Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working (James 5:16 ESV) 

As we prepare for our upcoming prayer meeting on Friday this week, the time is right for a brief review of why you should pay particular attention to your prayer life as a believer or minister. James declared in our verse above that the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. We will briefly review how prayer operates powerfully in our lives in three ways.

First, prayer is the mysterious spiritual device that connects a person’s heart to the Spirit of God. You can compare prayer to a bridge in a person’s heart that connects your world to heaven. God walks on that bridge to come through to manifest Himself on earth. If you desire to experience God’s presence or power to any degree, then prayer is mandatory. 

Second, prayer is the human invitation for divine interventions on the earth. We might not fully understand why the sovereign and powerful God restricted Himself by only working on the earth when humans allow or invite Him. However, do not sit and watch things go awry in your life, hoping God will somehow intervene. Provoke that intervention—God expects you to do so.

Third, prayer is the dynamo that propels  Christian life or ministry. It is neither an option reserved for “prayer warriors” nor an alternative to Bible study, giving, serving in Church, being a “good Christian,” etc. On the contrary, prayer is the power that drives everything else, including  holy living, the operations of spiritual gifts, preaching effectively, understanding the Bible, etc.

So prayer is mandatory if you ever dream of having a Christian life or ministry that bears the visible  fingerprints of God. Though the challenges to praying are many, and they seem to increase by the day, we should pray without ceasing!

Read more: How to Set Your Prayer Life on Fire.

How would you describe your prayer life?

Apply the Word

The most effective way to learn how to pray is to pray. All I can do is teach you the word to impart understanding, provide encouragement, and give direction. But until you pray, you will never  know the beauty and glory in prayer—well, including its challenges!. Mark your calendars for Deshen Online Prayer (DOP) this Friday and check out the prayer page here.

Ask the Spirit of the Lord to encourage and strengthen you to pray.

Read more

View Deshen Online Prayer Schedule.

Devotional prayer: learning from our Lord Himself.

Jesus’ Prayer Life.

View all Deshen Daily devotionals including today’s devotional.

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