Learning how To Pray: Effective Praying “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” James 5:16 Yesterday we talked about how impossible it is for believers to be fighting with each other and praying effectively at the same time. Let me make another observation on that today; then we’ll see a great contrast in Elijah. You may be fussing with God right now about something you think you need. Since I’m not god, and since He doesn’t share inside information with me, I can’t tell you whether your request is legitimate for you or not. I can say this however. If God has decided not to grant your request, it won’t matter how much you fuss or how hard you fight. Unless you can punch God out, you lose. But if you are the right kind of person and your praye lines up with God’s will, look out! You’ve got some power on your hands. That’s what happened with Elijah, a guy just like you and me. You say, “What do you mean, the right kind of person? I’m a Christian. Isn’t that enough?” Well, yes and no. All believers are clothed in the righteousness of Christ, so all believers stand righteous before God. But you know as well as I do that Christians can live like non-Christians and sometimes worse. So there’s a righteousness we need to be practicing daily as we allow the Holy Spirit to cleanse and fill us. Just like you don’t want to drink out of a dirty cup, God doesn’t want to hear the prayers of a Christian whose life is all fouled up with junk. James says Elijah did some very serious praying. You can’t pray very long in an unrighteous condition without God taking you to the real issue, your heart. If you aren’t living a clean life when you start praying, you soon will be as the Spirit points out your sin….or else you will stop praying. Now don’t miss the point. Elijah was just like us. In fact, I know he was like other men, because he was scared of an angry woman, Jezebel. Elijah wasn’t perfect, but the whole orientation of his life was to please God…and his prayers moved heaven. Is that a goal you can achieve? Believe it! God didn’t answer Elijah because he was a super saint, but because his prayer was made from a pure heart, and it lined up with God’s purposes. Posted by David Coleman of The DC Ministry “Sharing The Gospel.”
Posted on: Mon, 16 Sep 2013 11:23:14 +0000
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