Prayer Potpourri
Written by Mrs. Sandy B.

 

 

Do you like the smell of scented candles, or jars of dried flower petals and spices mixed into a potpourri?  I do, and no doubt, you do too.  If you’ve ever walked into a home or a store and smelled a sweet fragrance, you know how it can gladden your spirit and bring pleasure to your heart.  Scripture compares the prayers of God’s people to incense or a sweet perfume.  David penned “May my prayer be counted as incense before You.” in Psalm 141:2.  We’re told in that the prayers of the saints will actually be presented before the throne in heaven in beautiful golden bowls (Rev. 5:8 and 8:3, 4).  Think of it!  God values our prayers!  Yet though we know that prayer is important, do we really pray? 

 

I used to think that prayer was important, but now I know it is much more than important–––it is essential!  It’s vital!  It’s my communication with my Heavenly Father.  In Profiting from the Word, A. W., Pink wrote “A prayerless Christian is a contradiction in terms . . . Prayer is the breath of the new nature in the saint, as the Word of God is its food. . . .  A definite prayer-life is absolutely essential to a daily walking and communing with God, as it is for deliverance from the power of indwelling sin, the seductions of the world, and the assaults of Satan.”  Because there are so many things, even very good things, demanding our attention, we need to give God’s Word and prayer our highest priority.  This may mean giving up something that is wholesome or good, or rearranging our schedules to commune with God.  But pray we must!

 

Here are some “flower petals” which we can put in our potpourri prayer jar to encourage us in our prayer lives.  From the youngest saint to the oldest, we should be seeking to increase in our knowledge of our Lord, as well as in our devotion to Him as we read His Word and as we commune with Him.  Prayer is a spiritual discipline in which we will always be striving to until the moment the Lord calls us into His presence.

 

Pray believingly
Have you ever prayed about something, but your prayer was half-hearted?  Perhaps you doubted that the Lord would grant your request because it was too difficult or seemed impossible.  I must confess that I have been guilty of doing this very thing.  A lack of faith in God’s ability to fulfill our requests certainly is sin.  As Hebrews 11:6 states, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”  When my faith falters, I remind myself of my Father’s character and His attributes.  As I read my Bible, I keep a running list each title given to God (the Holy One of Israel – Isaiah 1:4) and to Christ (the Word – John 1:1) as well as God’s actions and attributes (God bears our burdens – Ps. 68:19; God is full of compassion – Ps. 103:8; God gives strength to His servants – Ps. 86:16).  Turning to these lists strengthens my faith.

 

Pray scripturally
We know that the Lord gave His disciples a model prayer, which is known as the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13).  It begins with recognition of God’s person (the Father), His lofty position (in heaven), desire for His Holy name to be honored, petition that His Kingdom spread, and His will be accomplished on this earth.  Then it follows petitions for us concerning our personal sustenance, relations with others (forgiveness), and protection from the evil one.  Using these petitions as our guide will help us mature in our devotional lives. 

 

Another way to pray scripturally is to keep a record of how Paul or others prayed, and then repeat those requests as you intercede for others.  If we are praying for other believers (pastors or missionaries), we will find many petitions throughout the Scriptures.  Some examples are:  that [God’s] word will spread rapidly and be glorified (II Thessalonians 3:1-2); that God would cause them to increase and abound in love for one another and for all people (I Thessalonians 3:12); that God would supply more laborers (Matthew 9:38).

 

Pray persistently
Perhaps you’re praying, but it seems God isn’t answering.  We of the 21st century are so used to quick gratification of our desires.  We need to remind ourselves that God does things according to His wisdom, not ours.  His ways and thoughts are so much higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8).  When the Lord instructed His followers in Matthew 7 to keep on asking, seeking, and knocking, He was telling them that some requests would be answered only after more sustained, continued effort.  We can rest in the knowledge that our all-wise, all-powerful Father will answer when it is best.

The following comment is from J. Oswald Sanders (former director of Overseas Missionary Fellowship) was quoted by R. Kent Hughes.  His book encouraged my heart as I wait for God to answer some long-standing requests.  Sanders said, “The very fact that God lays a burden of prayer on our hearts and keeps us praying is prima facie [valid] evidence that He purposes to grant the answer.  When asked if he really believed that two men for whose salvation he had prayed for over fifty years would be converted, George Muller of Bristol replied, ‘Do you think God would have kept me praying all these years if He did not intend to save them?’  Both men were converted, one shortly before, the other after Muller’s death.”

 

Pray earnestly
No doubt, you are familiar with the verse in James 5, which states that Elijah prayed earnestly.  He didn’t pray half-heartedly, but with great purpose and intensity of spirit.  He wasn’t just saying his prayers, but he was sincerely praying.  The attitude of earnestness gets the Lord’s attention.

The Lord taught me the importance of praying earnestly the year my son got a puppy for his birthday.  Soon after we brought Prince home, he was diagnosed with Parainfluenza-Parvo Virus, a very deadly virus that kills many young dogs.  Since my motherly heart was concerned for my son, I prayed often and even with tears that the Lord would spare my son’s pet.  Not only did the Lord restore Prince to health, He also supplied the money for his vet bill and taught me a much needed lesson about praying.

 

Pray systematically
In his instructions about worship to the church at Corinth, Paul concluded his remarks by saying “But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.”  This principle of orderliness has helped me in my Bible reading as well as my prayer life.  My time with the Lord begins with a short prayer for the Spirit’s help, reading several chapters of the Scriptures, following a daily Bible reading calendar, and then prayer.  Keeping a prayer list definitely aids my aging memory, but purchasing a small 3-ring notebook with dividers has been even more beneficial.  For one thing, it’s much harder to misplace my notebook!  Now when I pray, I look in my notebook at my lists for the lost, for the sick, for those who are grieving, for pastor friends.  (Our church supplies a list of weekly requests, congregational requests, and missionary requests, which all go in my notebook.)  Placing these lists beside me as I pray by the sofa helps me focus better.  I also keep a notepad and pen beside me for the unexpected thoughts that dart across my mind while I’m praying, like buy some milk today!  Since there are so many requests, I divide my lists in sections.  Some items are prayed for daily and some weekly.  Another time I pray is as I cook or clean the house.  I glance at my pad on which the names of friends with long-standing requests are written as I do “mindless” chores.

 

Mrs. Howard Taylor wrote in Borden of Yale ’09, “Prayer was to him [William Borden] his most important work, as well as the breath of his life.  He had a card-system for recording prayers and their answers in connection with individuals who were on his heart, and a loose-leaf notebook in which he listed subjects for prayer in groups, one for each day of the week.”

 

Pray in the Spirit
Paul concludes the pieces of the believer’s spiritual armor in Ephesians 6 with the admonition “to pray at all times in the Spirit. . . .”  As we examine our hearts for any sins, we need to confess them, and yield ourselves to the Lord.  Then His Spirit can have a fuller dwelling in our hearts.  We need the Holy Spirit’s assistance to make our prayers effective.  We need His guidance to know what to pray (Romans 8:26).  R. Kent Hughes writes, “Apart from the Spirit’s assistance, our prayers are limited by our own reason and intuition.  But with the Holy Spirit’s help they become informed by Heaven.  As we seek the Spirit’s help, He will speak to us through His Word, which conveys His mind regarding every matter or principle.  Thus, in Spirit-directed prayers we will think God’s thoughts after Him.  His desires will become our desires, His motives our motives, His ends our ends.”  Thus, the Holy Spirit not only teaches a believer what to pray, but He also provides the energy for him to do so.  How gracious the Lord is to give us the guidance and the enabling to pray!

 

Helps: 
R. Kent Hughes, Disciplines of a Godly Man
A. W. Pink, Profiting From the Word
Donald S. Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life

 

 

Lord, teach us how to pray aright,
With reverence and with fear;
Though dust and ashes in Thy sight,
We may, we must draw near.

 

We perish if we cease from prayer;
O grant us power to pray;
And when to meet Thee we prepare,
Lord, meet us by the way.

 

God of all grace, we come to Thee
With broken, contrite hearts;
Give what Thine eye delights to see,
Truth in the inward parts.

 

Faith is the only sacrifice
That can for sin atone;
To cast our hopes, to fix our eyes,
On Christ, on Christ alone.

 

Patience to watch, and wait, and weep,
Though mercy long delay;
Courage our fainting souls to keep,
And trust Thee though Thou slay.

 

Give these, and then Thy will be done,
Thus, strengthened with all might,
We, through Thy Spirit and Thy Son,
Shall pray, and pray aright.

 

–James Montgomery 

 

 

 

 

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