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Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries One of my favorite verses on prayer is a real challenge to me to persist in my praying. Habakkuk 2:1 calls us to a commitment to pray until something happens. “I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.” The prophet Habbakuk’s situation was clearly wrapped up in prayer. In the first chapter he was bringing to the Lord the crisis facing the nation. The Lord’s response was confusing and unexpected. Habbakuk didn’t quit. He kept praying, and here in the beginning of the second chapter declares his intention of continuing to pray. But this was not a situation where someone decides to keep praying until God gives them what they want. Not at all! As a matter of fact, what Habbakuk was hearing was not what he wanted. His commitment to persistent prayer was not about his own desires, but God’s purposes. He could easily have said, “I don’t like what I’m hearing from God, so I quit.” But this was a man of prayer who understood the critical need of standing on the (spiritual) wall of his nation and crying out until the purposes of God were revealed. This short prophetic book gives a hard answer to Habbakuk’s prayer. Invasion was coming. Tough times were about to hit the people of God. But the prophet also saw a vision of God overcoming evil. He saw a time when, “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea”(2:14). It is time for that sort of persistence in prayer for the people of God today. We face times of crisis. Who is crying out for the purposes of God to be revealed in our day? Who will stand at their watch and pray? Not the kind of prayer that tries to talk God into giving us what we want, but lining our prayers up with the desires of God. I invite you to join me in praying one of Habakkuk’s prayers: “Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy” (3:2).

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries If you are like me, there are seasons when your prayer life seems out of sorts…when it feels as if God is not speaking or leading you as He perhaps has in the past. It is during such times that I begin to question why there is a lack of the sense of God’s presence. In faith, I trust that He is near, but in my flesh I wonder whether I have either been praying with wrong motives or have begun to treat prayer as a perfunctory act instead of a relationship. Such a spiritual crisis and the subsequent feelings of a lack of closeness to God causes me to recognize that perhaps I have turned away from the practice of some specific spiritual disciplines that help me to lean more intently and purposefully toward my Father’s heart. These times always remind me of the importance of consistent rhythms of prayer in my everyday life. Yet, there have been times when self-examination reveals no discernible reason for God’s silence or distance, which allows doubt to creep into my soul.  Saint John of the Cross, who lived in the 1500s, described such an experience as the “dark night of the soul,” which can be described as a time when prayer becomes difficult or unrewarding for a period of time. It can be as if one’s prayer life has virtually collapsed, sending a person into a season of doubt and confusion. King David, the “man after God’s own heart,” experienced such times; however, his experience is what always gives me hope! In Psalms such as 13 and 22, David expresses anguish over God’s apparent absence or withdrawal from him: Psalm 13:1 – “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?” However, he never loses his unwavering faith that God is good, trustworthy and constant. David’s authentic feelings of abandonment are always tempered with phrases like this one: “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me” (Psalm 13:5-6).  God’s Word says that if we seek Him, He will be found by us. “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). There are days when my whole heart is not actively engaged with seeking God. There is a disconnect between my doing and my being and between my spiritual life and my secular life. If Jesus were to be the Lord over all of my life, I can’t craft walls that allow Him entry into one area and not another. He is Lord of my everyday life…not just the parts I want Him to be involved in. There is nothing He can’t see, and nothing that He is not already actively engaged in, whether I am pressing in or not. And, in the times when I feel that I am leaning into Him, even in desperation, and there is no answer…my response must always be to trust that He is at work. If I seek Him, He will be found…even though it may not be in the moment I expect or desire. I know that His love for me is constant, and that sometimes His silence and my “dark night of the soul” may be my Father’s purposeful plan to build within me an even deeper trust.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries A friend of mine recently wrote about a question that was asked at the end of a devotion she was reading: “What is your simple prayer today?”   As I thought about what a “simple prayer” looks like for me, I was reminded of a quote by author Lee Anne Payne, who stated, “Prayer is the school from which no one graduates.” Having been in prayer ministry for many years, I still am awed by the depth and breadth of prayer, and how much I continue to learn about the Father who created this most intimate avenue to connect human hearts with His own. In the midst of the complexities of life, God’s heart is continually postured to hear from ours. A simple prayer, to me, is the one that is on my heart in the moment…and the one that can be most easily expressed because it is closest to the surface. Perhaps it is breathing out a cry or a need that has made its way up from deep within so that the Father can be invited to bring His peace and Presence into my needful spirit. It might also be a joy-filled expression of praise in response to the goodness of the life of Jesus being formed within me. A simple prayer is unpretentious and very real…and in its rawness and humility, it is offered to God in depth of feeling rather than through the intellect. I believe that God is pleased to be engaged heart to heart throughout my day. A profound benefit is that simple prayers will likely feed and inform my longer conversations with my Father in the space I have already created in my schedule for such time with Him. Simple prayers might be requests or just statements of thankfulness, praise, deep pain or desire. Sometimes there are just no words other than what simple prayers express to God. They are cries from the depths of my soul, and are prayers that allow me to pray without ceasing in the ordinary as well as the extraordinary moments of my everyday life when there may not be time for lengthier discourse with God…or because the circumstances surrounding my prayer are complicated, confused or happening too fast. Although there are obviously an infinite number, simple prayers might be somewhat like these:  Help me. Draw me close. Hear us. I’m hurting. Answer me. Fill me. I don’t know what to do. Strengthen them. Show me. You are awesome! Empower us. Forgive me. I’m angry! Please give me wisdom. Thank You. Teach me. I’m so lonely. Use us. Equip her. You alone are worthy of praise. Heal them. Help him to know You. Send me! No matter what I express in my simple prayers, God is waiting to meet me in the midst of them! I know this because I trust that the Spirit understands and creates meaning from my painful, confused, angry or frustrated utterances as well as from my thankful, joy-filled moments of praise. He positions my prayers before the Father…as an offering. And God, who already knows my present reality and the concerns of my heart, is pleased to hear my simple prayers in the midst of my not-so-simple life. He can respond to them in love for the sake of my transformation to become more like Jesus, and for the purposes of His kingdom. What simple prayer is on your heart right now? Take a moment to express it to God and then sit before Him in silence. You may not get any perceived response at all…except to know that the Father, who loves you intensely, is listening and has placed His heart over your own. Trust Him to begin to work in and through your life the moment your simple prayer has been expressed. Simple prayers are not a replacement for longer seasons of prayer…but perhaps you will find that your heart will be better informed by your day when you invite the Spirit of God to be more fully present within it.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries “Each time, before you intercede, be quiet first, and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, and how He delights to hear the prayers of His redeemed people. Think of your place and privilege in Christ, and expect great things!” -Andrew Murray Quietness is becoming more and more a necessary part of the transformative work of God in me. I am not a naturally quiet person; yet, I crave seasons of silence and solitude more and more. Stillness centers my heart, and gives me the opportunity to escape the noise of my own thoughts and plans and notice the unobtrusive peacefulness of the God who would shape me more fully into the image of His Son. At the same time, being quiet allows me to hear more clearly from the Father, who loves me beyond anything I could ever imagine. His thoughts shape my prayers to give me a focus that is always directed to kingdom issues and concerns rather than my own pathetic pursuits and selfish petitions. Not that God doesn’t want to hear what is on my heart…He simply wants my heart to connect more directly with His own. It is in these moments that my intercession becomes dangerous for His sake…and the impossible becomes possible. God has purpose and desire that I cannot know when I am not still. First, He desires to connect with me…to know that my journey belongs to Him alone. When He is allowed to direct my steps, my prayer life is yielded to His purposes. Who I am in Jesus Christ is the focal point of my life of prayer because then I am surrendered to His will and not my own. Worship springs from a heart of gratitude and longing at the same time. Surrender becomes the only way to accomplish His purposes…and His intentions are focused upon His desire that one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus, is Lord! If I am unable to shake off the noise and clutter of life to be still and know that He alone is God, I allow urgency to erase the “one thing” that is important above all other things – intimacy with the Father (Luke 10:42). How is it possible to carve out times of refreshing in order to be drenched in the Presence of the One who gives us living water to drink? At least in my case, it takes great intentionality. Setting apart those moments of quiet can take creativity and purposeful planning…but it can be done. All that is involved is to cultivate a more continual awareness of Christ in us: All of us have discretionary moments when we make choices as to how the time is spent. Some of us choose to unwind and play a game or watch television or just mindlessly waste time on empty pursuits. It’s not wrong or bad to do so; however, what if our unwinding from busy stretches of life involved premeditated seasons of intimacy with God where we focus our hearts on simply being with our Father? We often think we deserve to waste time on gratuitous activity when God desires to connect Spirit to spirit in a continual embrace that takes place every moment we are willing to turn our attention towards Him. Some of our activity can be very naturally turned into times of listening: gardening, coffee breaks, waiting in lines, exercising, cooking, building, driving, etc. We find ways to carve out time for these kinds of activities, or they are simply part of moving from one place to the next; however, they offer opportunities for being still and knowing He is God. We have a coworker who suggests that people hit the mute button during TV commercials in order to seek the Father. Little children can reduce our flexibility for silence…but we can certainly invite them into the stillness with us! God desires that we come to Him as little children . . . and teaching them how to trade off times of noise and playfulness with times of quiet and worshipful listening will yield fruit beyond anything we can imagine! Find ways to train children to hear the voice of God by being still…as still as they can be! Persevere! Quiet is difficult for many of us, but if we patiently nurture this spiritual discipline, silence will add a powerful dimension to our intercession. When you are preparing to pray, do as Andrew Murray suggested: “Each time, before you intercede, be quiet first, and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, and how He delights to hear the prayers of His redeemed people. Think of your place and privilege in Christ, and expect great things!” There are many ways to creatively embrace quietness in order to hear the Father’s voice, or to just simply recognize His Presence. For some, it may mean needing to find a solitary place, as Jesus so often did. For others, it may be learning to discipline the mind or to deny fleshly desires to do other things. Whatever means you use, I encourage you to pursue the heart of God whenever possible in the quiet so that He may speak and inform your prayers…and so that He may whisper how much He loves you.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries “What can you ask God that will help you be more complete?” This was the question posed to me in a friend’s blog recently. As I considered my everyday life, it occurred to me that I already have everything I need in Jesus for a complete life…and, on a theological level, that is true. However, in reality, there is still much that is incomplete in me. I have unmet goals and aspirations. I have things that go undone each day. There are relationships that go unattended and projects that have to stay on the back-burner. The aforementioned blog lovingly revealed to me that perhaps the reason so much of who I am and what I do is incomplete, is because I am not living a “rhythmed life.” A rhythmed life is one that brings spiritual disciplines into our daily activities in such a way that God is noticeably present in all of our moments. It is life that is embedded continually in the Presence of the Living God…the One who brings completion to the life of every believer. The completeness we seek cannot be found in one compartmentalized moment of our day when we focus on God and then go about the other activities of life unaware that He is active around, in and through us. Relegating the Lord of the Universe to one corner of our daily journey can be equated to living out of balance…and therefore, in a state of incompleteness. If we engage the original question at an even deeper level, perhaps it changes a bit. It isn’t just that I need God to help me become more complete in my life…the real question should focus on how I can obediently live in such a way that I become more complete in Jesus. I believe King David recognized the need for completeness in God at the very core of his being. He shared the heartcry of his life with us in Psalm 27:4:  One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. This prayer is not a request to make of God without a great deal of thought and intentionality. ONE THING! It seems I have so many things to ask God. Is this truly the “one thing” that I seek the most from Him? Is this lip service to what should be, or is this really the cry of my heart to become more complete in Him for the sake of His kingdom rather than my own? Am I ready to make the commitment that this prayer implies? What does it mean to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life? How, when I am so busy can I make space in my life and in my heart to simply gaze upon His beauty? His temple is…me! How do I seek Him within myself persistently?  This is what prayer as everyday life is! It is a continual awareness of Christ, living within me. The answer to the question is deeper than many of us may wish to go…but to be whole in Christ Jesus is to seek after the one thing in order to become all He has designed us to be – fully complete – nothing missing. Here is my prayer…the question I most wish to ask God so that He will complete the good work He has begun in me: Father, as Your heart beats within me, may I dwell in Your house all the days of my life, gaze upon Your beauty and seek You continually within the moments of my everyday life? This is a journey with the Holy Spirit that will be different for each of us. Perhaps your question is different; however, Psalm 27:4 has become the major question I have begun to ask of God in order to live a life of completeness in Him.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44). This verse became very personal for me one winter, shortly after I had given my life to Jesus. Clara, an older woman in my church, revealed that she had been praying for me daily for more than two years. She did not really know me, but she knew that I needed to give my heart to Christ. The significance of that moment did not hit me until I came face to face with John 6:44. Had God been drawing me while I was too busy to hear or pay attention? I could truthfully say that I had never known any other person who was interceding on my behalf. It made me ask, “What if she had not been praying for me?” I believe that Clara’s prayers allowed my heart to be open to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Because she cried out to God for my soul, I now have everlasting life. God was patiently wooing me, but in my ignorance and pride, I already believed I was going to heaven because I was a “good person.” Clara prayed that I would bow my knee before the King of kings. As she did battle on my behalf, I began to soften my will before God, responding to His call to make His Son my Lord and Savior. As you interact with the people in your own family, your friends, coworkers, fellow students, business associates, customers, or even the strangers you pass every day, have you ever considered whether or not anyone is praying for them?  What if your prayers could make the difference in someone’s eternity? Would this give new significance and urgency to your prayers? Begin to look at your relationships differently. Ask God to draw people to Himself so that they will be able to respond to His plans and purposes for their lives. Can you imagine some new possibilities for prayer in the moments of your every day, ordinary life that will make an extraordinary impact upon each person you come into contact with? Begin today to pray for the Father to draw the people you love, interact with or just pass by each day to Himself. We may never know until heaven how many lives have been opened to receive Christ because of our prayers.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:13-15). If you are a follower of Jesus, and have a personal relationship with Him, at some point in your life, you prayed a powerful, life-changing prayer that has forever altered your spiritual condition. I remember prayerfully inviting Christ to enter my life. There was a transitional moment when I wavered between unbelief and complete faith that Jesus is who He says He is, and that He could and would forgive all of my sins and usher me into the unwavering hope of eternal life.  I had questions; maybe you did too: “Do I really have eternal life?” “Do I have enough faith?” “Did God really answer my prayer?”  John was assured that God always answers the repentant heart with a resounding, “Yes!” This truly is a “blessed assurance!” (Note: Wow – I was listening to instrumental piano on Pandora and just as I was writing the previous sentence, the hymn Blessed Assurance began to play. What an incredibly affirming moment of “Amen” from the One who loves us most)! My moment of salvation was also the moment when my prayer life “officially” began. Oh, I had prayed before, but never with the knowledge that God was really listening. This foundational and formational moment in my spiritual life has birthed every faith-filled prayer from that point on. As I matured in faith, I was astonished to realize that Jesus, living in me, is also interceding for me, with me and through me! Pretty powerful realization! If you ever have a lack of confidence in approaching God, remember back to that most important prayer of faith you prayed when you asked Jesus to be Your Lord and Savior. If you had enough faith to believe then, you most certainly have enough faith to believe that He will hear and answer now!  It is always in God’s will to receive our broken lives into His forever kingdom, and to forgive our sinfulness whenever our repentant hearts bow before Him. In this same way, Jesus said that even if our faith is as small as a mustard seed we can “…say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you” (Luke 17:5-6). Are there some mulberry trees in your life right now that need to be planted in the sea? Do you feel that your faith is wavering to believe that God will respond when you ask? Pray as the apostles did: “Increase our (my) faith” (Luke 17:5)! The God who answered your first prayer of repentance is poised to hear and respond to your request for faith with a “Yes!” You can always have the confidence to know that the power of His Spirit resides within the faith-filled prayers of your everyday life.

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries Prayer is the deepest love connection with the Father, made possible by the sacrifice of His Son. It is an awesome privilege, and our deepest connectivity with the heart of God. His Word says that if we seek Him, He will be found by us. If Jesus is to be the central focus of our lives, how do we enthrone Him there? By prayer! Worship Him, delight in Him, give Him thanks, petition Him, share your concerns and needs with Him, come before Him on behalf of others…share with Him heart to heart. Prayer is the connective tissue between our human hearts and His divine purposes! It is the place where our hearts encounter His Presence. Scripture clearly shows multiple promises for seeking the Father wholeheartedly:  If you seek Him, You will find Him! •  “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find Him if you look for Him with     all your heart and with all your soul”  (Deut. 4:29). •  “I love those who love Me, and those who seek Me find Me”  (Prov. 8:17). •  “You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart”  (Jer. 29:13). •  “Come near to God and He will come near to you…”  (Jas. 4:8).  If you seek Him, you will rejoice! •   “But may all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation always say, ‘The LORD be exalted’”  (Psa. 40:16) . •  “Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice”  (1 Chron. 16:10).   If you seek Him He will never forsake you!  •  “Those who know Your name will trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You”  (Psa. 9:10).   If you seek Him you will lack no good thing!  •  “The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing”  (Psa. 34:10).   If you seek Him you will be blessed!  •  “Blessed are they who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart”  (Psa. 119:2).   He rewards those who seek Him! •   “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him”  (Heb. 11:6). •   “The LORD is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him…”  (Lam. 3:25). •   “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well”  (Matt. 6:33). May your heart encounter the fullness of His presence as you seek Him!

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries Perhaps you have already set your New Year’s resolutions in committed stone for this year; however, I encourage you to consider weaving one or more of these powerful prayer resolutions into the mix as you seek to be more like Jesus, the One who lives to intercede for us! Utilize them to help you successfully implement your other resolutions. Only our God can give us the wisdom and strength to successfully carry out the desires expressed through the pledges we make each January: “Be still, and know that I am God…” Psalm 46:10 It has been a “noisy” year for me…perhaps for you as well. What better way to begin my year than spending some time devoted to being still before my Creator and allowing His perfect Presence to become more full and rich within my heart, healing my weary soul and renewing me from the inside out.  Take some time to shut out the noise and activity that clamors to take the hectic pace of this year and continue it right into the New Year. Instead, begin listening to His quiet invitation to stillness. Allow yourself opportunities to trade busyness and noise with a listening prayer that offers the opportunity to hear from the great I AM. “…pray continually…” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 Would you like this to be the year when prayer becomes like breathing to you? Take time to invite God into your every thought, word and activity so that the likeness of Jesus can become more fully formed in you. As you pray, consider what the prayer of Christ for you, for others, for circumstances, etc. might be in the moments of life you experience this year.  “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” Ephesians 6:18 As we pray for other believers, it is important to seek what is on the heart of God for them. As our teacher, the Holy Spirit has such knowledge and will impress upon us how we should intercede – if we look to Him. Lifting up the needs of those who love Jesus is a privilege and an important way to “pray continually.” Ask God to show you believers who need a touch from Him through your prayers. “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”  1 Timothy 2:1-4 Praying for and giving thanks for “everyone” is not an easy task – especially those we don’t agree with who may be in authority over us. I would suggest making a very personal request of the Father: “Lord, place on my heart a burden to pray for those who need to come to a knowledge of the truth! Show me their faces or place their names before me so that I might be aware of their need for you. Give me great love for all those in authority over me so that we may all live peaceful, quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. I want to please You, God my Savior.”  After you pray, listen carefully for the prayer assignments God gives to you and be faithful to complete them! “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.”  James 1:5-8  There are so many times when wisdom is needed in my life and I have forgotten this amazing promise. I try to “fix” things in my own strength rather than through the wisdom that God wants to generously give me…if I will ask. This promise does come with a condition – I am to believe and not doubt when I ask. My pastor put it this way, “When you ask for wisdom, you must believe that it is on its way.” Sometimes I want wisdom immediately, but there may be things God wants to do in me to get me to the place where I can receive and utilize the wisdom He gives me. In this new year, make a habit of asking the Father for His wisdom and then believe that it is “on its way.” “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”  James 5:16 No one likes confessing sin, which is perhaps why it is so important that we do it. Keeping short accounts with God is vital to our spiritual health and to our work for the sake of the kingdom. If you don’t have an accountability partner, or a spiritual friendship that allows for each of you to confess sins and pray for one another, that would be a transformational life goal for this new year. Ask God to connect you with at least one other person with whom you can share the dark places in order to be healed, allowing your prayers to become powerful and effective for His glory. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem…” Psalm 122:6-9  Has there ever been a year in recent history when praying for the peace of Jerusalem has seemed more urgent? The nation close to the heart of God is surrounded by enemies and turmoil. Press in “for the sake of the house of the LORD our God” (v 9). “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Matthew 26:41 I am often tempted by things that I could avoid completely if I was watchful! It is when I am not paying attention that the enemy creeps in to mess with me! It is so easy to say or do something that harms another person or damages my own soul when I am careless about watching what is going on in and around me as I pray. “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins. ” Mark 11:25     “…bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” Luke 6:28 I am convinced that a lack of forgiveness is the root of much sin in life! Saying we forgive someone is very different from actually forgiving from our hearts. The redemptive work of God can only take place when we let go of bitterness, anger and/or a desire for revenge. Prayerfully ask God to show you if you are holding anything against anyone as you begin this year. As you pray blessings over them, He may also show you some tangible ways to bless their lives as well.    “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Colossians 4:2 Is prayer a delight for you…or a duty that you feel compelled to do as a believer? In this new year, ask the Father to give you an extraordinary love for prayer. Again, we are told to be watchful and thankful as we dedicate our hearts to His plans and purposes expressed through our prayer lives.     As you weave one or more of these prayer resolutions into your life this year, you can be encouraged by this wonderfully encouraging promise from God:  For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer…” 1 Peter 3:12

Originally published as a blog post by Harvest Prayer Ministries I’m guessing many of you are like me and get aggravated when your computer is slow, or when fast food is less than fast. When I think I need an immediate deliverance from an unpleasant situation or circumstance, I quickly ask God for rescue and most often, I am left in the situation until it is resolved…and perhaps not the way I would have liked. I keep wanting to think that God is teaching me patience in those moments; however, I’m beginning to pay closer attention to what I already know – He wants me to change my expectations from wanting my answers to prayer to be according to my anticipated outcomes to using the mind of Christ He gave me:  “‘For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). The mind of Jesus was always perfectly submitted to the will of the Father…it awes me to think this same mind belongs to me…if I will use it! Patience (or long-suffering) is a fruit that doesn’t seem to ripen on my tree sometimes. When I need help, I want God to hear me quickly and deal with my situation perfectly, which would, of course, be exactly the way I think He should deal with it. Sometimes God has other answers in mind that I am incapable of understanding when standing in the moment of “need.” Dallas Willard said, “Wanting God to be God is very different from wanting God to help me.” If I could grasp this, my praying would be very different much of the time! In my heart I know that my prayers should always be in alignment with the will of God, and that I need to lay aside my own agenda in deference to His plans and purposes. But there are just times when I need help from God and so I ask! I wish I could say that I always ask with a pure heart, expecting God to be God and then get out of the way. Often, my whiney prayer is to get my needs met according to my own human expectations. What if God has a higher and better outcome through my suffering…or by letting me experience waiting or pain or disappointment? Am I able to step aside and watch from God’s perspective as my situation plays out in the heavenlies, or am I so impatient that I miss an important lesson, or even a blessing? James 4:3 says, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” The writer of Proverbs states, “All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but his motives are weighed by the Lord.” Ouch. When I want prayer to be about me…my need, my timing, my expectation, my way, my comfort, my desire, etc. instead of looking with anticipation for God to be all that He is in the midst of my situation, I’m asking with wrong motives. He holds my best interests in His heart. How can I ever think that my thoughts and ways are higher and better than what He intends? I wonder how often I actually screw up the perfect plans of God because I am impatient or ask selfishly. As the fox says to the Little Prince in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s classic story, “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” For God to be God, we, His people, must desire to trust what we cannot see enough to know that it will be His very best for us, whether we believe it at the time or not. “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you’” ( Jeremiah 29:11-12)