Prayer

Praying is listening to the voice of God or our attempt at listening. Not just petitions or requests but really and truly communing with God. It doesn't have to be eloquent speech, but a voice that cries out to God, a heart that wants to be close. From here The Holy Spirit, Jesus will pray with us, for us, through us.
It is about quieting the soul down, about silence, and longing, and searching for God. It is about union with the Lord, about surrender, about His will, and not ours. It requires discipline, or at the very least honesty.
Prayer must be seen as a joy and not a chore. It is a great priviledge to be able to pray. Christ died to give prayer to us, to give us His Holy Spirit, to make us Holy and beautiful.
Prayer will change us, will change the world. Without prayer there can be no forgiveness, no love, no joy, no peace inside of us to give to others. Prayer is plugging us into the heart of God, to the mind of God. It is not out of arrogance, but out of need that we must bend out knees, and our ears.
I believe prayer is humbling, since we cannot control the outcome of it. It requires faithfulness to it, and vigilence. The Apostle Paul wrote, "We must remain vigilant in it." (Colossian 4:2) What does that mean vigilant? In Webster's Dictionary, it means "to remain watchful and alert."
By the spirit one's prayers must be open to include others. It is wonderful to pray for your family, but one must pray for the entire world, or as many people as the Lord would have you pray for. Always keep your heart open to those around. The world needs prayer so badly, the world is wounded and limping and dying. Take a little of the burden and pray for the people in it.
Take the time and the effort to pray. Close your eyes, and let Christ guide you, let the Holy Spirit make it's utterances through you. Let God break your heart in prayer, be one of those people who weeps over sin, and weeps over the condition of this world. The world is not fine. Things are not well. Even if the economy recovers the country is not okay. There is too much sin. Prayers, sincere prayers must be the heart of the nation. Let Christ show you the wounded and scorched places of the earth. Hope how He hopes, love how He loves, dream how He dreams, pray how He prays, or at least let Christ lead you.
Be the voice for the world. Be the advocate for the world. Weep for the world. Don't rejoice with the world. How can we? When there are abortions being committed, when there are children being abused in every conceivable way, when there are women being raped and beaten, the homeless are everywhere, the hungry are everywhere, sin is being committed everywhere, and we have no commitment to our marriages, or children. There are fatherless children everywhere, fathers leave so easily and so heartlessly.
No, the world is not fine. So pray for the world. Pray with the heart of Jesus. Let the Holy Spirit use you, and let Him pray through you. Pray every chance you get. Pray in secret. Pray at night. Pray in private. Pray when you are with other people. Let prayer be your mantle. Wear it. Wear it for others. There is a world of devils. Prayer is our weapon. Pray for the little ones of the world, the helpless ones, the unsaved ones. Pray for the demon-possessed. Pray that the Lord frees them from Satan's hand.
We are a company of believers, a battalion, a brigade, an entire country of believers. We must fight. We must fight the good fight of faith, as the Apostle Paul instructed us to do.
Pray for your lives. Pray as if there were no tomorrow. Pray out of gratitude. Pray as praise to the One who Created us and sustains us.
Pray because it is the right thing to do. Pray as if your life depended on it, as eating or sleeping. Pray morning, noon, and night. Pray in the good times as well as the bad times. Pray as a smile. Pray as conversation. Pray before meals. Pray after meals. Pray when bathing. Pray instead of watching t.v. Pray instead of calling to talk to friends. Pray when you are lonely. Pray instead of cutting. Pray instead of drinking alcohol. Pray instead of over-eating. Pray when you want to sin. Pray when bad thoughts arise. Pray in church. Pray as worship. Pray with your husband or wife. Pray with your children. Pray with your mother and father. Pray with your brothers and sisters. Pray with your friends. Pray with strangers on the street. Pray to heal the broken places inside. Pray to fill the empty places inside. Pray to be close to the Lord. Pray when you are distant from Him. Pray after you've sinned. Pray because God loves you. Pray because you love Him.
Pray knowing that God will answer your prayers. Pray because He listens to your prayers. Pray because it is a joy. Pray because it is a great priviledge. Pray faithfully. Pray in the earliest hours of morning. Pray when you can't sleep. Pray when you are filled with worry and doubt. Pray when you can't speak to loved ones.
Pray as a first resort. Pray as a last resort.
Jesus prayed in the wilderness. He prayed everyday of His natural life on earth. He continues to pray. Since He prays. Let us follow His example, and pray too.