Text- James 5:16 – “The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]”
We have been talking about the wonderful effects of prayer for the past few days. My goal is to help you realize that your prayers, no matter how short or silent they may be, are extremely powerful. When you fully come to terms with this truth, you will be motivated to pray, even when you don’t feel like it.
The fact that your prayers have great power and produce wonderful results is a truth that can transform your prayer life forever. Three things happened as Jesus was praying when He was baptized in Jordan;
“When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven…” – Luke 3:21-22
In the last two days, we expatiated on the reality of open heavens and the descent of the Holy Spirit. Another thing that happens when we pray, as we see from Jesus’ experience is that the voice of God comes from heaven.
Andrew Murray said, “Prayer is not monologue, but dialogue. God’s voice in response to mine is its most essential part”. Unfortunately, when most people pray these days, it’s either they don’t take enough time to listen for God’s voice or they don’t even expect Him to speak back at all.
Understand that prayer is not only about making requests from God. It is essentially making conversation with God. Conversation requires a two-way communication… where you talk and listen for a reply.
The concept of having a two-way conversation with a God that cannot be perceived by physical senses may seem somewhat problematic, but you see this becomes easy when you understand how God communicates.
God communicates in many different ways. When you pray, God’s voice may come to you in dramatic ways, like through an audible voice, angels, visions, etc. But in most cases, God speaks through thoughts and mental impressions.
As you pray, watch out for memorized portions of scriptures, songs, flashes from memory, lessons from circumstances, critical instructions, questions, counsel from other Christians, etc. that suddenly come to your mind. That may be God’s voice coming to you.
Don’t make a habit of rushing out of God’s presence after you have said everything you want to say. Wait patiently and listen for his voice, because when you pray, the voice of God will certainly come down from heaven. There is a little caution to take here however.
There are times you pray about a given matter, and there is no specific guidance or instruction from God about it. What you do in such situations is to go with the option you deem fit and have inner peace about, so long as it doesn’t violate the Bible’s moral principle.
PRAYER
Father, pour upon me the spirit of grace and supplications. Help me to wholly trust in you as you produce wonderful results through my prayers in Jesus Name.