Roger Kinion is senior pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Greenfield.
One of my favorite studies as a follower of Jesus Christ is what is commonly known as “The Lord’s Prayer” or “The Model Prayer.” I have studied through the gospels on this prayer and taught it many times. For me this prayer is a way to stay grounded and to return to my spiritual center.
I am refreshed when I am consistent in prayer, and it is one of the easiest disciplines to engage in as a Christian. However, it is one of the most neglected aspects for many believers.
Today, I want to share two major thoughts about prayer that I have learned that I believe will change your perspective and restore power to your prayer life.
First, in Luke 11:2 Jesus says, “Whenever you pray… .” This is the first step in a fruitful refreshing prayer life: You must pray! We talk about praying, we read about prayer, we tell people we will pray for them, but do we actually pray?
We need ongoing daily prayer throughout our day, but we also need the systematic regular prayer like Daniel, who made it his practice to pray facing Jerusalem three times a day. We also observe Jesus getting alone to pray and the apostles gathering together to pray. All these instances have one major thing in common: They prayed!
Jesus introduces how to pray with the expectation that we pray. “When you pray… .” Let me encourage you, make time every day for prayer and you will begin to see a difference in your spiritual life.
Second, we need to return to the simple purpose of prayer. You may think prayer is about sharing your needs, lifting up the needs of others, praising God for who he is and what he does, seeking direction in life, or battling in the spiritual realm. All of these are part of the activity of prayer, but they are not the simple purpose of prayer.
The purpose of prayer is to be in the presence of God, to commune with him. When we realize that being in God’s presence is the gateway to all the aspects of prayer communication, we will begin to recognize the reward of prayer, the power of prayer, and purpose of prayer are all one and the same: Being in the presence of our loving Father in Heaven who adores us, wants what is best for us, and loves for us to come to him with all the various needs.
Far too often we get so caught up in our sharing we tend to forget to enjoy being with God. I have found that when I start with this understanding, it is easier to pray and I look forward to the time I am able to spend with God.
Let me challenge you to set aside time to pray and to be less concerned with all the needs and requests (still give them to Him, he tells us to) and more focused on the person of God and his great love for you. I believe this will revolutionize your prayer time as it has mine.
Roger Kinion is senior pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Greenfield. This weekly column is written by local clergy members.
