Prayer Life

The soul of prayer life is the love poured out in the believer’s heart by the Holy Spirit. Because prayer is a hidden work, it must be born and nourished by God’s pure love, otherwise it is impossible to pray faithfully. It is easier to work in faithfulness than to pray in faithfulness. There are many things that can keep us active in the work, but that might not be considered in prayer.

Only the Holy Spirit is the spirit of prayer; and it is only by the Holy Spirit that we are heard and able to pray all the way through. By Him we receive prayer from above, as the prayers that ascend must first descend. God lays a matter on our hearts, they are not of necessity, but we must receive our prayers from God.

Only he who has received the heart of a priest can pray as he ought, he who can operate in a sanctified manner amidst the lack of sanctity among others. He keeps no account of the faults of others in mind, in order to spread them abroad to others, but rather one who lays them upon his heart and carries them in the hands of prayer into the sanctuary. The priests carry the people’s sins into the sanctuary, not out to the people, where they would quite probably be added to. According to Rev. 1:5 Christ died so that the saved would intercede in prayer. The place the blood of Jesus has acquired for us is in the sight of the Father as kings and priests.

Only those who have taken the word of God to heart can pray as they ought. Whoever neglects this will soon find they have no more words to pray. God’s word and prayer belong together just as we breathe in and out with our lungs. Every prayer must be born of the Word and stay in line with the Word.

Only those who really understand the realities of daily trouble and strife can pray as they ought. Every trouble should be an opportunity to enter more deeply into the riches of God’s grace. Our troubles should nourish our faith and not be grounds for defeat. A life of prayer can only be lived by those who continually dwell in God’s presence.

A. D. M.