Most of us think that prayer is a one-way street where we go to God to ask for what we need. This understanding of prayer is a sad statement of man’s selfish perception of God. God is a Father who loves to give His children good things. However He is not just a Giver but a Father who loves a relationship with His children. We know that a relationship is built on communication between the parties concerned. Prayer is a form of communication that sustains our relationship with our Father in heaven. Most lack this understanding and so miss the point of the essence of what prayer is. Jesus was in constant communion with His Father. He only spoke what He heard His Father saying and only did what He saw His Father doing. We also must yearn for such a relationship with our Father in heaven.
We come to God in worship and acknowledge Him as our Father in heaven. Jesus taught us how to pray by saying “Our Father who is in heaven”. This prayer is our way to come to the Father to request that He meet our needs for daily bread and for forgiveness of sins and deliverance from all evil. Most of us have got into the habit of praying this prayer daily. However there is a second aspect to this prayer where we say “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”. How do we know what to do to establish His Kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven? We can only know this through listening to Him through His word and through the gifts of the Spirit.
God speaks through His pastors, evangelists, prophets, teachers and apostles and reveals His mind to His church. It is through these revelations that we know what God’s plans are and how to establish them on earth. He also speaks directly to us His children and reveals His will to us individually. He has already set a plan for each of us even before we were born. It is now our part to know His plan and do it. How can we know His plan if we fail to seek Him? It is in the secret place of prayer that we come to know the mind of God for each of us. More time spent in prayer will yield more fruit than labouring to build in our own strength. It is God who builds His church and not man. Let us today seek to listen to Him and do as He directs us.
