Seeking Simplicity

Prayer: Through praying that He reveal areas we need to turn over to Him, we can grow in self-awareness. Prayer leads us to listen to His guidance. Prayer is not a one-way conversation. If your prayers are simply a list of requests you send to God and expect a quick response, then consider yourself at an early stage of growth in this discipline. We seem to start out praying in much the same way we wrote a letter to Santa Claus in our childhood. "Dear God, I’ve been good. Please give me--..". Even childhood prayers can introduce the concept of intercession. "God bless Mommy and Daddy", is a basic form of intercession. Consider this story: Long ago in a faraway land, a nobleman named Amos was granted his request to go before the King of the Land. He was very concerned about his land being invaded by a foreign people and hoped to gain support of the King to place soldiers in the region for the protection of his people. One of his close friends learned that Amos was granted this audience before the King. The friend asked Amos to present his request for a potion to be brought back for his wife who was suffering from an unexplained illness. The potion was rare and expensive because the plants used grew only in a specific area of the country. Amos agreed to carry his friend’s petition to the King. Upon Amos’ return to his home, his friend sent a servant over to get the potion. Amos had to admit that he was so focused on his own problems and concerns that he completely forgot to ask the King for the healing potion. The servant carried his message back. The friend’s wife died shortly after. Now, how does this story apply to our prayer lives today? When you have a friend share a concern with you and even ask you to pray for them, do you always remember to lift their petition to the Lord when you come before Him? How many prayers have not been answered because we have failed to honor our agreement to intercede for our friend? This is what intercessory prayer actually is. We claim our friend’s need before our heavenly Father. An interesting thing occurs when we intercede for others. We become less focused on our own desires and begin to mature spiritually. Gradually our prayers become prayers of gratitude. As we reflect on all God has already done for us, we can appreciate the gifts and abundance of His love. As we become more grateful, we feel an inner need to know God in a more intimate way. Then we are led to pray by simply spending time with God and abiding in His presence. The relationship grows as we spend more time with God and we are led to study His ways and gain a greater understanding of Him.