The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"Teach Us To Pray"
In a recent message, we suggested that prayer must be viewed primarily in light of God's involvement and doings rather than our own. This does not discount our proper response and responsibility. Scripture speaks much about the whys and wherefores of communion with our Heavenly Father.
""For through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father" (Ephesians 2:18).
"And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us" (I John 5:14).
We must come to God by the way He has made available, and we must seek to pray in accordance with His glory, will, and eternal purpose in the Lord Jesus Christ. We must be God-centered in our understanding, focus, and practice of prayer. Indeed, the very point of genuine prayer involves the wrenching of our attention away from ourselves to rest it upon the One in whom "we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).
"Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me" (Micah 7:7).
As we rightly "let your requests be made known unto God," we must pray with a prevailing attitude of "Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven" (Philippians 4:6; Matthew 6:9-10; emphasis added). Believers serve as ambassadors who represent not ourselves or our own plans and purposes. We rather serve and represent the glory and will of our King (II Corinthians 4:5). Our needs and desires factor into prayer, and the Lord often answers in ways that apply to us in the most personal terms. Doubtless, our Heavenly Father rejoices in the bestowal of such generosity and kindness. However, our personal matters are not paramount in His responses to our prayers. Nor would we want them to be. Our Father rather works primarily in accordance with with the glory of His Son and the fulfillment of "the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Ephesians 3:11). We would not want it any other way when considering that whatever fulfills His will always works toward our ultimate best interests.
Consider prayer for "this day, our daily bread" (Matthew 6:11). Certainly, God provides in a manner that meets our personal need for health and even our desire for enjoyment (Mark 8:2-3; I Timothy 6:17). However, every morsel He provides applies to far more than physical requirements and pleasure. Our bodies belong to Him for His honor, will, and purpose. We are to "do all for the glory of God" (I Corinthians 10:31). The Lord does not feed us in this present life without an eye directed primarily toward eternity. We will not see or realize most of the eternal relevance of His supply of food. It applies nevertheless, and we do well at times as we raise our forks to consider that our requests for daily bread will be answered in a manner that impacts far more than our temporal existence. "The things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are unseen are eternal" (II Corinthians 4:18).
Communion with an infinite, eternal God transcends our native human capacities. We must view the matter with deep reverence, but also in the joy that a primary reason for the indwelling Holy Spirit in believers involves His leadership, motivation, and enabling to pray. No aspect of our walk with God more reveals our need for Him and His faithful provision to us. "Lord, teach us to pray" asked the disciples (Luke 11:1). No wiser request has ever been offered in human history, nor is one forthcoming. Yes, prayer is the most God-centered reality of our existence because our lives ebb and flow through personal communion with Him. The more we view it as such, the more we will avail ourselves of His enabling through His God-centered answers as we often echo the disciples. Indeed, Lord, teach us to pray.
"Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."
(Romans 8:26)
Weekly Memory Verse
"Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven."
(Proverbs 23:5)
7667
No comments:
Post a Comment