Prayer Is How We Receive Blessings

Prayer is the key that opoens our lives to God’s blessings in every area, whether we’re facing disaster, financial strain, health issues, relationship struggles or any other challenge. We can choose to live independently of Him or we can invite Him in through prayer.

The Lord, in His mercy, can and does intervene even when we neglect to pray. Yet when we pray, it’s similar to going to a good earthly father, He will never ignore us.

“And those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, Lord, have not abandoned those who seek You.”(Psalm 9:10 NASB)

If we ask, seek and knock on the “door” of God’s ear, we will receive. We may initially receive greater wisdom which strengthens our conviction in God’s Word, which is an excellent start. From that growing conviction we are led to follow the Lord’s teachings more faithfully even in areas where we once struggled or had not yet surrendered.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”( Matt 7:7-8NIV)

Keys To The Promised Blessings

Hidden in many of the bible promises are keys, or contitions. We learn through these conditions, that not every believer is positioned to have their prayers answered. Not because God is angry, but because we have not trusted His Word enough to align our life with His guidance.

At times, we rationalize His instructions away, convincing ourselves they are outdated or impractical. Yet God does not require us to fully understand His Word before we obey it; He calls us to trust Him, walk in obedience and leave the outcome in His hands.

If we struggle to believe the Word enough to shape our daily lives around it, how can we expect to believe it deeply enough to see our most desperate situations transformed through prayer?

Prayer Needs Faith- But What Exactly Is Faith?

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for and the assurance of what we cannot see.” (Heb 11:1 KJV)

Our faith must not be for the future. I cannot overemphasize this! Our faith must be now. This verse says: “now” faith meaning current faith. It is not a hope that someday our prayer will be answered, it’s now, we believe now that our prayer is assured.

The word “substance” means hypostasis in Greek which translates to title deed or ownership. In other words “now faith” receives what it already owns. Below is a beautiful example of “now” faith:

George Mueller was a Christian evangelist and the director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol England in the 1800’s. He provided food, care, christian teaching and education to over 10,000 orphans. He never asked anyone for money, he simply petitioned the Lord to give them what they needed to run the orphanage.

One morning at the orphanage, the children were dressed and ready for school, but there was no food for them to eat. The housemother informed Muller of the situation. George asked her to take the 300 children to the dining room and have them sit at tables. He thanked God for the food they were about to eat and then he waited.

Within minutes a baker knocked at the door. “Mr. Muller”, he said, “last night I could not sleep. Somehow I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in.” Soon, there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the cart was fixed and wondered if the orphanage could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in ten large cans of milk. It was just enough for the 300 children.”

That was “now” faith. And the only way we can have faith like George Muller is by spending extended time in Scripture. When we absorb the Word of God, it shapes and transforms our thinking. As the rock solid Word of God sinks in, it will realign our perspective. We begin to dismiss what the world tells us and not be ruled by what we hear, feel and see. Ultimately, if we stay with Bible study long enough, God’s truth will become the final authority in our lives.

Obedience To The Word Displays Our Faith In the Word

Our obedience to the Word of God is the expression of our faith. In other words, obedience makes our faith visible and gives it substance. For instance, if you believe you will be going to an event, you will prepare for it. You get dressed, get in your car and drive there. Your belief moves you to action.

It is the same with God’s Word. When we genuinely believe what God has said, our response is action. Faith is not merely agreement in the mind, it’s trust demonstrated through obedience.

Disobedience or non action, however, communicates that we really don’t believe what God has said. When we disregard His Word, it weakens the foundation of our Scripture based prayers. We cannot claim to believe God for healing for example, while ignoring what He has spoken about keeping His Commandments. Genuine faith aligns both our belief and our actions with His Word.

Jesus Fulfilled The Payment For Everything We Need

Jesus died so that believers could receive all that God had planned for humanity. Through His sacrifice, He restored access to the fullness of God’s original blessings and purpose.

In The Old Testament, the pressing need for God’s people was land to build on and cultivate food. Today our dependence remains the same. It is God who offers us financial stability, wisdom, guidance, peace, health and protection from evil. We may not acknowledge that is the hand of God who is our provider, but He is and we are nothing without Him.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Ephesus:

“I pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for those who believe in Him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead.” (Eph 1:19-20)

The power available to believers today is not limited or diminished. It is the very power that raised Christ from the dead. It’s active now, life giving and sufficient for every need- including healing miracles.

This raises a question: How do we gain access to this power reserved for believers? Psalm 91 clearly tells us:

If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

“Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

We learn from this Psalm that we cannot be shy about our faith and still have prayers answered. It must be evident that we depend on God, and that without Him we are nothing. We can’t “try” prayer and then when God doesn’t answer on our timetable, develop a plan B. We need no plan B- just complete trust in God’s timing to fulfill our request.

As we wait on God’s promised blessing to come to fruition, we can dwell with God, keeping Him at the forefront of our minds. Throughout the day we can sontinually seek His guidance asking: “What next?” “What should I say to this person?” “What should I do in this situation?” In this way, waiting becomes active, our life with the Lord is evident through our constant awareness of His presence and our communication. It’s an attentive walk with Him, rather than praying and passively waiting.

Living “In Christ” Produces Answered Prayer

When we surrender our lives to Christ and choose to follow His teachings, we become positioned “in Christ.” and our prayer life becomes powerful. It can be helpful to imagine this as stepping into God’s House and taking our position as His children.

As we grow in our knowledge of God and His blessings- many of which are conditional- we are continually nudged by the Holy Spirit to surrender different aspects of our life to Him. It is at this point we become positioned to inherit His promised blessings.

1 Blessed are all who fear the Lord,
who walk in obedience to him.
2 You will eat the fruit of your labor;
blessings and prosperity will be yours. (Ps 128:1-2)

4 “Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”(Ps 37:4)

Daring To Use Our Supernatural Weapon: Prayer With Authority

Prayer, grounded in the authority of God’s Word and prayed from a lifestyle of submission is powerful. It’s a supernatural weapon in the spiritual realm against all problems.

” For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”(Eph 6:12)

As we read Scripture, the Word of God moves from mere head knowledge, into our hearts. This is where it takes root and begins to grow. As we continue walking closely with the Lord, the Holy Spirit deepens our conviction, assuring us that His Word is unshakable truth. When we speak God’s Word in faith, aligned with His will and living in right standing with God, spoken Scripture sets angels in motion to carry out God’s Word.

“We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will.”(John 9:31)

Therefore we shouldn’t limit our prayers, we should ask with boldness and confidence as children of God. This is the promised blessing for exchanging our life of sin for a life following the teachings of Christ.

We must dare to use our authority as children of God and be bold enough to ask for the best that life has to offer. Christ died so that we could enjoy the abundant life. Abundance is less about material things once our basic needs are met. Abundance is actually about enjoyment of all aspects of life including spreading the Good News.

Prayers For A Powerful Overcoming Life:

1. Pray: “Father you said“Look at the birds of the air they neither sow nor store into barns and your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you of more value than they?” Therefore I am content with what I have. I am counting on your provision for the future.

2. Pray, Father you said in your Word “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want…His rod comforts me.” (Ps 23) Therfore, I am counting on your guidance and protection in life.

3. Pray, Father you said “I came so that they may have life and have it in abundance.” (John 10:10) Therefore, I know as I stay on your path, within your guardrails, I can safely enjoy all that is good and pleasing. I know this because it is your perfect will.

4. Pray, Lord you said: “Blessed are those who do not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scornful.”(Ps 1:1) Therefore, as I keep my life free from gossip, ungodliness and all things you abhor, I will be blessed.

5. Pray, Lord you said: “Teach a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Prov 22:6) Therefore, I will not worry about the future of my children. I have taught them your truths and lived them out, exhibiting repentance when needed. This guidance will never depart from them.

6. Pray, Lord you said: “Keep this book of the Law always on your lips, meditate on it day and night being careful to do all that it says, for it is life to all who find it and healing to their whole body.” (Joshua 1:8-9)Therefore, when a symptom or illness comes upon my body I know it is from Satan. I can remove it with authority by rebuking it daily in Jesus’ name. If I do not give up, it will flee. “Submit yourselves then to God, rebuke the devil and he must flee!”(James 4:7)

7. Pray, Father you said “God has not given me a spirit of fear and timidity, but power love and a sound mind.” ( 2 Tim 1:7). Therefore when Satan comes againstcmy family with fear, I know I can stand strong by rebuking him.

The Prayers We Can Offer Are Endless

The prayers we can confidently offer are endless when we are aligned with God’s will. In submission, we are spiritually aligned, seated with Christ in the heavenly realms, so that our prayers rise to God as if spoken through HIm. As children of God, we can ask in faith believing we will eventually gain our promised blessings if we do not give up.

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thes 5:16-18 ESV)

“Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.”
(Ephesians 3:20)

Christ died so we could experience the abundant life. This abundance is not merely material. Once our basic needs are met, true abundance is found in a close abiding relationship with Jesus. Therefore prayer becomes more about knowing we are not alone. We have a powerful source on our side to assist us in all we encounter each day. We can relax and enjoy the fact that we aren’t in control. The only thing any human being can control to improve their life, is to know, understand, and live out what Jesus taught.

Food For Thought,

Lisa