Let's Get the Basics

Before we get on to the training, let’s go through some of the basics.

Prayer is first of all talking with God.  Not to Him only, but with Him.  You will be doing more listening as talking.  Many people have the misunderstanding that prayer is something we say to God.  The Bible says, however, that it is possible to pray without saying anything at all!  Prayer is as much about listening as talking.
Think about prayer as a date with someone you love.  Does it matter what you talk about on a date?  What we say is not as important as who we are with. Prayer isn’t about getting answers, but having a greater communion with our Lord and Creator.

Prayer does not depend on when, how or where we pray. We may pray anywhere and at any time.  There are no rules regarding how or where we pray.  We may pray standing,  sitting, or lying down,  with hands raised or folded,  looking up or looking down,  with our eyes open or closed,  God hears it all.  God heard Jonah in a whale's belly—surely he can hear you wherever you are!

Nevertheless, rituals help us to focus our attention on God as we pray.  Even though the place and position do not matter to God, they do matter to us.  C.S Lewis wrote that what we do with our bodies when we pray matters, because we are creatures of flesh, not spirit. Our bodies need to pray as well as or minds. When we assume a particular stance for prayer, whatever that stance may be,  it helps to remind our wayward mind that we are there for a purpose. Christians discovered in ancient times that bodily positions in worship affect the attitude of the mine.  It is best to have an undistracted, regular time in a quiet place to pray. It is also best to have some idea of structure and order when we pray.  If it seems embarrassing to assume a position in prayer,  then get away and do it alone. 

Effective prayer involves faith. Try to imagine an infomercial for a new Wonder Chopper.  For a half an hour, the pitchman tells how it slices, dices, peels potatoes, and does all kinds of wonderful things.  Then he closes the infomercial by saying.  “Yes I hope you buy this wonderful product, but most of you probably won’t.”  I seriously doubt if he will sell many Wonder Choppers!  A salesman must believe that he will get a positive answer. 

 If God is God, then He will answer.  It is therefore important to understand something of the nature of God before we pray. 

God is Good.  He wants us to receive His blessings.

God is Great.  He has the power to make things happen.

God is Loving.  God really, really loves us.  He wants to help us in all things.  He loves us so much that He sent His only Son to die for us.

Prayer involves repentance and humility.  Some pastors and churches teach “sure-fire” methods of getting what we want from God.  They will suggest that prayer is all about claiming promises from God—that when we want something, He must give it to us, whether or not it is something we ought to have. 

 This is ridiculous on the face of it.  God is in control, not we.  We don’t always know what is best for us. 

The Bible tells us, “All have sinned and come short of God’s glory.”  Unless we are as great and smart as God, we don’t always know what is best for us. Sometimes we need to be be reminded that we are not the masters of our own lives, that God is in control. 

Prayer involves Repentance. Repentance simply means “changing our minds.”  Many people in their pride believe that they are their own masters, that what they want to do is right.  This kind of attitude is not conducive to an effective life of prayer. 

“Humble yourself,” the Bible says, “And he will lift you up.”

We pray in Jesus’ name. This requires some explanation.

When we pray in Jesus name, we are not talking about words alone.  Jesus said in John 14 “If you ask anything in my name, it will be given you.” He was not giving us a magic word to use.  Saying “Jesus” is not like saying “abracadabra.”  Jesus is referring to His authority, not a sound.

The ritualistic mouthing of the name of Jesus does nothing for us. However, the realization that we come to God through the sacrifice of His Son is the key to effective prayer. It is not the sound of the name, but understanding that our access to the Father comes through Jesus’ blood.

When we pray, we need to realize that we are supposed to be there.  We are welcome in the presence of God because Jesus opened the door for us.  We can ask anything we wish, because He made it possible.

A Christian does not have to shrink from God.  We go boldly.  We do not fear that God will not accept us.  He has already accepted us in His Son. Anyone who believers in Jesus, and has accepted Him as Lord and savior, may come at any time into the presence of God.  In the great drama of God’s running of the universe, we have a backstage pass.  This is the access that Jesus bought for us.  Praying in Jesus’ name is praying with confidence because of what Jesus did for us. 

Prayer is not a force or a substance.  We Christians have the unfortunate tendency to think about prayer as if it were some flowing substance, like water or electricity. If we generate more prayers, we think we will get more results. If we have prayers going up from more than one person, then God will hear us more.  If this were so,  then the person who was more popular would have more prayers answered!  It is not the volume of prayer that makes a difference, but the value of the prayers we pray. 

 Prayer is not a commodity that accumulates by the number of people and times we pray. In Matthew 18:19, Jesus says

"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven."  Notice that he did not say five or six, but two or three!  There is value in many people praying for us. But the value is not in the number of prayers, but in the sincerity and passion of the people.

Likewise, just because a lot of people pray, does not mean God will change His mind.  God is in control. He does not make decisions based on a popular vote, but analyses what is needed and gives it, out of the abundance of His mighty power.  

Nevertheless, God wants us to work at prayer.  Prayer calls for passion!  “Seek and keep on seeking,” Jesus said, “and you will find. Knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened.”

“But wait a minute,” our heart says “doesn’t that contradict what we just heard? If the number or volume of prayer does not change His mind, then why doesn’t He answer us the first time.” 

The purpose of long term prayer is not to change God’s mind, but our own. God often does not bring an answer until we fully grasp the question. We need to know not only what we should correctly ask for, but also how important the answer is.  This only comes when we allow our minds to go back to the same request over and over. In time,  we come to the place of passionately, dearly wanting what God wants us to have.

When I was boy the biggest thing we looked forward to every year was Christmas.  About Thanksgiving, we made our lists of things we wanted and gave them to our parents. Our parents went out and bought some of them, usually within the next week.  But they did not give it to us right away.  They hid them in the attic or the basement until Christmas morning, when they all suddenly appeared. When they did appear, we had been looking forward to them all month.  I believe we appreciated those gifts more because we had to wait.

God also wants us to keep asking so we won’t forget where the answer came from.  How many times have we prayed for something and then when we received it, took the credit for ourselves?  As long as some part of us still thinks we are capable of bringing about change by ourselves, we are not ready to receive answers. 

We need both Public and private prayers.  Jesus encourages us to pray alone.  In Matthew 6:5-7 Jesus says

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

 Jesus encourages us to pray together.  The first thing the church did after Jesus’ ascenscion was to pray.  Acts 1:12-14-21

"Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. When they arrived . . . They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.”

After Pentecost, it was also one of the first things they did in Acts 2:42.  "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."

Group prayer encourages to pray more.  This is true not only of prayer, but of everything we do.  Other people keep us in touch with each other. 

Praying alone and praying together is not contradictory. We should do both. Deitrich Bonheoffer once said that he who is afraid of alone should fear being with people, and he who is afraid of being with people should fear being alone.  We need both the praying with others as well as praying by ourselves.

In the next six weeks, you will be praying both alone and together. Don’t try to do this one your own.  Also don’t try to do it purely in other people’s company. You will need both the alone time and the together time to experience all God has to offer.  

Nothing I have said here is new. Anyone who has sat in churches for any length of time has probably heard most of this. It is not just Biblical; it is also common sense. 

But this is not the end of our knowledge of prayer. It is the beginning.  It is the practice that gives us the skills to be an effective prayer warrior.

Lord, help us to learn what it means to be in daily communion with you.  Change us through prayer, so that we may be your instruments for changing the world.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.