In response to a question from this week.

From a mother, a daughter, a friend and someone who prays fairly often for those who are suffering from sickness and disease, I can so understand the heart cry to understand and long to know how to pray effectively.  That groaning and heart pain we feel when we see our loved ones suffering is a reflection of the heartcry, compassion  and tender/fierce/protective love of our Heavenly Father.  Even more than we want these things, our Abba Father longs for them even more.  He sent Jesus to live and then to die in the most horrendous way because His love for us and desire to see us restored, and fully healed was so great, that He willingly paid this price to redeem us.

There are kind of 2 parts to this.   How do I get an answer to a specific and pressing need that is on my heart today?   For example when a loved one is terminally sick or so miserable mentally that time is of the essence.  And 2nd, how do I see all my prayers answered.    There are many keys to this answer but no formulas, no quick and easy skip the queue methods.

I should mention that I have a whole topic dedicated to this subject.    So there are many verses to explore that explain the bigger picture of prayer.  It will be easy to fill 6 to 10 weeks on this topic alone.   So there is so so much more then this.

Short answer to the first is tied to the second.   Prioritize the Kingdom and hearing from the Lord.  These are the keys that will unlock everything you need.   Commit yourself to a season of being immersed intensively and transformed by the Word and let God do what He longs to do in your life.   I have heard so so many praise reports linked to someone carving out a chunk of time from their normal life to pray, fast, meditate, read the Word etc    The disciples became what they did because for 3 years, they left everything of their lives behind to focus  on and follow Jesus as their Rabbi.   We will see a tremendous increase in the effectiveness of our prayers when we commit to this and do this.  God has promised to answer the prayers of a person who is walking in this way.    There is no formula answer.    There is simply a call to consider the cost and invitation to all who are willing to do so to follow Him and do as He did.

The answer to the 2nd is that this is truly part of the highest calling on a Christ-follower.    What we desire is of course instant results and shifts.    The more we are transformed into Christ’s image and the more faithfully we live and do as He did, the more effective/fruitful  our prayer life becomes in general.   This means every bit of time you invest into the keys that follow have value are investments and will bring increase to fruit of your prayers.  We are ultimately each in charge of choosing how quickly we grow and mature in Christ as this is very much tied to how much time we set aside daily to prioritize kingdom understanding and growth in us.   The more your immerse yourself, the faster the fruit will come.    Remember the words from this week from Timothy.   “Throw yourself completely into the task so others will see your progress”.    Scripture tells us there is one thing worth striving for, and that is entering into His rest.   The work scripture assigns to us is to believe in the One sent.   These are the core things of what we are called/commanded to do anyways.

Without Christ, it is of course impossible.  But all things are possible with Him.   So my own hearts cry is “Heavenly Father, even my part feels too hard and too impossible in these things.  Please change my heart and my desire to want these things above all else so that I will truly let you transform me and equip me for the destiny and work you have created me for.  In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

All of creation is groaning for the sons of God to be made manifest.    This is because the children of God were intended from the begining to take dominion and care for the earth in agreement with God’s will and ways.   As long as born again believers have not taken up these birth “rigths” and “responsibities” all of creation will continue to groan under the weight of sin and death.  Of course these things will not fully disappear until our Lord’s return but all of creation is blessed when even one comes into their sonship.

Romans 8:18-22 English Standard Version (ESV) “18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.”

 

A summary list in response to the question from Tuesday.

1.  Seek God and His Kingdom and His righteousness as your top and first priority all the time.   Knowing out identity  and authority is a byproduct of doing this.

Matthew 6:31-33 King James Version (KJV) “31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Key Point:   Health and healing are fruit are a product of the Kingdom of God.  Yes, as Kingdom children we can call them into the fallen world.  But we can do this most effectively when we have taken up our residence in the Kingdom.

I have a relative who is a Canadian citizen but works in the states.   Her main home is here, her heart is here, her health care is here, but she spends a lot of time there.    Knowing who we are and the kingdom that we are citizens of and the benefits that come with it are absolutely KEY.   These things teach us who we are, what our “benefits” are and how to act as ambassadors of the kingdom and ministers of reconciliation.   This involves us actively taking dominion and being part of God’s enforcement team.  This requires us learning how to effectively use the  authority He has delegated to us.  We can never rest or be set free from the anxiousness and striving that will constantly try to rule the roost without getting a revelation of just HOW GOOD and HOW faithful our Heavenly Father is all time.   If we seek His face and knowing Him as a top priority, everything else begins to flow readily.

2.  Abiding in the Lord is a big factor.

   Jesus only did what He saw the Father doing and was in constant communion with Him     I personally believe that very often our effectiveness in prayer will reflect our intimacy and the measure of time we spent abiding with the Lord.     I encourage you to do a word study of abiding, remaining in, etc and you will find so so many verses that talk about how many promises, including prayers being answered are tied into abiding.

John 15:7 KJV ““If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”

3. Reading the Word and Meditating on it Day and Night

John 8:32 KJV“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

This is one of those present progressive tense ones.  And you shall  increasingly know the truth (ongoing) and the truth shall (ongoing) make you more and more free.   Praying scripture is highly effective especially when it is backed by Word rooted faith and in the absence of unbelief.   We talked about the verse that said the Word has been purified and about the high praises of God being like a sword.    We saw that Jesus used the Word to resist the devil.   We also saw that there are times we need to bind the strong man in order to plunder his goods (those he is holding captive via sin).  We talked about how Jesus was able to use scripture with surgical precision.   

Psalm 149:6-7 King James Version (KJV) “6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand; 7 To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people;”

Psalm 12:6 King James Version (KJV) “6 The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.”

4. Persistent and Unrelenting prayer

Luke 18:1-8 King James Version (KJV) “18 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;  2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:  3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.  4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;  5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.   6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.  7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?  8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”

Matthew 7:7 ” New Living Translation “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you”

If you remember, James 5 talked about Elijah being an example of the righteous man praying fervently and effectively. (See 1st Kings 17-18).   He modelled these three elements powerfully.  Faith flows out of the first 3 things mentioned.   Faith is the inevitable product if we have these 3 things in our lives.

5. Casting off Unbelief, Sin and Wordliness = We must truly submit / make ourselves subject to the Lord God.

The disciples themselves did not always see their prayers answered.   These are three thing mentioned in scripture that were part of the lives of those ministering that blocked healing, somehow rendered their prayers ineffectual. (See Matthew 17:21 in context, and Galatians 5:24).   Note that the disciples themselves were rebuked (not comforted) for failing to live in a way to cast these things off.    

Luke 9:40-42 New Living Translation (NLT) “40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.” 41 Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son here.” 42 As the boy came forward, the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil[a] spirit and healed the boy. Then he gave him back to his father.”

Romans 6:15-17 New Living Translation (NLT) “15 Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! 16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. 17 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you.”

Romans 8:4-10 The Passion Translation (TPT)”4 So now every righteous requirement of the law can be fulfilled through the Anointed One living his life in us. And we are free to live, not according to our flesh, but by the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit!5 Those who are motivated by the flesh only pursue what benefits themselves. But those who live by the impulses of the Holy Spirit are motivated to pursue spiritual realities. 6 For the mind-set of the flesh is death, but the mind-set controlled by the Spirit finds life and peace.  7 In fact, the mind-set focused on the flesh fights God’s plan and refuses to submit to his direction, because it cannot! 8 For no matter how hard they try, God finds no pleasure with those who are controlled by the flesh. 9 But when the Spirit of Christ empowers your life, you are not dominated by the flesh but by the Spirit. And if you are not joined to the Spirit of the Anointed One, you are not of him.10 Now Christ lives his life in you! And even though your body may be dead because of the effects of sin, his life-giving Spirit imparts life to you because you are fully accepted by God.”

Galatians 6:1-3 English Standard Version (ESV) “6 Brothers,[a] if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.”

The flesh cannot produce or even understand the works of God.  Recalling that “Human effort accomplishes nothing” and that “only the spirit can understand the Spirit” that we simply need to die to self, to the flesh, to the lusts of this world and a wordly perspective to see and act according to the Kingdom realities.  The disciples could not heal the boy with seizures due to their unbelief and wordliness.   In one translation Jesus rebuked them saying “your lives are all wrong”.    To see all of our prayers answered we have to meet all of the conditions listed…  which we are working through some of throughout our times together.    The summary of these things though is to live holy, righteously and blamelessly before the Father, in a lifestyle of obedience and total submission to His Word and His Will, to have invested the time in developping an ear to hear the Father’s diretions plainly and consistently, to have utterly (past tense) crucified the flesh and its appetites,  being willing to lay down any part of our life for His,  and living as a bond servant (motivated by thanksgiving and unfeigned love) to the Most High.  Few, if any,  are willing to pay this cost.   In other words, it costs absolutely everything to become who He has created us to be.   BUT He is worthy, He is the pearl worth selling all for.