Pray With Boldness

I don’t know about you but my early morning wake-up prayer for the past two weeks includes thanking God for a warm house. I also thank God for moving me to South Texas many moons ago when I view the winter weather maps and video reports of winter in the northern states. I sit and shiver knowing that three weeks of winter is a whole lot better than four to five months of freezing temps and blowing snow. A happier camper am I!

Television interviewer and journalist Larry King describes three farmers who gather daily in a field during a horrible drought. The men are down on their knees, looking upward, and praying the skies will open and pour forth a much-needed rain. Unfortunately, the heavens are silent, and the petitioners become discouraged, but they continue to meet every morning to lift up their request to God. One morning an uninvited stranger approaches and asks the men what they are doing. They respond, “We’re praying for rain.” The newcomer looks at each of them and shakes his head, “No, I don’t think so.” The first farmer says, “Of course we’re praying. We are down on our knees pleading for rain. Look around, see the drought. We haven’t had rain in more than a year!” The outsider continues to nod his head and advises them their efforts will never work. The second farmer jumps in and says, “We need the rain; we aren’t asking only for ourselves, but for our families and livestock.” The man listens, nods, and says he still isn’t impressed. “You’re wasting your time,” he says. The third farmer can’t take any more, and in anger he says, “Okay, what would you do if you were in our shoes?” Their guest was silent. The three landowners pleaded, “We really want to know! The future of our farmlands is at stake.” The stranger simply stated, “I would have brought an umbrella!” “If you believe you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer” (Matthew 21:22).

[1 John 4:15-16] Prayer Begins with God. When we pray we are reminding ourselves that God is always with us. The more we think about God being with us, the more it changes the way we act, the way we think and the way we communicate with God in prayer. When we pray we are responding to the love of God. Thus, in prayer, we are bringing our praise, needs and concerns to our heavenly Father. God wants to be in constant communication with His children and prayer is the means by which he invites us to make this happen. It is important to understand that prayer doesn’t start with us, it starts with God. Prayer Ends with God.  We simply cannot expect God to fulfill requests in prayer that do nothing to advance His name and His cause in our lives and in the lives of others. The difference between having confidence in our prayers and not is found in the motivation behind them. Whose will are we really trying to get done? Humans have a tendency to be self-centered and self-seeking. Such is often reflected in our prayers. So before you pray to God, here is the question you need to ask: What is in my prayers for God? What, if my prayer were granted, would bring glory and honor to God’s name and lead to the fulfillment of His will? Prayer was never meant to be a laundry list of our personal and often selfish wants. God created prayer for the purpose of communing with His children and so that He might be glorified in the answer. Prayer begins and ends with God! If Jesus felt the need to pray to the Father, surely we need God’s help in our own lives. So when you pray, pray boldly to the Lord! “...The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” (James 5:13-16). Don’t give up praying (Luke 18:1-8). Amen!