The Tragedy Of Unoffered Prayer Series

THE TRAGEDY OF UNOFFERED PRAYER

Genesis 25:21.

"Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant."

1 Samuel 12: 23 (NKJV)

“Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you.”

Prayer is one subject the church has talk, preach, and wrote so much about, but practised the least. But now, God is calling us to pray. Prayer is so important that Jesus Christ said, "my House shall be called a House of Prayer."

This subject of prayer is very deep and mysterious that it will take eternity to fully comprehend it. God does nothing without prayer.

What Is Prayer?

1. Prayer is the act of offering reverent petitions to God.

2. It is to beseech.

3. Prayer is the process of communion with God.

4. It is the act of making entreaties or supplication to God.

5. Prayer is to make requests.

6. It is to address God, expectant of a reply, solution, intervention or change.

7. Prayer is to commune with God and recognize His presence.

8. It is a two way communication between God and man.

9. Prayer is an opportunity to demonstrate our trust in God.

10. It help us to conform to the image of Christ.

9. Prayer can also be described as:

a. Calling upon God-Ps. 17:6

b. Calling upon the name of the Lord-Gen. 4:26.

c. Crying unto the Lord-Ps. 3:4.

d. Lifting up one's soul unto the God-Psa. 25:1.

e. Seeking the Lord-Isai. 55:6.

f. Coming boldly unto the throne of Grace-Heb. 4:16.

g. Drawing near to God-Heb. 10:22.

10. It is spreading out our helplessness to God.

11. Prayer is a high form of worship.

12. It is the highest energy within the reach of man.

13. Prayer is the key to the storehouse of God's treasures.

14. It is the greatest power outlet. It releases the energy of God.

15. Prayer is a weapon in the hour of conflict and trouble.

16. It is the arm of God.

17. Prayer is the key in the hands of faith to open the doors of heaven.

18. There is no substitute for prayer.

Prayer empowers the fulfilment of prophecies. It cancel evil prophecies and birth the good ones. Prayer can turn a hopeless situation around. It activates the power of God. Prayer made the sun to standstill. It brings fire from the sky. Prayer turned the counsel of Ahitophel into foolishness. It is a weapon against the forces of evil. Prayer forces us to wait for God's will. It opens our spiritual eyes. Prayer enables us to move forward. It builds us up spiritually. Prayer releases power for ministry. It enables the believers to receive spiritual gifts. Prayer releases the healing power of God. It brings the lost to Christ.

Prayer can be done silently or aloud. It can be done by groaning. Our prayer should be offered in deep respect for God. It should be offered with humility and sincerity. Prayer should be done with deep concentration. We can pray in our words or use the words of Scriptures. It can be offered in the Spirit or in tongues. Prayer must be said, confessed, spoken or offered. Our Lord Jesus commands us to pray.

Jesus Prayer Life:

1. He believed that prayer works-Mark 7:7-11.

2. Jesus was aggressive in His prayers-Matt. 26.

3. He balanced private and congregational praying.

4. Jesus got alone to pray-Matt. 14:23.

5. He prayed before meals-Mark 6:41.

6. Jesus prayed the prayer of thanksgiving-Luke 10:21; Matt. 11:25.

7. He sang some prayers-Mark 14:26; Matt. 26:30.

8. Jesus prayed before making important decisions-Luke 6:12-13.

9. He prayed for His disciples-John 17.

10. Jesus still prays for us-Romans 8:26-27.

What Then Is Prayerlessness?

1. Prayerlessness is not praying at all (Luke 18:1).

There are many believers who don’t pray at all. They do everything else except pray. Some don’t pray because they don’t know how to communicate with the Lord in prayer. Others don’t pray because they’ve had a bad experience when they felt their prayer wasn’t answered.

(In reality, God always answers the prayers of His children; however, the answer may not be what you are expecting. For every prayer offered, God will answer in one of three ways: He will say yes, or no, or not yet.

2. Prayerlessness is not praying enough (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Many people pray on only two occasions. First, they pray to God when in group fellowship, say in church. Second, they call upon God when they are in trouble or distress. However, they forget to pray when they don’t have any challenges in their lives or when they are not participating in corporate worship.

3. Prayerlessness is not praying according to God’s will (1 John 5:14).