The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"The Percentage of Prayer"
Our first thought regarding prayer should be one of God and of wonder. An infinite Lord desires fellowship with finite beings such as ourselves, having made us with the capacity for such communion of Heart to heart. He ever works to draw us unto Himself for this fellowship made possible through the redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit. This includes the moment at hand. I would therefore suggest suspending consideration of my thoughts to direct prayerful attention to the One of whom Scripture declares, "The prayer of the upright is His delight" (Proverbs 15:8).
If you have returned, let us consider together a few more wonders of prayer. Fellowship with God must be viewed as far more than 99.99% about Him, and far less than .01% about ourselves. This does not mean our role bears no importance or significance. It certainly does. Our communication with God, if performed according to His truth and led by His Spirit, involves a real response to Him, as enabled by Him. God made us with capacity for this primary reason for our existence as human beings. When the Holy Spirit enters our hearts through faith in the Lord Jesus, believers become a personal "house of prayer" (Matthew 21:12). We may or may not consistently avail ourselves of such grace. The truth abides, however, that…
"Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying Abba Father" (Galatians 4:6).
The praying Christ dwells in born again believers. Indeed, when the Apostle Paul declared he could "do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me," nothing more blessed or vital than communion with God can be imagined among the "all things" (Philippians 4:13). "Teach us to pray" wisely asked the disciples of the Lord who dwelled with them at the time, and who would one day dwell within them as the very Life of their lives (Luke 11:1; Colossians 1:27). He would lead them - as He does us - in countless expressions of His internal presence that result in outward doings far beyond our human capacity. He would lead the disciples to pray, a gift of grace that no less moves within our hearts in this moment and always. Indeed, do we really believe ourselves capable of communion with the eternal, infinite God who made and sustains a creation more vast, complex, and beautiful than all imagining? Such a notion would be scandalous presumption, were it not for the Creator beckoning us to Himself with the promise of His enabling by the "Abba Father" of the Lord Jesus Himself.
As we ponder prayer, let us focus primarily on the 99.99% of God's promised presence, involvement, leading, enabling, and answers. Thereby, our .01% will be far more responsive, genuine, fervent, effectual, and pleasing to both our Father and ourselves. We will ever be overwhelmed by the magnitude of such a calling, and never will we feel as if we know or experience more than a modicum of what it means to commune with God. This is precisely as it should be. Indeed, if awe does not accompany our journey to the throne of grace, we do well to pause before we arrive, gather ourselves, and remember Who beckons us to Himself. Yes, prayer is nearly all about God, but in the marvel of His mercy through Christ, He has made it about us as well. The better we know this, the percentage of prayer, the better we will pray.
"Yet the Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life."
(Psalm 42:8)
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)
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