Spiritual Endeavors Part 2b - Foundations of prayer

We've covered the keys to prayer, so now we're going to cover the foundations of prayer, and yea even later the attitudes of prayer. (You know like thankfulness, etc.) Foundations are that upon which all the other things are built. I used to be in construction, building and remodeling homes, and even spent some time, concrete forming. They all start the same, first you dig down to rock, preferably bedrock, then, you form up "footers". Footers are either pillars of concrete, or the base layer of cinder blocks filled with concrete. Either way, its the main part of the foundation upon which you build the whole house. These truths from God's Word are the principles upon which all of praying hangs. Now, the keys we covered first because the person who cares about getting it right will cover these practically without even thinking!  When your heart wants to be with God, you'll get these right.



First is foremost, is your relationship with God = Righteousness.
There is no other single foundation that will enable or disable a prayer like this one. You can have just a grain of sand worth of faith, and just pray a prayer once, and it could be heard if you have this first foundation. You see prayer doesn't work like a magic potion. There's no genie in the bottle, and to be honest the act of prayer is just an act if taken all by itself. No, prayer must come as a part of a relationship with God, and that relationship has to be right. There are many times I accuse my wife of not paying attention to me, and that's probably because I haven't paid attention to her. However, the closer we are as a couple the more she will hear what I'm saying. Just as a Church will hear a Pastor with which they have a good relationship with. It's not just what's said, it's whose saying it, right? I mean, be honest, there are things your wife, husband, father, or mother can say that you'd slap other people for saying. Am I right? Of course I am. Why is that? The relationship, pure and simple. The least little thing that someone you don't trust, don't like, or are angry with is instantly interpreted to mean something bad or wrong. Well, where do you think we got that from? Listen to God's Word from James 5:16,

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Again in Psalm 66:18,

If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

In John 15:7,

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

Are you getting the picture? God is telling us here that our prayer depends on our Walk with God!!

But wait, there's more! Not only our relationship with God, but our relationship with others can keep us from being heard.
Note, 1 Peter 3:7,

Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

Husbands, gotta do right by your wife if you want your prayers heard. However, it goes on. If we don't forgive our brother, guess what God says He'll do? Matthew 18:34 – 35,

And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. 35So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

WOW. However, the flip side of that is found in the verses above that, where Jesus says in verse 19,

Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

Are you with me? Relationships are important to God, so much so that the essence of the definition of what it means to be “righteous” in the Bible is to be faithful to relationships.

Second, is as important and that is Faith.
Jesus said in Matthew 21:22,

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

We all know the verses, maybe you can't quote chapter and verse, but you know them. The story of the Fig tree, where Jesus tells Peter and the others if they have faith like a mustard seed they'll be able to do likewise. On and on it goes. The Bible is full of passages with promises of answered prayer if we believe. There is one that has always stood out, especially as we talk about wisdom, and that is from James 1:5 – 8,

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

It's like the anti-promise. We have God's Word telling us that we need to believe, but that if we pray and don't ask in faith we will not get what we ask for. However, we can learn from many passages that God is gracious. James is almost the exception instead of the rule, but it's not, it is the rule. There are examples of prayers that were offered with little faith that were answered, but they are offered as the exception. If we come to God acknowledging our lack of complete faith, He will not quench a smoking flax, or break a bruised reed. What this means is that He will help us along to grow our faith. However, don't take this for granted. Don't assume that God will not one day hold you accountable for your back sliding and make you wait and work for the answer to your prayer. The problem is we doubt not that God is able, but that God is willing. We have probably sinned in some way, and worry that now God will not hear us at all. However, we need to understand something about sin. 1 John 1:7 – 9,

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

What does that mean? If we repented of that sin, and have renewed our walk with God, we have two promises in 3 verses that it's all taken care of. So, quite wallowing in it, and get on with life. God is always willing to answer prayer, and our doubting that, is no different that doubting God's ability.

Third, is what puts you where you need to be not only to be heard, but to hear or see, the answer, and that is Alignment.

I used that word 'cause it's simple, and works better than, "Being in, and praying according to, God's Will".  See what I mean?

Have you ever driven a car that is very out of alignment? You want to go straight, it wants to go left. The car doesn't want to follow your will, and you get increasingly irritated, right? However, how enjoyable is it to drive that same car after a trip to the shop to get it fixed? If the shop did their job right the car wants to go right where you want it to go and life is good. Well, this last foundation is about praying in alignment. 1 John 5:13 – 15 says,

These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 14And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: 15And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

Note that? We know, John says. This foundation of prayer is key even though its only expressed this way here. But, lets look at a few more verses similar shall we? Romans 8:26 – 27,

Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

What this means is that sometimes we don't know what we should pray for, like we should, so The Holy Spirit handles things Himself, and fills in the gaps. A Key verse in the Prayer Jesus gave us as an example says this in Matthew 6:10,

Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

When our desires are aligned with God's Desires this comes naturally. James tells us in James 4:1 – 3,

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? 2Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

You see they were not in Alignment, they were the car constantly wanting to go in the wrong direction. Where are you in your prayer? Are you selfishly praying that God would do this or that, or remove this problem, pain, or persecution? Did you ever notice that not one prayer of the early Church was that God remove the persecution? What was their prayer? That God's Will be done, and that they be empowered to glorify His name. Do you pray like that? Why not start praying like that?

Why are these "Foundational"?  Easy, Prayer isn't some magic formula, it's communication with a person, so, it naturally follows that you need to be close, know what I mean?  It also helps to believe that person can actually do what you ask, and be asking for the right reasons.  From there the sky's the limit, literally.  Just for Grins research a guy named George Mueller, started and ran an orphanage for thousands of children, never asking for a single dime in Bristol, England.  This man walked with God, the way God wanted, and knew God would answer.  Just look up many of the things that have been verified to have happened, just because a man dared believe God.

Well, 'nuff for now.

See Ya'