors!

• What is your vision of the abundant life that God has promised you? Pray on it!
• Where are you stuck, frustrated, broken down, or discouraged? Pray it through – wrestle it out with God.
• What is the purpose God has given you that He wants to work out through you? Pray until it begins to become reality and then pray on it ongoing.
• What is the next step for _________ part of your life? Pray until you know!
• Trying to sort out your church life? House church? Simple church? Traditional church? Missional church? Pray until God reveals His next step for you!

I am just back from Africa where the leaders reminded me that the heart of their disciple-making movements is finding persons of peace who will reach others and disciple others who will do the same. AND, the key to finding persons of peace is a simple one: PRAYER. “God prepares these people of peace. Through prayer, we find them!” In their experience, prayer opens the doors for movements to happen!

Yes, prayer opens doors…

AND prayer is the doorway to a deep relationship with God.

Remember that Jesus prayed for us that we would enter into an abiding fellowship with the Father as the way in which the world (and us) would be transformed. John 17. This is why He continually calls us into prayer! He wants to fellowship with us!

Prayer is both the experience of time with God (Jesus was all night in prayer) and a lifestyle (abide in me).

Prayer is both the result of our organic relationship with the living Christ, and it develops that relationship further.

Prayer is opening our heart, pouring out our needs and wants, and prayer is also waiting and listening and opening ourselves to what Jesus’ will is. I like the way The Passion Translation expresses Revelation 3:20:

Behold, I’m standing at the door, knocking. If your heart is open to hear my voice and you open the door within, I will come in to you and feast with you, and you will feast with me.

When prayer develops, it becomes a feast.

Somehow we have to find our way past just the religious approach to dutiful prayer. Though we most often start at that point. Pray is a dynamic interchange between mortal and immortal that takes us beyond ourselves and connects us relationally to the eternal, majestic God. May we find a way to touch on that reality as prayer becomes the foundation of a life lived in the presence and miracle-working power of God. In this way, it moves from duty to delight and from heavy lifting to feasting.

And, in this way, we discover a life lived in feasting-style prayer is a life lived by the impetus, motivation, and power of God.

Prayer opens doors and is the doorway to deep intimacy with our God.