“Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,”
Luke 18:1 NKJV
As a believer, you must have heard many times about the importance of prayer. However, as important as prayer is in itself, the motive and heart behind it must always be considered and noted. The aspect of prayer sometimes emphasized is that it is an avenue to table our personal needs. Yes, God cares about our needs, but that cannot be the only reason we should pray. There are surely deeper reasons for prayer.
So why exactly do we pray?
First, prayer is the primary means of communicating with God. We have been conformed to the image of the Son and called into fellowship with Him. (1 Corinthians 1:9). It is really about fellowship with your Creator. So, when we pray, we engage our spirit with divinity. Our new identity in Christ has changed our approach to prayer, so we should always look forward to our times of prayer with fervour and eagerness
Secondly, through prayer, we give God permission to reveal Himself in our lives. The unfolding of God’s power can be seen in our lives through prayer. James 5:16b states that “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” This means that it makes power available.
Thirdly, prayer aligns you with the will of God. Asyou focus more on communing with God in prayer, you will experience more supernatural guidance in your life. (Acts 13:2). Through prayer, we can function in the way God wants us to. We become more sensitive to His leading.
Praying also helps us build up our spirit. (1 Corinthians 14:4, Jude 1:20). Praying in the Spirit charges and strengthens. You can stir up the gifts of God within you through prayer.
Finally, our convictions are strengthened when we pray. Prayer dispels contradictions in our lives, and makes us less susceptible to the vices of the devil. It strengthens us for the day of adversity and fortifies us against the devil’s tricks. (Luke 22:31 – 32).
Therefore, we can see that the essence of prayer is not just for our needs. Our heavenly Father already knows our needs even before we ask for them. (Matthew 6:8)
Prayers are not to move the hand of God to do what we want, but to align our heart to what He wants. Prayer is essentially about what it does in us rather than what it can do for us. This, dear believer, is the intent of prayer; a total and complete intimacy with God.
Bible Reading Plan: Psalms 33, 36, 39