“God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
1 Corinthians 1:9 NIV
Welcome to the 27th weekly devotional recap of the year. This week, we learnt about prayer, the purpose of prayer, the discipline of consistent prayer, the practice of praying everywhere, and what it means to pray effectively.
On Monday, we learnt that prayer is communion with God, who has called us into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (1 Corinthians 1:9). Our communication with God is a two-way street; we speak and listen to Him. Prayer is vital to every believer as it forms the fabric of our lifestyle and demonstrates our trust in God (Philippians 4:6). Prayer also shows our worship and adoration for God.
On Tuesday, we learnt about the purpose of prayer. We learnt that prayer is our primary means of communicating with God, where we engage our spirits with divinity. Through prayer, we permit God to reveal Himself in our lives (James 5:16b). Prayer aligns us with the will of God (Acts 13:2), helps us to build our spirits, and strengthens our convictions (Jude 1:20).
Wednesday’s devotional admonished us to pray at all times (Ephesians 6:18). We nourish and feed our spirits when we spend time in prayer. Consistent prayer helps us grow deeper in our convictions of God’s word and build the capacity to resist temptation and do what God will have us do (1 Peter 5:8). Prayer is an exercise we must practice continually and daily.
On Thursday, we learnt to pray everywhere. Gone are the days when we needed physical temples to worship God. Today, through the Holy Spirit living in us, we are His temple (1 Corinthians 3: 16). Therefore, as mobile temples, we can worship Him everywhere and at all times. However, for consistency in devotion, we should have specific prayer times, locations and seasons; while not neglecting corporate prayers (Luke 22: 31-32).
We ended the week on Friday by discussing effective prayer. Authentic prayers need not be spontaneous. Like John the Baptist and Jesus’ disciples, we can also learn to pray effectively (Luke 11: 1), and certain principles and practices can make our prayers more impactful.
Some include: recognising your identity in Christ in God (Romans 3: 22), practising perseverance and concentration in prayer, establishing a prayer pattern, and praying with believers.
Our motive in prayer should not be to move the hand of God to do what we want but to align our hearts to what He wants. Prayer is more about what it does in us than what it can do for us.
Our Heavenly Father desires and delights in fellowship with us; we must also reciprocate that as His faithful children.
Have a lovely weekend.