The Ground of Prayer (Part Four): It is All About God.

So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Luke 11:2, NKJV)

We Are the Righteousness of God:

The bible tells us, “he that is born of God does not sin.” [1 John 3:9] That is, sin has no more home (abode) in the heart (life) of a believer. When a believer misses it, he or she settles accounts immediately. He/she does not wait for the next prayer meeting or time of devotion. A believer is one who lives in a constant state of fellowship (communion) with the Father. 

When that fellowship is broken, he or she immediately re-establishes it. He or she does not wait for the next prayer meeting or time of devotion. He is like a north-seeking compass. Ever seeking, ever longing, irrespective of where you trying to make it turn. He or she is always seeking to get back in koinonia (fellowship) with God. That is his or her comfort (operational) zone. 

"Any faith that does not command the one who holds it is not a real belief; it is a pseudo belief only. And it might shock some of us profoundly if we were brought suddenly face to face with our beliefs and forced to test them in the fires of practical living." ― A.W. Tower.

Anything other than this is simply a religion, not effective, nor in tune with the kingdom's principles. And, God is not looking for religion. He is looking for sincere, broken hearts to fellowship with. [John 4:24; Mathew 5:8] "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise." (Psalm 51:17, NKJV) Prayer is not about us. 

Prayer is All About God:

Prayer is all about He who calls us to Himself. That is why prayer starts and ends with Him. We are called to come BOLDLY to the throne of grace. [Hebrews 4:16] We are called to come as people who belong, not strangers, not people who do not qualify. We have been given access [Romans 5:1-2]. We belong. We have been qualified by the sacrifice of Christ. [Mathew 26:26; 1 Corinthians 11:24; Ephesians 2:14; Hebrews 10:20] And, He does not have to do that again.

"God answers prayer on the ground of redemption and no other ground." ― Oswald Chambers.

Come BOLDLY to the Throne of Grace. There is a place for you. There is a place for you in the throne room. Come to your father. He wants to hear your voice. Give Him the privilege.

Will you come to the Father today?

© 2014 Akin Akinbodunse.

The Ground of Prayer (Part Three): Our Sweet Spot.

So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Luke 11:2, NKJV)

Prayer is our Sweet Spot:

Just how much the devil seeks to discolor our prayer stance, all in the name of religion. He disabuses our minds to come only to God as a last resort. More like the popular catchphrase, “If every other thing fails, then pray.” Really? How so wrong and off the chart this is. Prayer is not our last resort. It is our only resort. It is not our spare wheel. It is our only wheel. It is our life - the very air that we breathe.

"Many people pray as if God were a big aspirin pill, they come only when they hurt." ― B. Graham Dienert.

Prayer is where we find our being. It is what makes us complete. For, it is a time of fellowship with Him, who is our life. We are to pray in season and out of season. We are called to pray without ceasing. [1 Thessalonians 5:17] Prayer is heeding to God's call, "To come and let us reason together." [Isaiah 1:18] Prayer is a relationship. Prayer is fellowship. Prayer is a breath of fresh, heavenly air. Prayer is hearing from home.

"When prayer has become secondary, or incidental, it has lost its power. Those who are conspicuously men of prayer are those who use prayer as they use food, or air, or light, or money." ― M.E. Andross.

Religion is Anti-Prayer: 

Another discoloration religion brings to our prayer stance is the sin consciousness. It does not fail to amaze me how the first thing, in most prayer meetings, is the confession of sins. Really? So, if there were no prayer meetings or times of devotion, what are we expected to do with sin? Keep our sins intact until the next prayer meeting? Is that how the master taught us to pray? Is that how His prayer model starts? 

"Conscious faith is freedom. Emotional faith is slavery. Mechanical faith is foolishness." ―  G.I. Gurdjieff.

Where did we get this false notion? How come we have allowed ourselves to be robbed of the truth? Who bewitched us? We have given place to false, emotional piety and traditions of men. These are clueless about the person and nature of God, nor the gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Having a form of religion, they deny the power thereof. [2 Timothy 3:5-7] 

"The man who has nothing more than a kind of Sunday religion – whose Christianity is like his Sunday clothes put on once a week, and then laid aside – such a man cannot, of course, be expected to care about growth in grace." ― J. C. Ryle.

They are imprisoned by their own lust. Paul's admonition is that we turn away from such. We are not called to religion. We are called to Power! We are called to God! We are called to be living witnesses of Christ. We are called to a life that shows forth God in an authentic and personal way. We are not called to passivity. If you don't hear his voice, you got something else other than Christianity. Time to wake up and live.

© 2014 Akin Akinbodunse.

Link to Study Series:

The Ground of Prayer (Part Two): My Father

The Ground of Prayer (Part Four): It is All About God.

Resource:

Prayer (Timothy Keller)

Dangerous Prayers: (Craig Groeschel)

Bluehost...Website peace of mind from your trusted hosting partner.

The Ground of Prayer (Part Two): My Father

So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Luke 11:2, NKJV)

What a powerful beginning Jesus gives us to pray, a recognition of our stance with God. It's even more powerful when we realize this is not referring to our adoption stance in Christ. It refers to the very fact that we all proceed from God [Luke 3:38; Acts 17:28-29] – black, white, red, whatever color you might be; Hindu, Muslim, Atheist, Christian, whatever your belief might be, or not be. 

We all have access to God, by the simple fact that we proceed from Him.

We all have access to God by the simple fact we proceed from Him. He is calling us to come home. He is calling us to come to have fellowship with Him. That is the essence of creation [Revelations 4:11] – fellowship with the Father; spending time with Him in communion; spending time with Him in the place of prayer. Prayer should not be our last resort, nor one of our options. 

Prayer should be our place of rest, our place of refuge. [Psalms 33:1; Proverbs 18:10] Prayer should be our home, our place of abode; the place we feel secure; the place we feel wanted and accepted. [Psalms 91:1-2] Such did Enoch find walking way ahead of his time. And God accounted to him that the world was not worthy of him. [Genesis 5:22-24; Hebrews 11:5]

Prayer should be our place of rest; our place of refuge.

Such did David find, way ahead of his time. No wonder God calls him "a man after His [God's] own heart." [Psalms 42; 84] Can God find such a heart in you? Do you seek God? Are you seeking God? Are you comfortable in His presence? Are you absolved by Him? Is He your all in all? Will you, like the prodigal son, say today, “I WILL ARISE AND GO TO MY FATHER….” (Luke 15:18a)

 He is waiting. He is looking out for you. He is expecting you to come. He is expecting you to come to spend time with Him - spend time in His presence. (He takes pleasure in your spending time in His presence.) Don’t deprive Him of that.

I will arise and go to my Father.

And, guess what, you can come just as you are. He will meet you just where you are and help you come to where He wants you to be. Please come spend time with the Father. It gives Him the joy to have you come.

© 2014 Akin Akinbodunse

Link to Study Series:

The Ground of Prayer (Part One): Why We Come 

The Ground of Prayer (Part Three): Our Sweet Spot.

The Ground of Prayer (Part One): Why We Come.

I Pray because...

So He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Luke 11:2, NKJV)

My mind goes to a quote I read a long time ago, which read thus,

“We don’t pray to have a relationship with God; we pray because we have a relationship with God.”

I can’t even remember the author, but this has stuck with me for close to three (3) decades. I read this at one of those low points in my life. I was going through a “rough patch.” God seemingly had not come through for me, and there was no strength, motivation, or willingness to pray. The quote gave me a rude awakening to the truth: I don’t pray because I feel like it or not. 

I don’t pray because I have a testimony or not. I don’t pray because I have a need or not. I don’t pray because someone told me to or not. I don’t pray to fulfill any religious obligation or not. I don’t pray to feel good or check the box. I don’t pray to "add another feather to my cap." I don’t pray to allay fear. Why then do I pray? Why then do you pray? If there is only one reason I pray,

 

It is because “I AM BORN OF HIM.” 

It is because “I AM ONE WITH THE FATHER.” 

It is because “I HAVE A CONNECTION WITH HIM.” 

It is because “I HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.” 

It is because “I HAVE ACCESS TO THE THRONE ROOM.”

It is because “I CAN’T BUT PRAY; I CAN’T BUT TALK TO MY FATHER.” 

It is because “THERE IS A NATURAL CRY OF A SON TO HIS FATHER ON THE INSIDE OF ME.”

Why do you pray? What are your own "because?"

“WE DO NOT PRAY TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. WE PRAY BECAUSE WE HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.”

There is a son-ship cry on the inside of us, crying out, “ABBA, FATHER!” [Galatians 4:6-7; Romans 8:15] Let us give voice to it. Let us allow it to flow. Let us allow it to flow forth. 

“ABBA, FATHER!” “ABBA, FATHER!” “ABBA, FATHER!”

The prodigal son understood this, so he said, 

“I WILL ARISE AND GO TO MY FATHER….” (Luke 15:18a)

Note: The prodigal son [Luke 15:17-19] did not say, "I will go to the father?" He said, "I will go to MY father. Note the relationship quotient. He did not go on the platform of his own worthiness. No, no, no. He came on the weight of who the Father is and "whose he is."

What about you? Why do you come to God in prayers? Do you suppose you have a right in your own power and qualification? Do you think you have done enough to come? Or, do you come because of who the Father is and all He has done?

"Pray to be taught to pray. Do not be content with old forms that flow from the lips only. Most Christians have need to cast their formal prayers away, to be taught to cry, Abba." (Robert Murray McCheyne)

Scriptures for Further Study: 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:14-16; Luke 18:9-14

© 2014 Akin Akinbodunse

Link to Study Series:

The Ground of Prayer (Part Two): My Father

The Ground of Prayer (Part Three)

Resource for Further Study: 

Experiencing Prayer with Jesus: The Power of His Presence and Example