Desire and Prayer

Monday 25 September
READ: Mk. 11:20:26 
MORE LESSON:  Prov. 10:24; Lk. 22:15

Another vital thing Jesus taught us about prayer is to have a desire; Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray...: v24. Desire is an essential ingredient  for answer to prayer; but beyond that, desire is also the need to pray. Desire, not just prayer, is essential for any achiever in any area of life. David said; One thing have I desired of the  LORD, that will I seek after; that I  may dwell in the house of the LORD  all the days of my life...: Psa. 27:4. He also said, As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God: Psa. 42:1.

Strong desire was one of the secrets of David's encounters with God. Without desire, hardly can a man encounter God. So to become prayerful like Jesus, the first step is to desire the Spirit and the life of prayer. Desire is a strong craving or longing for something. It is an unquenchable thirst and hunger, and God normally satisfies such a longing soul. Today, God  is raising great endtime prayer warriors like Jesus. You must desire to be enlisted, then you can move from desire to asking and from asking to believing; ...What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them:
Mk. 11:24.

Do you therefore desire anointing for prayer like Jesus? Ask for it in prayer. Go beyond the desire; ask, believe and God will enlist you. When the disciples were challenged by Jesus' prayer life, they asked Him to teach them to pray and He obliged. At the initial stage they were weak in prayer but eventually after Jesus’ ascension to Heaven, they did not only pray; they prayed continuously; But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word: Acts 6:4. And they prayed until the earth shock;  And when they had prayed, the  place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness: Acts 4:31.

God has already made a promise to whosoever is thirsty;
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye  to the waters, and he that hath no  money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea,  come, buy wine and milk without money and without price: Isa. 55:1. God is faithful to all who thirst!

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to create a desire in your heart for the establishment of His purpose here on earth.
* Ask God to take away the craving for the things of the flesh that weaken your desires for prayer.
*Pray that  your expectation shall not be dashed.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Like Haman, he who plots my death shall take my place in the grave this month, in the name of Jesus.

Overcoming the Flesh in Prayer II

Sunday 24 September
READ: Matt. 14:13-2  3  
MORE LESSON:  Col. 3:1-6

The need for us to battle the enemy of prayer is crucial. All men who conquered in the place of prayer had to deal with the enemy within first. Even Jesus, like we noted yesterday, had to. The flesh loves comfort, pleasure and cannot tolerate stress, pain or discomfort for any reason. However, so much of self-denial and deliberate consecration is needed to make effective prayers like Jesus.

When Jesus heard about John the Baptist's death, ... he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities: v.13. The people followed Jesus to the desert, but after providing dinner for them, He sent the people (including His disciples) away. Instead of going to rest, He went up to a mountain to pray till night. Though the flesh must have desired otherwise, the need to pray prevailed over the flesh. When it comes to prayer we must ensure that our flesh is disciplined enough to respond to the higher call.

The news of the death of John the Baptist, His cousin and a covenant brother, in a most brutal way (he was beheaded) was enough to create an atmosphere of sorrow around Jesus and
therefore hinder His prayer. So He quickly left the location of the news. Any man who desires to pray must ensure that the atmosphere around him is conducive for the work. Just like Jesus, if the atmosphere around you is not good for prayer, change it, anyhow. A negative atmosphere is all that your flesh needs to stop you from praying, therefore work at it so that you don't allow the flesh to hinder you.

The devil knows that the believer is doomed without prayer that is why he will go to any extent to stop him from praying. This knowledge should also be the reason why believers must not give in to the flesh. Having known the strategies of the devil everything must be done to checkmate him. If we work to stop the devil, just as he is working to stop us, the possibility of our victory over him is greater. After all, he is a defeated enemy, and we have the same weapons that defeated him in our hands. The Word of God, the Blood of Jesus and the Name of Jesus are individually potent enough to win the battle of the flesh. Let us therefore go for the victory now!

Prayer/Action
*  Receive grace and strength to prevail over the dictates of the flesh against your prayer life.
* Pray that no activity, pain or praise of men will rob you of your altar of prayer.
* Pray against every activity of the devil fighting against your prayer life.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Every vital place where I have got “no” for answer, this new week I reverse them to yes by the power of the unchangeable changer, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Overcoming the Flesh in Prayer I

Saturday 23 September
READ: Matt. 26:37-46     
MORE LESSON:  Gal. 6:8-9

The flesh is scripturally defined as the human nature and desire; it is a great enemy of God. From experience, Paul declared, So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God: Rom. 8:8. The flesh is one great enemy of prayer and any man who has not conquered his flesh cannot enjoy a consistent prayer life.

The force of the flesh is manifested when the mind wanders in prayers, and it is difficult to concentrate, or when sleep takes over or you just can't pray for a long time. In such situations, serious self discipline is required and sometimes deliverance may be sought. Discipline may include taking uncomfortable position like Jesus had to until His sweat became like blood. Elijah put his head between his legs (I Kgs. 18:42).At another time Jesus moved into the wilderness, without food and water for forty days and nights. He often got up a great while before day, (Mk. 1:35), and trekked sometimes far to a mountain to pray.

In today's reading we see Jesus battling with the flesh. Spiritually He came for this purpose but physically it was too much to accomplish. Although He knew that the solution was to pray, He was too downcast to pray. He therefore had to fight the flesh by persistence;  And he went a little further, and fell  on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt: Matt.  26:39.

The lesson here is that our flesh will resist our desire to pray, but we must not give in to the push of the flesh. The more you feel like not praying, the more you should pray. This surely takes discipline but it is not impossible. Sometimes it is wisdom to join forces with someone in the place of prayer, a prayer partner or a mentor. You can occasionally join your church prayer warriors to strengthen your place of prayer. The book of Proverbs says, Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend: Prov. 27:17.

I have also learnt the act of prayer- walk as an effective means of overcoming weakness in the place of prayer. This helps especially to deal with sleep and tiredness when I have to pray. It could be a long or short distance, or even just pace around the hall of prayer. No price is too big to pay for an effective prayer life.

Prayer/Action
*  Ask the Lord to crucify the flesh in you, that you may radiate the life of Jesus as you stand in the sweet hour of prayer.
*  Ask for the strength of the Holy Spirit to overcome all weakness in the place of prayer.
* Ask for the spirit of grace and of supplication to come upon you.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
I suck the milk of Gentiles and kings shall serve me in destiny, in the name of Jesus.

Men who Prayed like Jesus

Friday 22 September
READ: Jms. 5:13-20   
MORE LESSON:  1 Kings 18:41-46

The emphasis in the next few weeks is on the lessons from the prayer life of Jesus. This will enable us to have a fruitful prayer life. While we remain committed to this theme, we note that the New Testament, where the prayers of Jesus are found, also records how Elijah prayed like Jesus even though he lived before Christ came. James the Apostle refers to Elijah's prayer life as an example of what we ought to do.

Elias was a man subject to like  passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and  it rained not on the earth by the  space of three years and six months:  v.17. The first thing that should catch our attention is that Elijah was as human as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it didn't rain for 3½  years (v.17). Often, we are deceived by the supernatural results of some great men both in Bible and in contemporary times, to think their exploits came because they were “supermen”. But Apostle James says Elijah was a fellow human being.

This is also true of the Lord
Jesus who was equally subject to the temptation and pain that we all go through, yet He paid the price of effective prayer life. We also ought to pray like they did. Jesus our Lord even says;
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that  believeth on me, the works that I do  shall he do also; and greater works  than these shall he do...: Jn. 14:12.

We can therefore conclude that if Jesus was a superman, His desire is that everyone also should be a superman like Him in the place of prayer, supernatural works, righteousness and all good works. God has not limited the number of supermen that can live; it is just a matter of how many can pay the price. We can pray like Jesus prayed if we choose to pay the price.

It is not enough to ask – “Where is the God of Elijah today?”. God is constant and available, what we must ask ourselves is, “Where are the men who can pay the price like Elijah and Jesus?”. When we add the price issue, we will find the result as in the days of old!

Prayer/Action
* Ask God for the strength and grace to pray effectively with great results.
* Pray that your weakness be replaced with strength in the place of prayer and for grace to be a superman on your knee.
*  Ask for the auction of the Holy Spirit whenever you approach the throne of God in prayer.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
I will not drain, I will not run dry, I shall increase and multiply in grace and anointing till the end, in the mighty name of Jesus.