prayer
What Is Prayer ? God’s Purpose For Prayer
What is Prayer designed to be ? What is God’s purpose for Prayer ?
For many people prayer is simply a way to ask God for the things they need, desire, or want. And prayer is perhaps a way to intercede for others. Although these are parts of the answer to the question What is prayer ?, prayer is designed by God to be much more than that.
For some people prayer is just another thing to do on the “religious checklist” in order to be a good religious person. You can approach prayer, reading and studying the Bible, going to church… in a religious way, and totally miss the real meaning to the question What is Prayer ?
Why Many People Do Not Pray & Spend Time With God
Why do you think many Christians do not pray and spend quality time with God daily, like Jesus did ? Some are too busy, some have wrong priorities, some are living for self and not for God. For some the cares of the world have crowded in and robbed them of the joy of having intimate fellowship with God. Some have a lack of discipline, some lack faith, some are living in disobedience, some don’t know how to pray and have fellowship with God, and some have a wrong understanding of who God is.
Many people do not understand that God is love relationship oriented, and that His heart’s desire is to have close and intimate fellowship with His children. Many do not understand that being a Christian is all about having a growing love relationship and fellowship with the One who loves them completely and unconditionally, and that it is not about being religious.
PRAYER IS VITAL TO HAVING INTIMATE FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD
- “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our LORD.” – 1 Corinthians 1:9
- The Greek word in this verse for fellowship is “koinania”
- God’s main call for your life is to have“koinania fellowship” with Him
- “koinania” fellowship is “the fullest & closest possible fellowship with God, oneness and unity with God, and a partnership with God in His kingdom work and mission
We need to always remember that the greatest desire in God’s heart is for you to have a growing and intimate love relationship and daily fellowship with Him.
What is the first thing that you think of when you hear the word “prayer” ? Do you think of asking for things ? Praying for someone else ? Or something else ? Let’s see what God’s Word tells us about what God intends prayer to be:
PRAYER IS THE INTIMATE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE HEAVENLY FATHER AND HIS CHILDREN.
- “Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.” – Psalm 62:8
God wants your communication with Him to be honest, open, and transparent. He wants to hear about whatever is in your heart – if you’re struggling, or angry, or worried, or anxious, or afraid or hurt,… He cares deeply and wants you to share everything with Him.
COMMUNICATION IS THE ACT OF MAKING ONE’S SELF UNDERSTOOD; THE EXPRESSION OF ONE’S THOUGHTS & IDEAS & OPINIONS & OF SELF. A GOOD RELATIONSHIP REQUIRES INTIMATE COMMUNICATION.
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the words “eternal life” ? Do you think in terms of time & eternity ? Do you think of heaven ? Or something else ? God defines eternal life as having an intimate relationship & fellowship with Him, where you are getting to know Him more and more, and thus trusting & obeying & following Him. Intimate communication with God is vital to getting to know God better, and hearing His voice is critical to knowing Him and His plans and agenda and dreams for you and your life.
- “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” – John 17:3
- “You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me.” – Isaiah 43:10
- “Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend.” – Exodus 33:11
- “Now therefore, I pray You, if I have found favor in Your sight, let me know Your ways that I may know You, so that I may find favor in Your sight. Consider too, that this nation is Your people.” – Exodus 33:13
David always spent time with God and openly poured out his heart to God
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- “I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy. And I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. In the path where I walk people have hidden a snare for me. Look and see, there is no one at my right hand; no one is concerned for me. I have no refuge; no one cares for my life. I cry to you, LORD; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” – Psalm 142:1-4
To Know God In Personal & Real Ways
See “Can We Know God Personally ?” – the Biblical words for “know God” mean much more than our English word, which sounds like it means to know about God. God wants you to know Him by seeing and experiencing Him in and around your life. When you see and experience God’s faithfulness in your life for example, you then know that God is faithful. This is a much better and more intimate and real knowledge of God than just knowing about Him.
GOOD COMMUNICATION REQUIRES 2 PEOPLE (GOD COMMUNICATES WITH US AND WE COMMUNICATE WITH HIM IN PRAYER)
A close and intimate relationship needs to be a 2-way relationship. Intimate communication needs to be 2-way also, or it is not good communication. Hearing God’s voice is by far the most important part of our prayer and fellowship time with Him. If you are not hearing God’s voice, you are missing out on getting to know Him more, you will miss His plans for you, and you will miss out on the full & abundant life that He wants you to have, which is only found in Him.
INTIMACY WITH GOD COMES AS YOU DESIRE & SEEK TO KNOW HIM, HIS WILL & PLANS, AND HIS WAYS
Review “Prayer Is Passion For Seeking God”
- The Greek words (New Testament) for Pray or Prayer mean:
- to want
- to desire
- Long for
- to ask or beg
- great poverty or lack or need
- a seeking or asking of God
- to pray earnestly or fervently
- The Hebrew (Old Testament) & Greek (New Testament) words for Seek mean:
- to seek the face of God
- to desire
- Examine or explore
- to seek earnestly
- to diligently search for
- Crave
- to investigate
- to pursue
God needs to touch all of our hearts so that He is our first love and that we will have a passion to seek to know Him
- “I will give them a heart to know me .” – Jeremiah 24:7
- “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. And I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” – Ezekiel 36:36
In Part 2 we will look further into What Is Prayer ? and what God designed prayer to be.
Pursuing Intimacy With God is committed to helping you with the most important thing in your life… your intimacy with God , your fellowship with Him, and your partnership with God in His Kingdom work & mission.
There are hundreds of Bible verses and great truths & promises in the Pursuing Intimacy With God studies.
** New Expanded Edition of Pursuing Intimacy With God Bible Studies Book – 40% more material
Ebook version of Pursuing Intimacy With God on Google Books
Pursuing Intimacy With God ebook Kindle version
Salvation: The Requirements for True Salvation
Other Links
Religion vs Relationship With God
Why Should You Pray & Spend Time With God ?
Is Jesus Your First Love ? Part 2
Prayer Is Passion To Seek & Know God
God’s Purpose & Mission For You And Your Church
Spiritual Gifts: All Christians Have Gifts
Jesus Wants To Heal You & Set You Free
Salvation & The Gospel Of Jesus Christ
The Kind of Christian & Church God Wants
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