PRAYER GROWS AS THE PERSON GROWS | Session 1, Question 1
1 GOD STILL ANSWERS PRAYERS IN TIMES OF TROUBLE
When we are pressed up against troubling times, let us look up to God for help. Turning to God for help is the best thing to do. Let it not be a one-time thing rather it should be our habit. We should pray habitually.
If anyone needed help in time of trouble, it was Daniel. This verse finds him sentenced to a pit of lions for praying to and worshiping God (Daniel 6:13-18). Psalms 102:17 says “He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayers”. If we establish a daily habit of turning to God in our lives, it’s more likely to be our immediate reaction in times of trouble.
2 Kings 20:1-6 is a story of Hezekiah, he was sick to death and God sent His prophet Isaiah to inform him of his impending death. When he got the message, he didn’t waste time thinking about resigning to fate or how to put his house in order. Instead, Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to remind God how he had walked with Him in his youth. And God answered him and added 15 years to his years.
2. OBSTACLES TO PRAYERS ARE OVERCOME BY PRAYERS
To be a winner in life, you must overcome the obstacles of life. No one ever wins a race in life without a press or a run. To be a successful and victorious Christian in life, you must overcome the battles of life. The Prayer of faith is key to overcoming the obstacles of your life.
Matthew 17:20: 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible unto you. The following list identifies the most common prayer barriers in a believer’s life.
–Unconfessed sins.
–Lack of faith.
–Disobedience
–Failure to forgive.
–Failure to pray
–Tiredness
Unconfessed sins:- When we harbor sin in our lives, it dams up the flow and scrambles the spiritual channels of communication to the Father. (Psalm 66:18).
Without faith: – settled confidence – in the character and power of God, we should not expect our prayers to be answered. Our faith in God grows as we spend time hearing the Word of God.
3. PRAYER GROWS AS THE PERSON GROWS
Prayer is a word and a concept everybody is familiar with. Muslims, Buddhists, those who practice Hinduism, and Satanism all pray. But of all the people in all the world, only Christians connect with the Creator when they pray. Prayer is, or it should be, the centerpiece of one’s faith. Many Christians believe that nothing happens apart from prayer. Jesus Himself advised His friends to pray that God’s will would be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Men ought always to pray, and not to faint. (Luke 18:1 KJV).
The necessity of prayer
Given that prayer is so important, it’s curious that a command to pray is not in the Ten Commandments. In fact, much of what we know about prayer comes from studying the people who prayed in Scripture, not necessarily from individual verses that give us detailed instructions. We can learn a lot about prayer by looking at how the heroes of the faith practiced it. The more we pray, the more we know God and his plans for us will be revealed.
4. PRAYER CARRIES ALL REQUESTS TO GOD
As Christians, we have a way to acknowledge [our anxiety] and even plead in our despair and feel that we are not alone. The specific passage is Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV), which states: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The passage above shows that through prayers our requests are present to God. THAT ONE PRAYER REQUEST THAT REALLY PLEASES GOD! (One prayer that has answers to every other request.)
1 KINGS 3:7-13, When God asked King Solomon to ask for anything, King Solomon asked for wisdom, he didn’t just ask for wisdom to do his own thing. He asked for wisdom to take care of God’s people. Wisdom to lead God’s people the way God wanted him to lead. And God granted his request because King Solomon’s request was sincere.
5. PRAYERS BRINGS OUT THE BEST IN US
Prayer isn’t just about asking God for things you need or desire. It’s about establishing a relationship with Him built on faith and trust in Him. God knows the desires of your heart long before you even think to ask, but he still loves to hear from you—whether you’re asking for guidance or giving thanks—because it draws you closer to him.
Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. — Romans 12:2. Our transformation begins with a crucial first step. If we’re to become more like Jesus — and the best “us” we can be.
We must understand that life challenges don’t make us who we are; they reveal who we are. We can take what is revealed through our challenges and use that as an opportunity to point us in a new direction. And if we trust in God, the challenge will strengthen our faith. Whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. — James 1:2-4. The hotter the fire, the purer the gold.