Category — prayer

Psalm 24:6,  2 Chronicles 7:14

The prolific 18th century Christian author and preacher Charles Spurgeon wrote:

[...]“true seekers are very dear in God’s esteem, and are entered upon his register. Even seeking has a sanctifying influence; what a consecrating power must lie in finding and enjoying the Lord’s face and favour! To desire communion with God is a purifying thing. Oh to hunger and thirst more and more after a clear vision of the face of God; this will lead us to purge ourselves from all filthiness, and to walk with heavenly circumspection.”

Seeking God, his face and the kingdom of God is a welcome and open invitation to all who truly desire to know God.

I’m not sure how often you pray, when is the last time you prayed or even if you believe that prayer is important. I do. I’ve learned to talk to God and listen so that whatever he wants me to know I don’t miss it. I confess there are times when I don’t “feel” like praying. And (more confession) there was a time in my saved life I didn’t want to pray. But as I have walked with God and calmed down considerably, I value the conversations we have.

Prayer isnt just talking selfishly about our wants as God cannot be manipulated by our prayers. While we tend to talk to God in abundance, it appears that he doesn’t speak in great volumes to us in return.  But when he does, its undeniable.

Prayer is the primary form of communication with God. It is, in essence, a conversation between divinity and humanity.

The great Christian writer Oswald Chambers said “Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work.” Indeed, we cannot see our prayers as a means to an end but rather as both the means and the end.

There are many types of prayers:

Agreement – Our will submits to the Father’s will. The other aspect of agreement is when we pray with another person with one heart towards what is desired as in Matthew 18:19

Meditation – Quietly thinking on the Word of God and recalling it either in silence or whisper. Psalms 1 says  a man is blessed when his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

Confession – Acknowledgement to God personal wrongdoing.  John 1:9 tells us If (in prayer) we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Forgiveness – Acknowledgment before God releasing someone who has done you personal wrong. Jesus himself prayed the prayer of forgiveness on the cross. Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Luke 23:34

Thanksgiving – A proclamation of praise for what  God has done.

Praise – Expression of adoration for what God has done. No one biblical writer could put it down like the prolific warrior/praiser King David. His psalms (songs) are the basis of countless songs and prayers. My favorite: the 103rd Psalms.

Petition – A personal request for things that we need. There is nothing wrong with asking God for personal needs. We are encouraged to do just that in Philippians 4:6. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Intercession – Bringing another’s petition to God on their behalf. The church prayed for the release of the Apostle Peter when he was imprisoned in Acts 12:5.

Listening – Active quietness in the presence of God in order to hear Him speak. The child Samuel was instructed to say “speak Lord, for your servant listens” in 1 Samuel 3:9-10.

There are some misconceptions about prayer. Some believe that prayers should not be public, only private. Not true. This misconception comes from Jesus warning to his followers in Matt 6:5 about emulating the Pharisees.

“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

His warning was not against public prayer, but public prayer used as a cloak for hypocrisy. Please understand that public prayer does not bring the same personal results as secret, closet prayer. Reference Matthew 6:6.

I believe the greatest prayer we can pray is “Lord, let your will be done”. When you don’t know what to say, its best to pray that his will be done. Knowing God like I do, that prayer will certainly always be right and true.

Question: Has God ever specifically answered your prayers?

Pastor Harvey Burnett of The Dunamis Word  blog recaps 2007 with its amazing array of gay clergy uprisings and church elite downfallings.

But read on into the story and you’ll find out the controversial “prophetess” Jaunita Bynum is holding 5am “prayer meetings” at Detroit’s Greater Grace Temple (one of the flagship apostolic churches).

TDW reports that the prayer meetings are already drawing 2,000 attendees. But you’ll have to go to the blog to read what this woman is telling them to do in the services. Hint: its a “secret”.

Saints, the false prophets do not rest in deceiving people and leading people away from the worship of the true God. Which is all the more reason we must be sober, vigilant and ready to expose these evildoers as it is becomes necessary.

The ex-ex-gay group Beyond Exgay is gearing up to hold its first convention opposite the Exodus convention in Irvine, CA.  Although the group uniformly faults “exgay ministries”, the major contentions seem to stem from ”bad” prayers and faulty christological perspectives. Since the convention will be fanning the fires of dissatisfaction regarding the failed expectations of the past, we thought it prudent to revisit one of the reasons this group has formed. 

“God make me straight, I used to pray nightly. It’s what every dissatisfied gay Christian wants more than anything. I would wake up the next day and sometimes get as far as lunchtime thinking maybe that was the day I’d wake up healed. But always it would end in disillusionment, the same feelings coming back, and I knew I wasn’t changed inside.” — from the article “Out and Cowed: Exgay in the UK

This represents a fairly common “prayer” or goal of some Christians when conflicted about their sexuality and the will of God.   See other examples here, here, here and here.   We are not arguing that the conflict is disengenous, but beyond the conflict what resolution should one seek?  What is the legitimate Christian path and what is the illegitimate path? For some, praying to be straight, seems good a path. For distinction purposes, we will call it the make me straight prayer (MMS).  It has often been said that God answers prayer, but does God answer every prayer or more specifically, the MMS prayer? If not, why not? The narratives of many ex-ex-gays suggest that the answer to their prayers didn’t come from God, but from themselves.  Perhaps they were influenced by gay church founder Troy Perry,  who announced God was ok with his homosexuality.  After years of trying to make himself straight, gay christian Jamie Nabozny said in a “coming out” manual,

“I walked as far as I could into a field. I was crying, praying, and hollering at God. I said, ‘I’ve read the Bible, I’ve prayed, I go to church three times a week. Every time I have a homosexual thought I rebuke it in the name of God and yet still I’m gay. Either youre not there, or you don’t give a damn that I’m gay.’ It took me a little while but then I realized God was OK with it. The God I really believed in was not a God that hated or condemned people.” [Resource Guide to Coming Out, pg 33]

The main dysfunction with the MMS prayer seems to be focus. Prayer has never been about getting God to give us what we want, but rather aligning ourselves with His will. As Jesus prayed, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  If the will of God is for man to be holy (Lev 20:7),  but an individual prays to be straight, additional conflict is inevitable. 

How long does a Christian wait for God to answer before one decides that’s enough…and then answer his or her own prayers? Who decides when enough is enough? Again, stories from ex- ex-gays suggest at the least that God did not answer the MMS prayer. Other means were used to “reconcile” the conflict. This dangerous practice projects one into a rejection of God’s will and plan for man. 

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. Romans 1:21,22.

COMPARTMENTALIZED PRAYERS
At the heart of the problem with the gay christian movement’s understanding of prayer lies with intent.  First, only God can judge the heart’s intent (1 Sam 16:7), but the intent of one’s heart is eventually brought to light in behavior. That we can judge. Secondly, praying “to be straight” or to be “changed to a heterosexual” is no indication that (1) God is obligated to answer such a prayer and (2) the non-answer arbitrarily defaults to divine approval. In James 4:3,  we are told selfish, carnal prayers  are out of line with the will of God. The word “amiss” is translated from the Greek kakos, which means literally bad request. It is a bad request to ask/demand that God change just your sexual desires when He wants to change everything about you.  God has always been concerned with man’s total restoration, not just the compartments of one’s life.

Homosexuals and heterosexuals alike commit sexual sins.  Thus, being changed from gay to “straight” is not a biblical resolution, quite simply, because being straight does not cleanse one from sin. Actually,  it is a completely undesirable goal. Thus, God’s will is not to change sexual preferences, but transform life preferences. Consequently,  the intent of prayer should never be God make me straight, but God make me holy.

Holiness has a dominant characteristic of whole-ness.  This is vividly demonstrated in the 5th chapter of John where Jesus encounters a man who had been “lame” for 38 years. Read about it.

5And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?

In response to Jesus’ question, the man offers Jesus an excuse(verse 7) as to why he couldn’t get in the water. But he didn’t understand the will of God. Jesus’ question had nothing to do with getting into the water, but restoring his life and living.  Also note that Jesus ignored the man’s excuse (verse 8). Unless he was willing to approach his condition on God’s terms, he would have remained a poolside cripple for the rest of his life. However, God’s will was to make him whole (complete)  with an ability to function as a man in life.  David Rattigan and other ex-ex-gays in the gay christian movement you cannot seek God on your own terms. This is what created the sense of alienation from God by praying to be straight. Although you may have been sincere, with a valid sexuality conflict,  that within itself is insufficient. Although the blame for failure may end up at the doorstep of someone else, it only creates more unresolved problems.

Anyone who comes to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Heb 11:6 

We  strongly suggest offering God all of you.   The only other option is to keep answering your own prayers.