Whenever I think of the concept of ‘Prayer’, I’m reminded of a song from my childhood “Prayer is the key, Prayer is the key, prayer is the master key, Jesus started with prayer and ended with prayer, prayer is the master key”. To some people, prayer is only needed for emergencies, sickness, difficult situations or when they want something from God. The truth however is that prayer is so much more than a quick fix kit. It is a form of communication between us and God.
Good communication is an important part of healthy relationships and an essential part of any fruitful partnership. As Christians, we must understand that the nature and depth of God’s love for us is such that he desires frequent communion with us. Prayer is the channel by which this is accomplished. It is a gift from God that rises above life’s circumstances. Whatever the circumstances, the scriptures encourage us to engage the power of prayer. (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
In recent times, I have learnt how important it is to trust God and his answers to my prayers, knowing that His answers will always yield the best results for my life, if not today, in the long term.
As believers, we ought to make praying a habit; something that flows naturally. We must transcend beyond praying out of religion to a level of genuine friendship with God as a dear friend and believing that his ears are open wide and waiting to hear from us. Just as communication improves in every growing relationship, the depths of our communications with God must deepen the longer we relate with him. One of the evidences of such depth is speaking in tongues.
1 Corinthians 14:15 (NKJV) says “what is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding”. The difference between praying from your spirit and praying from your mind is that your natural mind has incomplete information; it lacks full knowledge of God’s word, his will, the situation and the people involved. Speaking in tongues is speaking out of an abundance of divine knowledge. When you speak in tongues, the spirit of God helps you to pray as you ought to – this means that even situations that you are not aware of, you still pray about it. With your understanding, you can only pray about the things your mind knows.
Prayer is not some marginal or incidental thing in the Christian life; it characterizes a life lived in vital relationship to God.
Written by Adedeji Bolanle Margaret