"And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord." (Genesis 4:26) How often do you think about prayer? Better yet, how often do you practice it? Its hard to believe it, but there was a time when people did not call on the Lord. Growing up in a home with a praying mother, its something that wouldn't cross my mind. Yet, there was such a time. The challenge for you and me is that we don't become a prayerless generation. It has been rightly said, "no man will ever speak FOR God, when he hasn't spoken TO God."
The truth is, that there is a universal need for prayer in the day we live. Our world is in chaos, and the for the most part many of the churches have become dry havens for religious practice with no rain of the Holy Spirit power.
The Psalmist wrote, "O thou that hearest prayer, unto to thee shall all flesh come." (Psalm 65:2) We are creatures who were made for fellowship with God, and when a child of God lives a prayerless life, there is no real fellowship taking place. Imagine going for a day, or a week or a month not speaking to your mate or the people you work with...wouldn't you say that fellowship would become strained?
There have been numerous times in my life when I just did not know how to prayer. Times that the words were just not there. I remember one time in particular when I learned of my father's death. Living over eight hours away from home, I left immediately when I learned of his passing. Knowing that he was calling for me to come home, and that I didn't make it there, along with the crushing knowledge of my mother's grief was almost too much. I clearly remember leaning over the steering wheel of the car and groaning. Although I was a pastor of a church, and had been in the ministry for several years, there had never been a time like this. It was at this moment that the Spirit of the Lord began to intercede for me. Paul described it this way to the Romans, "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know know what we should pray for as we ought; but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." (Romans 8:26)
As our number one CORE VALUE, it is important to remember that our prayers are precious to the Lord (Rev 5:8) and that they ascend as incense to heaven (Rev 8:3). We must remember that the Lord is pleased when we practice the spiritual discipline of prayer. 1 Chronicles 16:11 says, " Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually." (Hosea 14:2) Jesus also reminds us, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, an it shall be opened unto you." (Matthew 7:7)
I am asking you to join me in this journey toward the destiny the Lord has for all of us. He promises to answer our prayers, and we can come to Him boldly (Hebrews 4:16; 13:6) with anticipation. It may be that there are times you don't know how to pray, and there will be times that you will know exactly what to pray...but just PRAY!
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