PRAYING WITH ALL PRAYER

10/24/2022

"With all prayer and petition pray [with specific requests] at all times [on every occasion and in every season] in the Spirit, and with this in view, stay alert with all perseverance and petition [interceding in prayer] for all God’s people." (Ephesian 6:18)

There is an administration of prayer with which every saint ought to be acquainted. Our theme scripture today, says, "With all prayer and petition..." and then, it goes to include making petitions for others, giving an insight into the types of prayers. It also gives us the frequency, "at all times" and then, it gives us the means by which to pray, "in the Spirit."

Beginning with the means by which to pray, praying in the Spirit, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 14:15, "What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding." Praying in tongues is the primary means by which to pray and then, you pray with the word of God, whether from the scriptures or by interpretation of an unknown tongue, secondarily.

Now when the Bible says "at all times", we may understand it to mean every and any time that you have nominated to pray. In other words, whenever you pray, pray in the Spirit. We may also understand "at all times" to mean the eight three-hour cycles that folks in Bible times observed as hours of prayer. While the discipline of maintaining regimented prayer times has been attributed to many experiencing angelic manifestations, as was the case of Daniel, Cornelius and Peter, observing hours of prayer is not a command of scripture.

All types of prayer, therefore, begin with your acknowledgement of God based on the revelation you have of Him. Jesus acknowledged God the Father as "Our Father" (according to Matthew 6:9). At the start of this year, God revealed Himself to us as LORD for the purpose of untangling yokes and destroying burdens placed by devils (according to Isaiah 10:27). So, as you pray, acknowledge Him in the way that He has revealed Himself to us.

Next, you pray a prayer of penitence. Our God cannot behold sin. However, the world around us is so cluttered with sin such that even the earthly languages we speak miss God's mark, many times over. This is why we are changed to "...come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16). It means you collect forgiveness for any mistakes or omissions and keep praying. 1 John 9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Hallelujah!

Next, petitions. These are requests of a personal nature. John 16:24 says, "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full." Child of God, your Father wants you to ask Him for things that you want. Hear, He will supply your needs (according to Phillipians 4:19) but He wants to grant you the desires of your heart, so ask Him.

Next, the prayer of worship. The prayer of worship is how you affirm God's worth to you and say the sweetest things to Him. Here, you unravel your emotions to God. David understood the potency of this prayer. In 2 Samuel 7:22, He says, "Therefore You are great, O Lord GOD. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears." You entice the Lord with sweet words like "You are all fair, my love, And there is no spot in you." (Songs of Solomon 4:7) after which, you ask Him what He would have you pray for Him.

Then, the Spirit would give you pictures and or prompt you in your heart on the things to pray out for Him. He may lead you to pray for people, countries, situations or events with broad or specific instructions. This is intercession. As you pray, interceding, you have entered into deep territories of the Spirit and it would not matter how long you spend there, 10 minutes, 4 hours or a day, as long as you pray out the things God lays in your heart to pray.

Next, you proceed to the prayer of thanksgiving. We have a hope in God when we pray and it is this: "...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 the petitions that we have asked of Him." (1 John 5:14-15). Thanksgiving is the acknowledgement that God has not just heard you but that He has also answered. This prayer is best prayed in the spirit for when you thank the Lord in an unknown tongue, the Bible says, "...you indeed give thanks well..."(1 Corinthians 14:17)

Then you offer the prayer of praise. While the prayer of worship entices God with your acknowledgement of His worth to you, the prayer of praise acknowledges God for the things He has done for you. So you praise Him for that time when He brought you out of debt or delivered you from a car wreck. You praise Him for that time He prevented a mass shooting in a public place. Praise God in prayer for what He showed you that He has brought to pass.

Lastly but not exhaustively, make confessions. Declare who you are, what you have and what you can do in agreement with the Word of God. Declare your victory, health, success and everything that God has provided you in Christ.

You are blessed.

Faith-Filled Confession

I pray with all prayers, knowing that prayer is a ministry that I bear toward God.

ONE YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Jeremiah 5-6; 1 Timothy 1