Take advantage of prayer.
There is more to prayer than just asking for and receiving things from God. The apostles in the early church knew what prayer could do in their lives and ministry, that was why they resolved with all determination, "…We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word" (Acts 6:4). And every time they prayed, something happened. When you know what you stand to gain, not only will you be motivated to pray continually, every prayer exercise you engage in will bring you great encounters and tangible results. That is how you maximize prayer.
Many people pray just for the sake of praying, for them it’s a religious exercise but I have often said that Christianity is not a religion. God didn’t call us into religion, He called us into result oriented living; everything God tells us to do is with well defined objectives and goals in view. He said, "I have not said to the seed of Jacob, seek ye me in vain" (Isaiah 45:19). So, every time you are in prayer expect something definite.
Usually, two things motivate a man to embark on a journey – the scenery that he would enjoy along the way and the destination that he hopes to arrive at. In the same way, prayer is a journey. There are things that happen as we pray and others that follow after we pray; which are the benefits or results of prayer.
Now, one major thing that happens when we pray is that God hears us. This is one of the greatest motivations for prayer. 1 John 5:14 says, "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us."
The reason you call your friend on the telephone is because you know that he will be there to receive the call. And that he will not only receive the call, he will answer. So, verse 15 says, "And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him."
If you know that someone will not hear you, you don’t bother speaking to him. Prayer is that simple. Many people have no assurance that God hears when they pray and that is the reason they miss the answer when it comes.
"…If we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us." What that means is, there is no special case with God. As far as God is concerned, there is no difference between headache and cancer, nor between blindness and backache. If we ask anything according to His will, whether hard or simple, He hears us. Prayer is not trial and error, God will always hear us as long as we pray according to His will, but how many are taking full advantage of that opportunity?
Many people pray just for the sake of praying, for them it’s a religious exercise but I have often said that Christianity is not a religion. God didn’t call us into religion, He called us into result oriented living; everything God tells us to do is with well defined objectives and goals in view. He said, "I have not said to the seed of Jacob, seek ye me in vain" (Isaiah 45:19). So, every time you are in prayer expect something definite.
Usually, two things motivate a man to embark on a journey – the scenery that he would enjoy along the way and the destination that he hopes to arrive at. In the same way, prayer is a journey. There are things that happen as we pray and others that follow after we pray; which are the benefits or results of prayer.
Now, one major thing that happens when we pray is that God hears us. This is one of the greatest motivations for prayer. 1 John 5:14 says, "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us."
The reason you call your friend on the telephone is because you know that he will be there to receive the call. And that he will not only receive the call, he will answer. So, verse 15 says, "And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him."
If you know that someone will not hear you, you don’t bother speaking to him. Prayer is that simple. Many people have no assurance that God hears when they pray and that is the reason they miss the answer when it comes.
"…If we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us." What that means is, there is no special case with God. As far as God is concerned, there is no difference between headache and cancer, nor between blindness and backache. If we ask anything according to His will, whether hard or simple, He hears us. Prayer is not trial and error, God will always hear us as long as we pray according to His will, but how many are taking full advantage of that opportunity?
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