PRAYER (THE SUPERNATURAL KEY)

image credit

EPHESIANS 6:18
Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication.God has established prayer as the means by which we receive his supernatural help. And without supernatural help, we cannot live a life worthy of the gospel. Everything that distinguishes Christians from the world in a Christ-exalting way is a work of God’s supernatural grace. And God has ordained that this grace flows to us through prayer. That’s why prayer must be central, not peripheral, in our lives and families and ministries.Most of us sense the desire to pray, and even want to develop a better prayer life, but we don’t know what to pray for. Each of these resources offers ideas for requests you might bring to God in prayer. Some are more specific and others more general, but all offer examples that you can adapt to make your own.

The Scriptures above says, "Praying always... "; that means you ought to be in constant communication or fellowship with the Father. What most people know about prayer is making requests; that's the lesser purpose for prayer. Prayer is primarily fellowship with the Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit; and it's something we're called to do always, not occasionally.

image credit

LUKE 18:1
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

The Amplified Translation of our opening scripture makes it clear; it says "pray at all times(on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saunts(God's consecrated people).That immediately lets you know that prayer isn't just about asking God for things; prayer is a continual "intelligence" communication.

image credit

I love this verse from Luke 5:16 because it shows that just like you and me, Jesus needed a break from the demands of his busy life to recharge his batteries and spend time with his Heavenly Father. The life of Christ is intended to give us examples we can follow and learn from. So, even though He was God incarnate, Jesus didn’t draw on his super powers as the Son of God when it came to facing life’s challenges. Instead, when he was exhausted or burdened or in need of spiritual refreshment, he would “slip away” to pray — plugging into the power, perception, and purpose that can only be found in God’s presence.
Prayer is one of the most powerful weapons God has given us, and looking ahead at 2018, I believe it has never been more important for God’s people to be on our knees. But knowing how to pray is not always easy. Jesus’ disciples felt the same confusion. They were familiar with the oft-repeated prayers of the Torah. But Jesus prayed with a kind of authority and power they had never seen before — as though God was listening! So when they came to Jesus, as told in Matthew 6, they didn’t say, “Teach us another prayer.” They said, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

image credit

Prayer is the key that unlocks all of the treasures of the Kingdom of God. It is a key that He has placed in your hand and invites you to use. Prayer is the conduit through which all the power and provision of God flows.

One of the questions people often have about prayer is: “If God knows what I need, why do I need to ask Him for it?” Jesus tells us in Matthew 6 that we do not need to worry about things because the Father knows everything we need (Matt. 6:31-32). He says in Matthew 6:8, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Yet, He teaches us to pray, “Give us today our daily bread” (Matt. 6:9). He states the need to ask in even stronger terms when He says, “Ask and it will be given to you” (Matt. 7:7). Don’t you find that interesting? Jesus assures us that God knows everything we need, yet tells us to ask Him for it. Consider why God has set things up so that prayer releases into our lives what He knows we need and wants to give us.
When you pray, you're connected to "spiritual intelligence",such that you're aware of the happenings around you; you're not in the dark as to what steps to take, or where to go. "Intelligence information" is constantly being given to you, such that you're informed, enlightened,and guilded by divine wisdom at all times; you're never confused.

MATTHEW 7:7-8
:Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
:For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

In the place of prayers, you receive impartations, ministrations, visions, and guidance from the Holy Spirit! There's also the conditioning of your spirit to hear and respond to God correctly; a synchronization of your passions and emotions with His perfect will. These are part of what makes prayer exciting for us.
God has given us the dominion and the authority to alter the course of events in the earth. It's your responsibility, not His, to see to it that circumstances in your life, your family and in the lives of those around you are framed to conform to God's perfect will; you can achieve this through prayer.

image credit

CONLUSION
The foundation of a praying life is knowing God. A promise is only as good as the person who makes it. When you make knowing Him your focus, you will come to trust His promises and the power of prayer will become your reality. As you keep your life open to Him through these disciplines, you will come to know Him intimately. Trust in Him will come spontaneously. Peace will be the most natural state of your soul. You will find that you have moved from “saying prayers” to “living prayer.”