Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8.
And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6.
For those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed. 1 Samuel 2:30.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God says:
Prayer is very important. My Will for you in Christ Jesus is to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give constant thanks. And prayer is the center of joy and thanksgiving, both flow from fellowship (fullness of joy in My presence), partnership (fruitful lives that bless), and stewardship (answered needs and abundant provision), which are the three aspects of prayer. Jesus told Martha, who was anxious and busy about many things, that Mary had chosen the better part and the one thing necessary by starting her activities with and continuing them in prayer.
Your prayers are precious to Me. Your prayers come before Me like incense on My golden altar in Heaven and they are carried in golden bowls in the arms of the saints before Me. When John was caught up into the Kingdom of Heaven, he recounts, “the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the believers.” Revelation 5:8. “Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might give it to the prayers of all the believers on the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the believers, went up before God out of the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.” Revelation 8:3-5. Remember the place shook when the first community of believers after I raised Jesus from the dead were praying? And remember when Paul and Silas were chained in prison and singing and praying at midnight, an earthquake hit that prison and all the chains fell off the prisoners and the gates opened to the prison.
Today is Life Lesson No. 3 in this series of “LORD, teach us to pray,” and it is “Why pray?” You must know that I only tell you to do things if they are for your benefit and My benefit, things that are in your best interest and My best interest. So if I tell you to pray, it is for your good and also for Mine. And I am very persistently telling you to pray. You would be wise to give heed to this.
On a very basic level, Jesus tells you why to pray, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” Matthew 7:7-8. You receive the answers and things you need, whether physical, material, spiritual, or emotional, in and through prayer. You find things you are seeking and open doors of promotion and opportunity in prayer. You also open other’s hearts to Me and to you in prayer. There are many things, situations, and people that can only be changed in prayer. Remember Nehemiah? He was an exile, a prisoner of war, in Babylon, but he prayed and I moved the heart of the king to send him back to Jerusalem with the funds to rebuild its destroyed walls that had been burnt down by fire when the enemy conquered them.
Jesus also gives you another benefit of prayer, I reward you when you pray. “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.” Matthew 6:6.
But today, let us go higher as we build on the basics. It is time for you to start praying at a whole new dimension, where you see things as I see and say Words as I say, not as a parrot, but as one who rules and reigns with Me. A place where minds meet in a Covenant of everlasting love.
Always do things with purpose, not idly. So why pray? Is there a purpose? Yes.
Jesus did mighty deeds and awesome works and Jesus told you why, “And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” John 8:29. I was with Him. “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” Acts 10:38. And Jesus, at the tomb of Lazarus as He called him forth, explained, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” John 11:41-44.
He tells you that He always did the things that were pleasing to Me, and what pleases Me? I tell you, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6. Prayer then is the perfect expression of faith. For he who comes to God in prayer “must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” You pray by faith that I am there, that I exist and that I hear you no matter where you are AND that I will reward you by granting your petition. In other words, prayer is faith that I AM. Prayer is faith that I hear. Prayer is faith that I have power and ability to meet your needs and answer your requests. Prayer is faith that I am good. Faith works by love.
Prayer is an expression and exercise of faith first of all. But whether you pray the prayer of faith depends on your knowing Me, the Word, and the laws of faith. There is a difference between little faith and great faith. Great faith is fully persuaded and results in declaration after consultation. As Jesus expressed before the tomb of Lazarus. It is where you find My Word, consult Me about it, and then you declare it into the earth to watch the result manifest as I watch over My Word to perform it. Another example of this is when Joshua consulted Me and then commanded the sun and moon to stand still to prolong the day.
So one reason to pray is that it pleases Me and keeps us walking together constantly. Prayer is the unceasing flow of hearts where you and I walk together in openness of heart to who the other one is.
The next reason is that it honors Me and you. Mutual honor. You honor Me by praying and I honor you by answering. “For those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed.” 1 Samuel 2:30. Call on Me and I will answer you and tell you great and mighty things you could not know. Jeremiah 33:3. In prayer I share My deep thoughts with you and reveal things to you that eye has not seen, ear has not heard, and has not so much as entered the minds of men. 1 Corinthians 2:10-16. I reveal hidden wisdom and show you things to come. And I reveal to you what I have prepared for those who love Me and are called according to My purpose. And in mutual honor is worship. WORSHIP IS A CONTINUOUS FLOW OF LOVE AND HONOR BETWEEN YOU AND ME WHERE EACH VALUES THE OTHER AND EACH FINDS THE OTHER PRECIOUS. And honor leads to promotion. All promotion comes from Me. You see an example of this in the life of Jacob’s son Joseph. He honored Me through his thirteen years of slavery and imprisonment and I honored him by promoting him to being the top governing official in Egypt next to Pharaoh. And he was given great honor by Pharaoh and the people. But he always turned it back to honor for Me. We honored each other.
And now I want to share with you a very great reason for you to pray if you desire a fruitful life of mighty works and deeds. A life that makes a difference. “The prayer of a righteous one prevails in power and accomplishes much.” James 5:16. And the example I give is this, “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed with prayer that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the heavens gave rain and the earth produced its fruit.” James 1:17-18.
Let us consider this. The northern kingdom of Israel, once it divided from Judah, turned to idols with grave intensity. The kings led them in this so that they would not go to the temple in Jerusalem and reunite with Judah. I was shut out completely from the hearts and lives of My people except for those who remained loyal like Elijah and Elisha. And they were grieved. I sent many prophets to turn the people back to the blessing but they gave themselves over to idols and opened themselves to the curse. Elijah knew this, but his heart was to bring the people back to Me. I gave him this desire, for it was Mine. But Elijah knew My Word and he found My Will in My Word. “It shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late rain, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil. He will give grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. Beware that your hearts are not deceived, and that you do not turn away and serve other gods and worship them. Or the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its fruit; and you will perish quickly from the good land which the LORD is giving you.” Deuteronomy 11:13-17; Deuteronomy 28:23. He took that Word and spoke it over sinful Israel. “Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 1 Kings 17:1. And it came to pass there was no rain or dew for three and a half years, but after that Elijah called all the people to assemble on Mt. Carmel and he proved Me to be the true God by fire from Heaven. When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God.” 1 Kings 18:39. And Elijah knew that was enough to stop the curse and bring back the blessing of rain under My promise. So up he went to the top of Mt. Carmel and called in the rain, and it came. And the heavens opened and poured down blessing. 1 Kings 18:41-46.
I call “praying with prayer” what Elijah did—he found My Word that applied directly to the circumstances he faced and he consulted Me and then declared it. That was as Jesus did also at the tomb of Lazarus. He knew My Word, “Thus says the Lord (Adonai- which means Lord as it pertains to man and God) LORD (YHWH), “Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken and done it,” declares the LORD.’” Ezekiel 37:12-14. Now consider again what Jesus said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” That fulfills the Word I gave to Ezekiel the prophet. Jesus opened the grave and caused Lazarus to come out into the land of Israel so they would know that I had spoken and done it. He was the One I sent, your Adonai.
And that is what Jesus told you to do also, that is, have faith in Me, and faith comes by hearing My Words, specifically My Words on whatever you need, whether it be healing, finances, or peace with your enemies, and then take that faith that is in that Word of promise and speak to the mountain you are facing expecting what you say will move the mountain in your way out of your path according to My Word. And you shall have what you say. Believe you have received before you see it manifest and you shall see it come to pass. Call into existence that which does not exist in the physical because you have the substance, though not visible to your physical senses, to change it. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. And that is the prayer of faith. It accomplishes much.
So you should pray to put My Words to work in your life and in the world for then you will accomplish much.
And there are many other reasons why you need to pray, but I will give you one more before we close today, and it is very important for your peace. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7. In prayer you cast all your cares on Me because I care for you, and then do not worry about it. You have given it to Me and I have the answer for you and I am at work on your behalf. Nothing is too wonderful for Me, nothing is impossible for Me, and all things are possible for those who believe that. If you know who I am and My promises to you, then once you have given it to Me you should not be stressed and fretting, even if the problem is your fault. You should be excited about the miracle that is coming to you. No weapon formed against you will prosper. Just leave it with Me and get ready to partner with Me in the good outcome. You pray and I move, I go to work on your behalf. That is what I mean that you should always pray and not faint. I mean you pray about it and then you do not faint and become weak in stress and fear. Pray about a situation and do not faint from fear and anxiety. Know when you gave it to Me it’s on its way to victory.
I am the God of all comfort. I did not leave you orphans. I am here with you as your Father, provider, healer, redeemer, and savior. And prayer is where you come to Me with confidence to receive comfort, mercy, and grace to help right when you need it. I am present as your helper.
I love you. Do you agree that it is important for YOU to pray? I have called you to be a mountain mover. But more than that, I have called you to prayer so you can receive direction, protection, peace, and joy. “You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” Psalm 16:11. Beautiful indeed is your inheritance. Let Me show you what I have freely given you. You will only learn it in prayer. Prayer is putting your bucket down into the deep waters of the well of the Spirit and drawing up treasures as you drink deeply of the water of life. If you knew My gift, you would ask Jesus for a drink. And that is the flow of prayer.