In church recently, the Pastor reminded us that truth does not change. It is the one thing that stands the test and challenges of time. So therefore I suppose if I repeat the truth over and over as I know it, hopefully you and everyone else will see a conscious effort on my part to explore and expand my understanding of spiritual truth.
In my attempt to gain insight into the truth, I have found prayer to be a constant. It involves time. It occupies space. It has depth and contains substance if you put your realities into it. Fundamentally, prayer is the main ingredient when communicating with God. It is not an idle recitation of obscure biblical passages or pained requests when you are in dire need.
Prayer is truth spoken and truth acknowledged about the existence of the Almighty and your (and my) relationship to Him. Prayer can be a learning tool that gives voice to your spiritual understanding. It puts you on a path to your ultimate destination. If book learning in school guided you on that journey, from pre-school through perhaps even a Ph.D., then prayer can do the same as we go through life’s journey. From initial enlightenment to ultimate salvation, prayer is the tool that allows us to learn from this thing called life.
It is our ammunition and must be used appropriately if we’re to be victorious. Let’s face it. We have enemies whose sole purpose is to bring about our failure.
One of the things I know about prayer, one of its truths, is that prayer can be as powerful or as weak as one’s belief in its value. Faith-based prayer can move mountains, while wishful prayer accomplishes nothing. Unlike school, you cannot “get over,” pass the course and graduate with honors, if you do not master the material.
Prayer needs to be studied and understood and used to make our journey successful. At the very least, it gives us the formula to defeat our enemies on a daily basis. Prayer makes it clear to anyone who will listen that, even though we might be confused, our circumstances may seem impossible, our relationships adversarial, we don’t see defeat as inevitable.
As a Christian, you shouldn’t take for granted that you’re just having a bad day or you’re the victim of random circumstances. It’s also possible that you’re the target of deliberate evil. As such, prayer also lets you know the devil is always at work. You understand how busy he is in your life and that to survive out here, you’ve got to get busy too. It starts with putting on the full armor of prayer.
