28th November 2024

Has God given you an understanding of what he wants for your life? If not, it would be good to pray for insight into his desire for you. If God has given you a vision for your life it would also be good to pray to him to seek how his will can be perfected in you. Whatever our circumstances, prayer should be a key component in our Christian walk. Prayer is not an optional extra for a Christian, it must be central to how we live.

How then, do we create an atmosphere of prayer in our lives so that in every situation we pray to God? Here are some initial thoughts to start us off:

Make prayer the first response not the last resort: Some people use prayer like an airbag in a car: it only gets activated when there’s a car crash situation, the rest of the time we can drive along quite happily without it. But God wants just the opposite. Before any big decision such as taking a new job, getting married or moving house, pray. Before any routine activity, such as having a meal, pray. When anything happens in our lives, whether it is significant or inconsequential, pray. Make it our choice to pray first.    

Make prayer a habit: Prayer won’t become our first response unless we are committed to regular and consistent prayer. It takes discipline and hard work to make prayer a routine and not just something we do if we feel like it. A muscle strengthens through regular exercise, our ability to play a musical instrument improves through regular practice, and our prayer life will deepen and become richer through regular engagement with God.

Make bold prayers: We don’t pray presumptuously, demanding God answers in the way we want, as if he is a pawn we move around on a chessboard. But we do pray with confident trust in a prayer-answering God. When we pray, we should expect answers, so come boldly and optimistically, with anticipation, and believing that God is able to do more than we can imagine. As James says, ‘If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.’ (James 1:5-8 MSG). 

An atmosphere of prayer is one where prayer is our first response, it is our habit, and where we expect God to do amazing things. Let’s be a people of prayer and watch what God will do.

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church