“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” Matthew 7:7

Prayer is where it all begins!

We read that from the time of Adam’s grandson Enos, “began men to call upon the name of the LORD.” (Gen. 4:26). Abraham called on the name of the LORD (Gen 13:4). Isaac “intreated the LORD for his wife” (Gen. 25:21) and she conceived! And so we could go on, but this is not a Bible Survey . The Patriarchs, the Judges, the Kings, the Prophets all prayed to God, many not making a move without first hearing God on a matter.

Jesus made prayer a priority in His life. Often He is found early in the morning or in the evening seeking His father, (Mark 1:35). Before He took important steps He would seek His father, (Luke 6:12-13), He taught His disciples to pray, (Luke 11:1), some problems, He taught, could only be overcome with fasting and prayer, (Matt. 17:29).

The apostles continued the life of prayer that Jesus had taught them, (2 Tim. 1:3). We too should give a place of priority to prayer in our lives. But oh, how hard it is. Prayer is not complicated – in fact it could not be more simple, but it is so hard to get down to and so hard to be consistent at.

James tells us that “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”( James 5:16) yet still it is so often true of us that “ye have not, because ye ask not” (James 4:2).

The Hebridean Revival 1948-1952, was to a very great degree the result of two praying ladies who lived in a little cottage in the village of Barvas. Elderly sisters – Peggy, 84, was almost blind and Christine Smith 82, was bent over with Arthritis. They had been seeking God for revival, and to them came the promise, “I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground” (Isa. 44:3).

Prayer must be our first and primary step when seeking to revive our church. We need to find ways to develop our prayer lives and the prayer lives of the congregation. On top of this we should seek to encourage and feed the prayer’s of other people who may pray for us and our church.

Don’t just say prayers… PRAY!

It is not only important that we ’say prayers’ but that we ‘PRAY’!

While it is not impossible to pray when reading a prayer that someone else has written, this is hardly prayer in the Biblical sense.

Your prayers should be personal, and while hymns, poems, and written prayers may be just what is on your heart and may be of great help to you while praying, make it personal; put your heart behind what you are saying to God. There is a difference between a poem read to a lover and a poem just read.

Asking and Listening

I hope I can take it as read that our prayers should include:

• Thanksgiving
• Praise or adoration
• Intersession for the lost
• Intersection for the needs of others
• Etc.

But want to emphasise the importance of asking and listening.

Asking

As we have already seen, James teaches that we often do not have because we “ask not”. So ask!

Can you believe it?…

The God of universe encourages us to ‘ask’, and yet still so often we do not. I believe that one of the reasons we are encouraged to come as children to God is that children do not find it so hard to ask. I have eleven children, and believe you me, they can ask, well when young, but as they approach adulthood they find it harder and harder.

You do not have to be self-sufficient, we are to be God-dependant.

The same passage teaches that “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts” (James 4:3) Praise God that sometimes we do not get what we are asking for. Be very careful to leave God room to not give you what you ask for. Learn to have an attitude of “Lord if it would be good for me” or “if it would bring you glory please….”.

Even if you do not always use words like that, come with that in your heart. And praise God for the no’s.

Listen

Do you know those people who just talk and talk and talk, only stopping to breath because if they do not they can not talk any more? Is that you in your prayer-time or prayer meeting?

Does your prayer meeting have long silences that are not people listening, but thinking ’somebody pray…please’?
It is important for us as God’s people and especially if you have a leadership role, pastor, elder, husband, father, that you learn to listen to God.

How can you hear God?

There are all manor of places or ways that you might hear God:

• A hymn
• A sermon
• A friend’s advice
• A dream
• A vision
• A voice
• An Angel

But more probably

• While reading the Bible
• A knowing in your… well.. your ‘knower’. You might call it the ‘prompting of the Holy Spirit’, or an ‘inner peace’, or often a distinct lack of ‘inner peace’.

We need to develop a habit of asking and listening. And listening until you can recognise His prompting.

So let’s look at some ways to develop prayer.