The one thing the enemy wants to stop a believer from doing daily; is prayer. Prayer is the thing that every believer can not do without, whether you are newly converted, Senoir pastor or Bishop. The problem that we experience though is that people do not know what power they possess in prayer.
Even Jesus knew that prayer is a necessity. Therefore early in the morning He went to a quiet place to pray.
Prayer is two way communication. It is like using a two-way radio where you send and receive information. So as much as God wants us to talk to Him, so He would love to talk back to us. God answers prayer in 3 ways...
- He says yes and gives you want you want.
- He says yes but want you to wait, until He gives you what is best
- He says No, and gives you better then what you've asked for.
Now you might say that my last statement is contradictory to the Word, because the bible declares..
John 14:13-14
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do...
14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
From that scriptures it may seems like God should be answering every prayer according to what we ask. And when we pray we would qoute only those scriptures, leaving out the last part of the 13th verse that says... that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
So God doesn't just answer our prayer based on our desires, but rather so that He can be glorified through what He given us in the Name of Jesus Christ. So that we can testify of His goodness to us. Now think about it, if God would answer every prayer according to our desires, even when we pray for things that God knows will destroy our future... How will He then be glorified? Our prayers is therefore answered based on the will of God for our lives.
Gods will for us, I want to sum up in two scriptures...
Jer.29.11 I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.
3 John 1:2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. It is God's will for us that we might have peace, a future filled with hope, be in good health and that it may go well with us in all areas of our lives.
God would therefore not give you what you want if He knows that it will wreck your future. Many times we pray and still follow our own desires, instead of waiting on the Lords answer. And when we are faced by the consequences of our actions, guess who we want to blame.
The answers to our prayers is thus connected to our desires, if it is in alignment with God's will for our lives.
Shalom
