Diligent Prayer Life

Prayer is not just TALKING to God! Prayer is also LISTENING to God! We have a culture that believes prayer is about speaking ‘MUCH WORDS’ to God in a long time.

‘…The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant…’ (Matt 6:7 MSG)

SPEAKING to God is only the ‘first half’ of prayer! Why pray if you don’t know God will respond? Imagine calling your friend on phone and just talking on and on…and when it’s time for the friend to respond, you ‘hung up’! That’s how many of us do in prayers! We think it’s always about many words. We do all the talking…just to keep a record that we have prayed ‘long’! This makes us feel like ‘prayer-warriors’.

Over the years, I’ve learnt to allow God answer me in prayers. There are times in prayers, I could be quiet for several minutes! To a lay believer, I’m not praying… But I know I am RECEIVING!!! I have learnt to relate with God in prayers as the Father who ‘…awakens my EAR TO HEAR as the learned…’ (Isa 50:4)

When you pray to God…allow your spiritual ‘ears to hear’ his response of peace!

‘…I WILL HEAR what God the LORD will speak: for HE WILL SPEAK PEACE unto his people, and to his saints…’ (Ps 85:8)

If you have this kind of attitude in prayers, your spiritual sensitivity will be sharpened to receiving from God always. In fact, maintaining a ‘quiet spirit’ per time in order to hear God is the only way you can effectively obey the instruction that says: ‘…pray without ceasing…’ (1Thess 5:17)

Because Prayer is not just about you ‘calling’ God…it’s also about God ‘answering’ you! When you ‘call on God’…allow God to ‘give you answers’ too!

‘…Call unto me, and I will answer thee…’ (Jer. 33:3)

Stop making prayer a ‘sweaty work’ of words! This is one major reason many people find it difficult and boring to sustain a regular prayer habit and lifestyle. The Labour of Prayer is not in the amount of ‘words’ used…but in the concentration invested in ‘active communication’ with the Father. Hence, ‘Labour in Prayers’ is actually ‘Rest in disguise’. Even ‘speaking in tongues’ was given to believers as a gift of ‘REST’ in prayers so we can HEAR God’s response too!

‘…For WITH STAMMERING LIPS AND ANOTHER TONGUE will he SPEAK to this people…To whom he said, This is THE REST WHEREWITH YE MAY CAUSE THE WEARY TO REST; and this is the REFRESHING: yet they would not hear…’ (Isa 28:11-12)

Prayer ought not to be boring…Prayer ought to be Refreshing! Stammering lips and another tongue…is referring to the ‘gift of tongues’ given to believers. While explaining Tongues to the Corinthians, Paul reminded the church of that very verse!

‘…”By strange tongues and foreign lips I will speak to this people, but even then they will not listen to Me, says the Lord…” (1Cor 14:21 BSB)

God is more interested in ‘answering’ you…than you are in ‘asking’ Him. Prayer is a ‘two-way’ COMMUNICATION! Prayer is not always talking. Prayer is also listening.

Therefore, cultivate the habit of allowing God answer you when you call on Him.

Amen.