Wednesday; February 21

Each Wednesday evening, as a part of our mid-week gathering, we spend time in prayer.  Our process is pretty simple – if someone has a prayer request, we write it on a board and, before we leave the gathering, we pray for each item on the board.  You never know what is going to make the list; some are continual requests, while others are unique.  Last Wednesday night someone brought a serious issue to the group’s attention, we put it on the board, we prayed for it and, within a matter of minutes, the requested blessing had been received.  What a powerful reminder of the power of prayer! 
Do we really believe in prayer?  I think that, sometimes, we limit the effectiveness of our prayers because we are too analytical.  We tend to try to examine the process of prayer rather than just doing it.  We debate which prayers God hears (answers) and we discuss whether we have to actually formulate the content of the prayer or if the Holy Spirit can guide even our incomplete thoughts.  We spend a lot of time studying style and format or debating about how God goes about answering prayers (does He actually intervene or does He merely comfort us as His plan plays out in our lives)?  Sure, we need to pay attention to how God wants us to pray; but do we spend too much time analyzing prayer and not enough time actually practicing it?
When the Apostle Paul taught the First Century church about prayer he said, “... pray without ceasing ...” (I Thessalonians 5:17) not, “pray while explaining”!  Let’s not worry about what we can and can’t articulate about prayer – let’s just pray and let God work His Majesty!
Think About It!

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