I have been thinking about the place of prayer in the life of a follower of Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul declared, “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints” (Eph. 6:18). In Romans 8:26 Paul indicated that there are times when “we do not know how to pray as we should,” and that in those time “The Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” In Romans 8:34 Paul declares that “Christ Jesus…who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God….also intercedes for us.” And, bless his heart, Augustine says, "Man is a beggar before God.”

It was John Bunyon who said, “You can do more than pray, after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed.” In other words, for those of us who believe in Jesus, prayer is the heart of who we are as a people. Getting before the Father and calling upon His name in prayer is a fundamental issue with those who have trusted in Christ for salvation.

To pray is to come alongside Jesus, responding to the fact that God’s will is “Good, acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12;2). In Christ we are able to pray, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:1). We are free to pray like this because we know that always and forever God’s will is good, acceptable and perfect. It can’t be improved on.

I’ve been prayed for a lot recently, and, quite frankly, I have found great peace and comfort in knowing that God’s people are praying for me. Ironically, what I haven’t needed to know is the specifics as to what God’s answers to those prayers might be. I have the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, I am a part of the eternal Church of God, and I know that God’s will is good, acceptable and perfect. Here I stand. I choose to stand at no other place. God has spoken into our world and HE is enough.

May we draw near to God and pour out our hearts before Him in intercessory prayer.