He carries us

It matters how we view God when we pray.

If we think he is unhappy with us, we pray tentatively.  We may feel he will ignore us because we have sinned or done something wrong.

If we feel loved by the Lord, we will pray with confidence and hope.

The good news of Jesus Christ makes clear that God is loving and merciful, ever ready to forgive us and give us good gifts.

I have come back several times recently to Psalm 68:19 where David writes: "Praise the Lord; praise God our saviour!  For each day he carries us in his arms."

What a picture of our loving God!  We may feel hopeless and helpless, but God is not letting us go.  He is carrying us through our troubles, even though we don't know it.

David responds to this truth with praise.  So should every follower of God.

I am struck by how often the psalms speak of God's lovingkindness - a lovingkindness that stretches forever.

One of the greatest expressions of his love for us is in Psalm 103:11,12 where David says:

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west has he removed our transgressions from us."

He goes on to say that the Lord has compassion on us as a father has compassion on his children.  He knows we are weak.

David often writes about God being his refuge and fortress in difficult times.  He even declares that we are like chicks sheltering under the protective wings of their mother.

God is for us - not against us.

The scriptures say that David was a man after God's own heart.  A major reason was that David acknowledged his sins and his weakness before God and humbly depended on the Lord to guide him.

The psalms are really a book of prayers.  The writers praise God and express their deepest feelings, opening themselves completely to the Lord.  Some of the psalms are vengeful, but so are we on occasion. 

God answers our prayers according to his own ways, not ours.  We can be confident that his answers are always best for us.

We can count on him to carry us every day.

Psalm 23: Springboard to prayer

I love Psalm 23 as a springboard to prayer.

I find myself returning to it repeatedly.

Many other prayer warriors speak of this psalm as an inspiration in prayer.

A couple of nights ago, I was thinking again about the opening words of the psalm: "The Lord is my shepherd."

I focused on the first two words: "The Lord . . ."  There is so much to meditate on in these words that you can spend an entire prayer time pondering them.

As I was thinking about these words, I pictured the Lord in heaven in the apostle John's magnificent description in Revelation 1 and Revelation 5.

In Revelation 1, the picture of Jesus is stunning - and frightening.  He is glorious and his eyes are like flames of fire and his face gleams like the sun.  And it seems as if a sword is coming from his mouth - perhaps a sign of his power to judge.

Quite rightly, John reacts by collapsing in front of him.

But Jesus demonstrates his love and grace by touching him and telling him not to be afraid.  And he tells him to record the vision.  This suggests to me a sign of Jesus' love for us - he wants us to know what is coming ahead of time so that we can prepare spiritually for the end times.

For me, this is awe-inspiring.  Our God is a great God, a just God and a mighty God.  He is not to be trifled with.

Later in Revelation 5, we get a very different picture of Jesus.  A scroll is presented and a mighty angel shouts: "Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?"

John is devastated because no one steps forward - until he sees a lamb "looking as if it had been slain".  The lamb takes the scroll and those around him fall before him and praise him in song.

This brings forward the sacrifice of Jesus for us as believers.   He loved us enough to die for us.  He is both almighty and self-giving.

These word pictures of Jesus are a launching pad for praise and worship.

When I think of those words "the Lord",  I could also contemplate other  qualities of God - creator, redeemer, healer, provider.

Indeed, the remaining words of Psalm 23:1 speak of the Lord as our shepherd.  That itself is enough for more praise.

As Donald S. Whitney says in Praying the Bible, we can use phrases from Bible passages such as the Psalms to trigger praise and requests.  The Bible becomes a book of prayer and praise.

Our prayer lives need never run dry.

Changed by praising God

Praising God regularly and often can change us.

And sometimes, a life of praise can change our circumstances.

Cindy Jacobs mentions in her book The Power of Persistent Prayer that many years ago her husband lost his job at Trans World Airlines and, despite great effort, he couldn't find another.

They were driving home to Los Angeles from Arizona feeling discouraged when she began speaking words of praise to the Lord.  Her husband Mike picked up this idea and began singing songs of praise.

Before long, they were praising the Lord with full hearts.  When one began getting tired, the other would step in and take over.  They continued praising God all the way to Los Angeles.

The experience changed their outlook on their circumstances.  And soon after, Mike Jacobs found a job.

That reminds me again of the story in Acts 16 of the apostle Paul and Silas in the Philippian jail.  They had beaten and thrown into the jail for preaching Jesus Christ.

Instead of cursing their jailers, they began praying and singing songs of praise to the Lord.  There was an earthquake, their fetters were broken, and they were in a position to break free.  Instead, they stayed and led the awestruck jailer and his family to faith in Christ.

Paul urges us to live a life of praise and thanksgiving.  In Philippians 4:6, he says: "Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done."

And in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 he says: "Be thankful in all circumstances for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

Such a life is not normal.  I admit I am not a good example of being thankful and praising God in all circumstances.  But when I do, my heart lightens.

Leanne Payne, author of Listening Prayer, suggests we should make a concentrated effort to praise the Lord, making it a habit.

She keeps a list of praise scriptures which she reads frequently, meditating upon them.  She spends time going deeper into her readings about Jesus to soak in his presence.

She notes that Paul says in Romans 13:14 that we are to "clothe" ourselves with Jesus Christ.  That is an action we must take.

In Colossians 3, the apostle goes further, outlining how we are to do it - putting on humility and compassion and other virtues.  This is not to appear better than we are - it is to rely on Christ to bring about these changes within us as we step out in faith, believing that Christ is doing this through us.

There are many stories like Cindy Jacobs' account of the drive from Phoenix to Los Angeles.  People are healed emotionally - and sometimes physically - as they praise God.

As Psalm 22:3 suggests, God makes his presence felt when we turn to him in praise.

Disappointment: An obstacle to prayer

Disappointment in God can be an obstacle to prayer.

The best antidote is to take this to God and release it.

That's what Cindy Jacobs recommends - and she speaks from experience.

Many years ago, she was going through a difficult time in prayer - she wasn't sure that God wanted to answer her prayers.  Unconsciously, she was questioning the goodness of God.

"It's critical when we are struggling in such a way that we stop and allow the Holy Spirit to illuminate any faulty or negative thinking, and surrender emotions that might keep us from praying in faith," says Jacob in her book The Power of Persistent Prayer.

After struggling in prayer for a while, she asked God what was wrong.

She felt he was telling her that she was angry with him.

"I came to realize that my anger flowed out of deep disappointments in my past," she writes.  "Quite simply, I had expected certain things to go a certain direction in my life, and that had not happened."

She asked God to reveal to her what those disappointments were.  Some of them were caused by her, some by others.  And some were dreams that were never fulfilled.

She made a list and prayed over them, sometimes grieving.

One of her toughest issues was her father's death at the age of 49, a week before her wedding.  He was a pastor and she had longed for him to perform the service.

After giving up these hurts to the Lord, "full trust in my heavenly Father was restored". 

"This led to a level of confidence to my prayer life that was not there before," she says.

"This point leads to a critical factor in our intercessory walk with God.  If we do not believe that God is good, then we can't pray in faith expecting Him to do good things for us through answers to our prayers."

She suggests the following approach to restoring our relationships with God:

• Spend time meditating on scripture and ask the Holy Spirit to show you any unhealed areas where losses or unfulfilled expectations have affected your thinking;
• Make a list of the things the Lord shows you; and
• Set aside an uninterrupted time of prayer - even a day or more - making this a top priority.

One thing I'm learning is that what I want may not be what God wants for me.  He knows better than I do what is good for me.

I believe God is good, no matter what happens around me.

We are not alone

When we pray, we are not alone.

God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all involved.  And even the angels have a hand, carrying out God's will for us.

Sometimes, we feel ignored by God and by everyone else.  But we are wrong.

We know from scripture that Holy Spirit is constantly praying for us.  The apostle Paul writes in Romans 8:26: "We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans."

The Spirit prays for or deepest needs, needs that we might not even be aware of.

The Bible also tells us that Jesus speaks for us in heaven.  He intercedes for us before the Father to assure him that he died for our sins (Romans 8:34, Hebrews 7:25, 1 John 2:1,2).

And the apostle John informs us that if we pray according to God's will, the Father will grant our request (1 John 5:14,15).

So, what am I to make of unanswered prayer?

First of all, I can be confident that God is not withholding something good from me.  He wants to give us good things.

Jesus says in Matthew 7:11: "If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him."

That suggests to me that God does not give us things that he knows would be bad for us - even though we think they are good.

Secondly, God may give us answers to our prayers - but not until much later, even after our deaths.

We read in the Book of Revelation that prayers of believers are saved up in heaven and will be answered at a time of God's choosing in the last days of the world as we know it (Revelation 5 and Revelation 15).

No, I cannot say that God has turned away from me or has gone on vacation because he has not given me what I want. 

I admit it's hard to believe that when I,  or my family and friends, are going through hard times.

Yet David declares unforgettably in Psalm 139:

"Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast."

Yes, God's eyes are always on me and his ears always open to my voice.

Cop-out? Or not?

Is it a cop-out to tag "if it by your will, Lord?" onto the end of your prayers?

Some prayer warriors would argue that it is.  They would say you aren't very confident God will say "Yes" to your prayers.  And there isn't much chance that God will answer positively.

Yet, scripture clearly teaches that we can only count on God saying "Yes" if our prayers are according to his will.

The apostle John writes in 1 John 5:14-15:

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him."

Still, I understand why some pray-ers would say that it sounds as if we aren't sure God will like our prayers  by throwing the words "if it is your will" in front of them.

So, the key to me is to pray and search the scriptures to discover God's will in matters that really concern us.  Then, we can pray boldly.

I need to do this consistently myself.

The great prayer warrior George Muller took this approach in the many years he ran orphanages in England without once begging for funds from other people.

He would take to God the issues he was grappling with.  He would ask the Holy Spirit to illuminate his mind as he read the Bible looking for scriptures that applied to his prayer concern.

He would also talk with mature believers whose opinions he respected.

Then, when he discovered scriptures that indicated God's will on a particular problem, he would pray them.  Those scriptures, the confirmation of the Spirit, and the agreement of mature believers all combined to give him assurance that God would say "Yes" to his request.

The results were many miraculous answers to prayer.  In the early years, the orphanages did not have enough food to feed the children as the day began, but anonymous funds would arrive in the mail to cover the exact amount needed to pay for the day's groceries.

Cleddie Keith, pastor and author of Praying the Lord's Prayer, adds another important point: "Real prayer is something God puts in your heart as a desire first."

He points to the psalmist David's great words in Psalm 37:4: "Delight yourself in the Lord; and he will give you the desires of your heart."

"When I truly delight myself in the Lord, the desires that begin to form in my spirit are a gift from God."

Keith, who was then a youth pastor in Houston, Texas, and his senior pastor prayed together for God's kingdom to come to a poverty-stricken and crime-ridden sector of the city decades ago.

"When I prayed for His kingdom to come, He gave me his desires," Keith writes.

He says we should check whether our prayers are more about our own desires than God's.

After fervent prayer, Keith approached the principal of a local school to ask if he could conduct an assembly with the student body. To his surprise, the principal, a professed agnostic, agreed to a 30-minute assembly.

He brought in a Christian band which happened to be touring at the time and they played and sang Christian songs that the kids understood.

A young girl ran down to the front of the auditorium and pleaded with Keith for help.  No invitation had been given.

"God broke through, and for the next forty-five days heaven came down into the hearts of young-people in that inner-city public school in Houston, Texas.  We had prayer every morning before class.  The students and teachers met in the lunchroom and prayed earnestly for the student body."

Over 30 years later, he returned to Houston for special services and a young woman approached him who became a believer as a student at that time.  She was active in her congregation and free of drugs that had afflicted her before her conversion at that school.

God will act when our prayers are in tune with his desires.

Praying God's words

When God speaks, things happen.

He spoke the universe into being and Jesus' words changed hearts, foiled Satan, healed people.

Now, many prayer warriors use God's words - his promises and commitments - as they pray for themselves and others around them.

I have been reflecting on this and I believe that declaring God's word is powerful.  Of course, any effective prayer must be according to God's will (1 John 5:14-15).

Kyle Winkler, author of Activating the Power of God's Word, says the Lord's word is "a signature inked in heaven that cannot be annulled but is supernaturally binding and everlasting".

"When God speaks, His Words contain the authority of His majesty, which all creation obeys."

Winkler notes that God has delegated to us the authority to use his words for his purposes.  For instance, the apostle Paul says in Ephesians 6:17 that we are to use the "Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" in dealing with dark forces active in this world.

"You and I are able to give voice to God's Word so that when we speak it, it maintains God's authority as if He has spoken it Himself," the author says.

Winkler says that he was "excessively shy" as a child and felt "alone, timid, rejected and not good enough".  Satan exploits such feelings in believers, stealing their joy and confidence.

Then, he learned about his "new identity" as a believer - a new person who is loved unconditionally.  Jesus had become Winkler's righteousness.

"Who you are in Christ is made up of the qualities of His image that you get to call your own, simply because of His effort and striving at the cross.  It is the result of His finished work, not yours."

Winkler discusses Satan's effort to derail Jesus by tempting him in the wilderness after he was baptized in the Jordan River.  In each of Satan's attempts, Jesus responded by quoting God's word until the Devil gave up and left (Matthew 4).

"Paul said that we shut down Satan's mind games by taking negative thoughts captive to God's Word," he writes.  "In other words, if Satan says 'You are worthless', replace that thought with the truth of God's Word . . ."

He suggests several steps to transforming our thinking - begin with the correct truths from scripture; declare the truths aloud; act upon this truth;  and return to this truth whenever we fail until it becomes a habit.  Then, our character will change.

Winkler says he changed as he applied scripture to his life.  His growth "depended on a consistent, daily habit of speaking God's Word, not an occasional emergency dose".

As Jesus told Satan when he was tempted in the wilderness:

"It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"