“Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;” (Colossians 4:2)
What a privilege it is to have true communion with the Lord, us speaking to Him and He speaking to us, a true conversation. It’s a wonder to the world that we can say I speak with God and He speaks to us. And how essential it is for our spiritual well-being, a lifeline to the Creator, the One Who rules the universe, but to us, our heavenly Father.
The big questions for believers revolve around what to pray, when to pray and how long to pray. In Truth, there is no set requirement. The best prayers are prayers that come from the heart, recognize His supremacy and our helplessness and are fervent. (James 5:16) The prayers, in my experience, that have been answered immediately and had a better result than I ever imagined was a desperate, “Help me, Lord!”
It’s a privilege to turn to the Lord and know that He hears us. Many don’t believe that their prayers are heard. This may be due to the fact that when we didn’t know the Lord, when we were considered His enemies (Colossians 1:21) we prayed, and nothing happened. But the Truth is that we were not praying. Praying is communion. It is us speaking and God speaking also. Their prayers were not heard because God only hears the prayer of His children, the righteous. “The LORD is far from the wicked: but He heareth the prayer of the righteous.” (Proverbs 15:29) But God is merciful and will have mercy on whom He will have mercy. (Romans 9:18) It isn’t about obtaining any worldly gain. It’s about reverence and acknowledging His majesty.
My testimony is proof as are others, I’m sure. They say you have to hit bottom before rising again. Well, I was not a drug user, but I’d hit the bottom in misery. I knew nothing of the Bible but believed in God. When I searched the Bible, the Lord gave me a Scripture: “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me.” (John 5:39) In my blindness, I didn’t understand. And I kept asking, “Who are you?” It was over a year before I learned Who it was that was speaking to me. Jesus didn’t just want to deliver me from my misery, but to gather me in His arms. When I came to Him, I gave up all, even my very breath. But He gave me so much more. My prayer was not Scriptural per say because I knew nothing about prayer. It was simply, “You take me God. And You kill me God.” This was because I was afraid I would kill myself. And I fell asleep fully thinking I’d never wake up and not knowing where I’d end up. And the Lord took me, spirit, soul and body and gave me a glorious life in Him.
It's true that we have made little acronyms and keys that help us include all the important parts of prayer. Jesus gave us an example in the Lord’s prayer. Believers also use “ACTS” (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication) as a guide. These are good. But better is the cry of our heart to the Lord, expressing our love and devotion, acknowledging His holiness and greatness, and crying out to the only One Who can help us with thankfulness for His Goodness and Mercy.
What a privilege because He does hear us. “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us:” (1John 5:14) Yes! It’s a confidence knowing that He does hear us. And if we’re speaking to Him, acknowledging Who He is in our lives, we just don’t come before Him and declare to Him our love and devotion, confess our trespasses and give thanksgiving and leave. How rude! God wants to speak to us. Wait on the Lord and He will show you marvelous things. “Call unto Me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (Jeremiah 33:3)
Our study Scripture says to continue in prayer. That word continue has the connotation that we are to persevere in prayer, be diligent continually in it, wait on it continually and to give yourself continually to it. It’s that important. The Holy Spirit is in us and continually with us. The emphasis is on the continuous. We can have whole conversations with Him. He is God the third person of the Godhead. He has continuous, unbroken and ceaseless fellowship with the Father and Jesus. Speaking to Him is prayer. And our conversations with Him are connected to the Father’s Will and Jesus’ Word to us.
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