PRAYER PRAYER.

 SUNDAY SERVICE

 SERMON:   

                PRAYER PRAYER.

 _INTRO_ : *Prayer* are the different forms of communicating with God. All forms that express your feeling to God and need an answer from Him are *Prayer* .

    God as a recipient has principles that one follows in order for their case to Him to be successful.

 _PROB_ : But the problem we have is that we have limited our minds to one or two forms of *prayer*. We present our *prayers* in ways that are not in line with God's principles.

 _PURP_ : Therefore the purpose of this lesson is to enlight us about *Prayer* , it's obstacles and how to pray.

      *Prayer* with it's varied is all important in christian life. 

     Different individuals have different ways of expressing their feelings thus different forms of *prayer* . However the well-known forms include:

~. *Prayers* of intercession.

~. Silent *Prayer* .

~. Verbal *Prayer* .

~. A servant's *Prayer* - serving with faith that God will work upon you.

~. Prophetic *Prayer* - confessing a future in the name of christ.

~. Thanksgiving *Prayer* - expressing appreciation to God.

~. Apostolic *Prayer* - one that involves a person praying for the other to get divine healing, blessing etc. 

    These *Prayers* can be made through different ways for example, kneeling and praying, through meditation, through service or through singing as seen in *Acts 16:25.* 

      

       Christians ought to embrace different forms of *prayer* at different occasions.; Because different occasions call for different *Prayers* . For example , Job used to offer sacrifices while praying for the purification of his children, but when satan struck him, his mode of *prayer* changed to adoration and thanksgiving.

    When paul was in prison, he had a different *Prayer* that was through singing and when he met with the sick, he also had a different *Prayer* .

      Whatever form of life you meet, be it a challenging life or a happy life, you need to forward a kind of *prayer* .

 

 *IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER* 

1. *Prayer* let's God take part in our situation.

2. Embracing different forms of *prayers* at different occasions enables God's spirit to dwell with us all the time like in the times of apostles and Moses. 

3. *Prayer* builds a strong relationship between us and God - i.e the way God handles a person who prays always is different from that one who doesn't.

4. It enables us to tap into the spiritual blessings and resources.

5. It activates our spiritual gifts in the body of Christ.

6. *Prayer* enables brethens to become one in the body of christ. 

However, there are different obstacles that present in our lives that limit effective *Prayer*.

 *OBSTACLES TO PRAYER.*

1...SIN.

     *Isaiah:59.1 Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.

It is assured to us that God's hand is not too short...God can do exceedingly and abundantly (Ephesians:3.20, Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,)

Before we continue, look at this interesting thing.

 When we count million, billion, trillion...some of us wonder what comes after. After trillion, we move to quadrillion, quintrillion,.... until you reach decillion and beyond. Now interestingly, according to research, our sun has 7 planets that go round it including the earth we are on right now, yet some planets also have moons that go around them like the earth with it's moon we see in the night. So meaning around our sun there several planets and moons going around it. Beyond the sun , there are other suns like ours having planets and moons around them. In our galaxy alone, there are more than one trillion suns like ours. And galaxies In the observable universe like ours are more than quadrillions (1000 trillion). Therefore suns in the universe are septillion(1000 quadrillion). Then how many planets do you think are in the universe....1000s of septillion. Even if each person who ever existed on earth could be given a galaxy, there would still be more left.....more than measure.

What God can do cannot be contained in your brain. I mean even if you were given chance to count down and study the galaxies, your brain, even when full ,cannot contain such data. What God can do is beyond our imagination and is immeasurable.

With that in mind, know that God is not limited in blessings and in resources. The bible says that He can do exceedingly. But then one thing limits us, sin. It is a thick blanket that traps our *prayers* . Sin is darkness and where darkness is , there is no light. If you *pray* in darkness, light has not seen. Prayer made in sin is ineffective.

 2...WRONG INTENSIONS.

       *James:4.3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

A motive is not necessarily a decision. One can have a wrong feeling that needs to be satisfied through *prayer* and that is a wrong motive. You feel God should bless you against your neighbor, that is a wrong motive. You pray that your neighbor fails and you succeeded, a wrong motive. We gain nothing from our prayers if our hearts are in such states.

3... UNFORGIVING HEART.

      *Matthew:6.14-15 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Many times we have gone before the Lord with a heart full of grudges and to an extreme extent, we have named people we will never forgive.

> You cannot say you love God If you don't love your neighbor. It is the same thing, you cannot say God forgive me if you have not forgiven.

  > The relationships we have with the Lord is reflected in the earthly relationship we have. If you have an unforgiving relationship so is yours with God.

You cannot pray to your enemy if both of you have not forgiven each other and so it is with God. There is no success in *prayer* with an unforgiving heart.

3...DOUBT, FEAR AND DOUBLE MIND.

*James:1.6-8 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind .7. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; .8. he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

Doubt is like a wave on the sea. It is not firm. It is to the left and to the right. It is not decided. A man with such a heart in *prayer* willl not receive because the Lord doesn't know what route he takes ,

 Doubt limits God's spirit in us because you are not confident in his power. 

*Matthew:15.8-9 "'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. .9. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.'"

*Prayer* Is a spiritual mattter and so you cannot get the fullness of christ if your spirit, your heart is far from christ 

One thing that shows that your heart Is far from christ is when you stop trusting the words of the bible.

=Stop trusting prophecy

=Stop trusting spiritual brethrens in your church

=Stop fellowship

=You stop trusting spiritual leaders 

=Stop trusting The çhurch the Lord has placed you in to serve.

=You stop Serving the Lord through your gift.

     >>>Your heart is far from christ and his body.

A double heart will not bring down God's spirit in prayer.

Peter when walking on water, at first had one mind to reach christ, but when he started minding about the waves of the sea, he had a double mind and that is when he started failing. 

>>>Let our hearts be into christ in any storm and in any prayer. Christ needs our hearts.

*HOW TO PRAY*

1. Let go of all resetiments and sin before presenting your case the Lord.,then the Lord will accept you as holy

2. There needs character in *prayer* so pray persistently without ceasing like the widow seen in Luke 18:2

In whatever *prayer* you make, present character which assures God that you deserve what you request for .

3. The persistent praying should be in season and out of season. Like Job , praying when he had wealth and when he lost everything...

Ephesians 6:18 ...With all kinds of *prayers*.

Commite your whole self and your whole heart to God during *prayer*

Such self commitment will give God room to do what he is will to do.

Such commitments should be portrayed in your service to God ,in giving, in praise and in worship

The lord needs your whole heart.

5. Make your motives clear to God during your *prayers*. Give God a reason for what you ask for In *prayer*.

Such reasons makes your request sound bold and necessary.

6. Present faith as a tool of trust to God . Faith that trusts God in his abilities to do what you request for. One thing I know is that faith is not necessarily believing that God is going to do what you request for but believing that he is able to do more than you request for. 

*CONCLUSION*

✓*Prayer* is filled with forms of different caliber

✓We should embrace all forms of *prayer* because different forms work at different occasions. Even when you are busy or listening to the sermon, pray.

✓Let us master all obstacles that limit our *prayers* and work on them.

✓Let us raise faith that God is more than able and committ all our self to him in *prayer*.

✓*Prayer* is a strong key that will strethenq our spiritual lives and bond us with God , enabling us to tap into the endless spiritual blessings and resources.

>>>>>>>>Let Us Pray Without Ceasing.<<<<<<

GOD BLESS YOU.

By kutosi Simon.

10:00Am-10:55Am

Sunday 27th Feb 2022.