WHAT IS PRAYER?
Prayer is a subject that brings an interesting response in me. First is guilt. If I am to pray without ceasing, then I know that I fall far short of doing that. I suspect that most people assume that other people pray far more than they do.

What if we turn it around, and explore the wonders of this privilege of having the Ear of the Almighty One? What if we realize that each time we talk with God, we have His undivided attention? What if we become friends with our Father?

Prayer is a mystery, to be sure. In recent years, I have come to a new understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit in prayer, and how God’s sovereignty comes into play. I think that God gives us His own leading as to what to pray, and then glorifies himself when he answers those prayers. It is a beautiful mystery of cooperation between the all-sufficient God and His precious creation.

The story of Cornelius illustrates the idea. Cornelius is a God-fearing man who prays often, and God sends an angel in a vision to let him know that his prayers have been heard. He gives Cornelius the name and address of a stranger named Simon Peter. In the meantime, God is giving Peter a perfectly-timed vision of his own. Through this amazing series of leadings, God carries out a major plan in bringing salvation to Cornelius and the Kingdom to the Gentiles.

There are times when someone’s prayer seems to actually change the mind of God. Moses pleads with God to spare the rebellious nation of Israel, and God relents from His apparent plan to destroy them. Yet, we know that even in this instance, it was God’s ultimate will to spare Israel. So even in His anger, God guides Moses to intercede on behalf of His people so that they will be preserved.

In this sense, prayer is the process of walking in the Spirit, or of being in the center of God’s will. We sense what God is up to and we agree with Him. Then He answers our prayer in accordance with His will. And the wonderful, mysterious relationship of God and mankind is put in motion again. Amen!