Prayer is something that the
Christian uses to communicate with God. Prayer takes place not only when there
is a need, but also when giving thanks, praising and communicating with God.
Communicating with God through prayer should never cease in the life of the
believer.
The problem arises when prayer
gatherings among believers take place and all that’s talked about is what the
enemy is doing in the lives of the believers.
I’ve always been an extremely upbeat
and positive person. It’s impossible for me to see the glass as half empty. In
fact, my glass is almost completely full with only about ¼ inch of room for
more liquid at the top.
With that being the case, I find
myself in an awkward position when it comes to prayer gatherings where
individuals take turns testifying of what the devil is doing in their lives and
in the lives of their loved ones. If you’ve never been to one of these types of
meetings, they can happen spontaneously almost anywhere there is a Christian
gathering.
Optimism has always placed my trust
in God and in His Word. I know He has the last say in my life and I immediately
give whatever problem that arises in my life to Him.
Out of a genuine care and concern
for the brethren, someone will ask if there are any prayer requests and someone
else will begin the testimonies. Some pretty dramatic needs can come to light
in these types of gatherings.
I’ve always wanted to be a
contributor in these sessions, but almost 100% of the time I find myself not
even listening to the prayer requests that are being made. As the prayer
requests are going around the room, I find that my mind is racing, trying to
grab hold of anything that I can share as a need in my life. Being a person of
hope and optimism, I’ve always hated being in this position.
I know life is not perfect and we
all have needs. But as I sit in these meetings I find it extremely difficult to
come up with anything of any weight at all to contribute to the group. My
optimism has always placed my trust in God and in His Word. I know He has the last
say in my life and I immediately give whatever problem that arises in my life
to Him. Consequently, I never have any problems to share.
Prayer
Overdose
Most people from the age of 2 up can
move a 5 lbs. dumb bell. Even if the 2 year old can’t lift the 5 lbs. dumb
bell, he or she can certainly move it. Then as the child grows, they gain the
strength to move heavier weights as their bodies grow and develop.
The same is true with prayer. If we
begin to handle life’s 5lb problems through prayer, we grow stronger and much
more able to handle the weightier things that come against us later on in our
Christian lives.
What I’ve found however is that new
Christians never learn to handle the 5 lbs. issues in their lives. Instead they
develop a habit of seeking prayer from others in how to handle their 5 lbs.
problems. They never gain the strength needed to handle the issues of life on
their own through prayer.
Now years later you have a 20, 30,
or 40 year old Christian who doesn’t have the spiritual strength to move 5lbs
problems in their lives. When the 100, 500, or 1000 lb. problems comes along,
they are completely overwhelmed and they have no recourse other than to seek
help from the group because no significant spiritual growth has ever taken
place in their lives.
Please don’t get me wrong, I believe
in prayer. One person, no matter how strong, cannot move 1000 lbs. alone.
Getting brothers and sisters to pray for you to get the hand of God to move in
your life is scriptural and warranted when facing the weightier issues of life.
However, sharing my 5 lbs. problem with a group of people and asking them to
join me in prayer when I’m 30 years old in the Lord is a sign of spiritual
immaturity and plain old laziness in my opinion.
Beware
of Rain Clouds
As these negative testimonies
continue around the room, in my mind I see the room getting darker and darker.
It’s as if storm clouds are gathering and preparing to dump 6 inches of rain on
everyone in the room. Just recently God revealed to me that this happens to me
because evil is being glorified more than the power of God to overcome the evil
taking place in the lives of those who are sharing.
If you are a part of a small group
at your church or any group or organization who meets regularly to do these
types of check ins, I encourage you to be the person that reminds everyone that
the power of God is mightier than the problems that are being shared.
It’s understood that problems arise
in our lives but don’t leave the prayer room with the problems magnified larger
than God who is the solution to the problems. If 30% of what you share is
dealing with a problem you are seeking prayer for, make sure the other 70% of
what you share deals with the goodness of God that’s taking place in your life.
Sharing your testimony of the goodness
of God taking place in your life will prevent the dark, heavy storm clouds from
filling the room and will be the catalyst for the manifestation of answered
prayer in the lives of those who need it.
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