The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe
"To Pray and To Please"
I recently heard a very good thought expressed by a young man regarding the benefits of prayer for our hearts and minds. While not quoting the passage below, the young man Biblically and eloquently implied its blessed truth:
"Be careful (anxious) for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God, and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).
The blessings of grateful prayer in our lives cannot be overstated. As one voice of old declared, "Thanksgiving is the sweetener of the soul." The young man mentioned above offered an excellent reminder of this heart-filling and fulfilling gift God bestows upon all who trust the Lord Jesus Christ. "Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying Abba Father" (Galatians 4:6).
As I listened, however, another thought came to mind. "What does prayer do in God's heart and mind?" The Bible answers this question. "The prayer of the upright is His delight" (Proverbs 15:8). As born again believers grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit works to transform and transfer our emphasis from ourselves to God (and others). Regarding prayer, Solomon declares the wondrous truth that our Heavenly Father finds communication with the faithful to be not merely the fulfillment of His desire, but of His delight. This takes prayer to another place altogether, first in our perception of God's heart and mind, and then in our own. Indeed, as Christ's character increasingly forms and informs our attitude, His unselfish desire to bless His Father grows in our emphasis: "I do always those things that please Him" (John 8:29). This includes prayer. For our own sake? Certainly, just as the young man skillfully expressed. However, far more for God's sake - "His delight" - directs the Holy Spirit regarding our primary motivation and reason for praying. "Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more" (I Thessalonians 4:1).
The greatest motivator of prayer involves not what it does for us, but what it does in God. The indwelling love of Christ revealed in believers' hearts through the Holy Spirit establishes and perpetuates our Savior''s devotion to His Father. Thereby, we rightly pray to seek God's provision for our hearts and minds. The pleasure of His heart and mind, however, most blesses us in prayers offered first to bless Him. Thoughts of grace, mercy, love, and a Heart that sees us with an affection and devotion that "passeth knowledge" accompany such a realization, along with a far greater desire to pray - and to please (Ephesians 3:19).
"The Lord taketh pleasure in His people."
(Psalm 149:4)
Weekly Memory Verse
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things."
(John 14:26).
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