Clarity 9-15-10 “The Power of Prayer”

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Prayer? Slightly dull? A one sided conversation? Something that is hard to do? So why do we pray? Prayer is the 2^nd most important thing in our relationship with God. Bible study is first, but prayer is what opens our communication with God. You should probably know that there is not one relationship that can continue without communication. If you have a boyfriend or girlfriend that says “You are the most amazing thing ever! I, like, want to be with you forever!” but then they turn around and don’t talk to you for the next 6 months. Is that real? How can a relationship grow without communication? It can’t!

If there is one thing that I want you to take away from tonight it is that prayer is actually the most exciting thing that our relationship with Christ has to offer! How is it the most exciting thing? Well, let’s take a look at a few verses of Scripture and see what God says about it…

Pro 15:29 “The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.”

Mat 21:18 “In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry.
Mat 21:19 And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, "May no fruit ever come from you again!" And the fig tree withered at once.
Mat 21:20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying,"How did the fig tree wither at once?"
Mat 21:21 And Jesus answered them, "Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' it will happen.
Mat 21:22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith."

Phl 4:6 “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

                ESV Jam 5:16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”

NIV Jam 5:16 “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

What are some things that stand out to you from these passages? God hears prayer, He answers prayer, that when we pray we can expect an answer. What if we pray without faith? Will we receive an answer then? Matt 21:22 says that whatever we ask for in prayer we will receive if we have faith. No. We must come to God with faith that He is who He says He is and that He will answer us.

Esther 4:15 (Esther asks for prayer/fasting) Esther 7:1-10. Do you remember Esther? She had to go to the King even though he had not called for her and make a petition for the lives of her people. This was actually a death wish on her part. You do not approach the King without an invitation. He could choose to have you killed on the spot. Esther had Mordecia and the people fast for her for three days before she went to the king. Do you think that they were fasting and praying? You bet! She went before the king and God answered their prayers. She was saved from his hand and God delivered the Israelites through her bravery and willingness to serve. Here is the amazing thing. You can look at prayer in this way, that we are approaching the throne room of God. But we do not have to do so out of fear because God has already given us an invitation through Jesus Christ. Just like this king, Ahasuerus, offered to give her even half his kingdom, how much more is God willing to give us good things when we ask!

The Bible says that God is the same today, yesterday and tomorrow. Do you believe that? Do you really believe that there is power behind prayer? Do you believe that God is the same today as He was in the time of Esther?

Robbery story:

Dec 8^th, 2000 our family was highlighted for the week of prayer for international missions. That was on Friday night, the night we were robbed at gunpoint. That very night we had thousands of Christians praying for us. God does answer prayer! Even before we know that we need it!

Why are we having a week of prayer for Roy Roberts? Why do we have prayer meetings? Why are we to be constant in prayer? Rom 12:12 “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Because it is essential to our Christian lives. Once you see God stepping in and answering you, prayer is not a boring thing to do. It is exciting! There are so many stories I can tell you about God’s answers to prayer. You cannot get to know God unless you spend time in prayer. Once you do, you will find out that He even has a pretty hilarious sense of humor as well! One time in particular, I was working at a nursing home. I had to get up at a ridiculous hour of the morning to be there for work. So I was worn out already and wanted to get home. Who here has ever prayed for a day to go by quickly? That is what I did. I just asked God to make time go by quickly that morning so I could get some rest. Right after I finished praying, one of my coworkers said, “What on earth is wrong with the clock?” I looked up and the analogue clock had sped up so that the minute and hour hands were spinning extremely fast. Time was literally flying by!

Yesterday, I was listening to K-love and a caller asked for us to pray for a young boy who had been in an accident. I said a small prayer for him, and later that afternoon, the woman called back in saying that the boy had brain activity the first time since the accident. Who knows how many people were praying, but God answered those prayers. Even if it was just in a small way.

Guys/gals, if you pray about something, look for God’s answer to it. We get so distracted that we sometimes miss out on what God is doing. Don’t be like that. Expect Him to answer you. Pray in faith and know that He will hear you.  

Of course, the most important part is that we actually take time to pray. Bible study is important, but prayer is a very close second. We need to do what Jesus did and just find a quiet place for a little while to pray. Do not get caught up in the thought that it is a boring task, realize that you are actually communicating to God! Jesus took it upon Himself to be in prayer. (After feeding the 5,000) Mar 6:46 “And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray.”