We've
all heard it said that "prayer changes things" and I believe, that
for the most part, most of us as believers actually hold to this tenet of our
faith. However, when we look at what is happening in Venezuela or the shooting
that took place at the UNCC campus (my college alma mater) last evening, we
begin to question if prayer can or does make a difference.
First
off, James 5:16 tells us that "The effective, fervent prayer of a
righteous man avails much." So the question we may be asking ourselves is...Are
my prayers effective...Am I praying fervently ...and are these the prayers of a
righteous man?
We
all struggle with prayer....when, where and how to do it? How do we pray effectively?
I think the answer is quite simple...we pray about the things that matter the
most to us! First of all, as God takes control in our lives and we seek to live
for Him and to be obedient to His will, we will begin to align our desires with
the desires of our Heavenly Father...we will pray for what matters to us
because we know those things matter to Him...and the more we pray the more our
consistency will build ferverency. Jesus told His disciples on many occasions
to ask their Heavenly Father for their needs and to continually pursue His
favor through their fervent prayers. When we pray fervently, we will pray with
a hot, burning, intense desire that will consume our wants as we make known to
our Father what truly matters is asking for our needs in ACCORDANCE WITH HIS
WILL....and that's how we become the righteous man whose prayers are answered.
When
we pray for God to grant our wants or to give us what we have determined we
need, we can be fervent, even effective in our consistency to pray; but we are
not close to approaching the prerequisite that God has set in place for
answered prayer....RIGHTEOUSNESS. It is our desire to be in alignment with the
PERFECT WILL OF A RIGHTEOUS AND HOLY GOD that sets the framework for the
workings of the Holy Spirit...and in those workings, we see that our prayers
AVAIL MUCH.
So as
you look across the landscape of your life and you see those areas that have
been ravaged by the work of the enemy, take hope in this....WHEN YOU PRAY
EFFECTIVELY, FERVENTLY AND RIGHTEOUSLY FOR THE WILL OF GOD TO BE DONE IN YOUR
LIFE....THE ANSWER IS ALREADY ON THE WAY...and your landscape will be healed
and God will be glorified as you let Him have his way in your prayers.
Yes,
if you just take a look around the globe, you can see what has broken the heart
of God! So, if you want to make an eternal difference, then plant your flag of
prayer in one of these broken places and begin to pray as James encouraged
believers to pray....just pray and leave the outcome of your prayers to your
Heavenly Father...for He is just waiting for you and I to ask Him to meet our
needs and our problems head on....for He has promised to answer every prayer
and He is God...
He
can't break a promise!
Praying fervently with a righteous
heart,
WPQ
Poem
for the day....
Each
morning as you climb out of bed
Before
your feet hit the bedroom floor,
Take
a moment to think of the heart of God
And
what you should be praying for?
Is it
for the child who has no shoes
Or
the man who has no feet?
Should
you be praying for the homeless ones
Who
are living just down the street?
Don't
pray for things that make life grand;
Barely
touch upon the things you need.
Just
pray that God will grant to you
The desire
to sow His seed....
Of
Love and Grace and Mercy
So
with all of those you touch;
You'll
know that the prayers of a righteous man
Are
the ones that accomplish much!!!!
WPQ © May 2019
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