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| “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.” ― Mother Teresa |
I'd like to share a devotional that resonated with me last week. This post has been through several drafts as I wasn't sure which way would be the best way to share my experience until this was read during my family's evening devotion.
Before March 11th, I felt a level of spiritual detachment that I had never experienced before. I pondered whether what I was experiencing was actual feeling of "grieving the Holy Spirit." This shook me to the core. I was able to pray, however it wasn't as often, and I often did it out of habit not because I needed to communicate with my friend and Father, there was a sense of rebellion swelling up within me because I couldn't understand why certain things were taking place. For instance, why no matter the amount of time I dedicated to my academic studies my level of application and understanding must have been deficient since my grades demonstrated underperformance rather than confidence and understanding. My family life was being targeted and I was just over the dysfunction.
I found myself frequently ill, despite having received the recent influenza vaccination and constantly depressed. The fire that once burnt brightly within for medicine and this ministry of healing was slowing diminishing.
This devotion offered me hope and my prayer is that it would do the same for you as well.
God Hears Prayers
"Surely the Lord our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks with man; yet he still lives."-Deuteronomy 5:24
Andrea met Christ and wanted to accept Him as her personal Saviour, but she was reluctant to surrender herself entirely to Him. Her main problem was that she was not willing to adopt a simpler physical appearance; above all, she did not want to stop wearing jewellery. She decided to speak to God through prayer to ask for His guidance.
She went to her room and knelt. As she prayed, she experienced the feeling of being in the presence of God. She felt in her heart that earthly things are worthless once God occupies the right place in our lives. When she finished praying, she knew that the Lord wanted her to know that He truly calls and qualifies the candidates for His kingdom. All doubt disappeared and she decide to be baptised, surrendering her whole life into God's hands.
The Lord speaks to us in the context of prayer. We can hear His beautiful voice that validates our faith and gives us the assurance of our salvation. We need to remember as well that He speaks to us primarily through the Bible. We must remain open to listen to His written word. The apostle Paul urges us to open our ears to His voice:
" So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished. So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak?" (Hebrews 2:1-3 NLT)
However, we must train our spiritual sense to recognise the voice of God in His word. We must ask the Holy Spirit, who inspired the prophets, to enlighten our minds to recognise what God wants to say to us. Let us allow Him to be present, to touch us, and to communicate His will and bring peace to our heart.
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Based on the above, my practice now when I pray, is to ask to be able to differentiate the voice of God and to know when God speaks to me. I often try to remind myself now, that God never turns away from His promises nor does He walk away from a relationship with us. It is us, who decide to stray based on the deceptions planted by Satan and his demons because he knows that once we believe that God is unable to forgive or accept us as we are, it is easier for him to see us lose out on salvation.
Prayer has the power to change our hearts and our minds and to awaken our senses once we pray earnestly and receptive to the reply.
As you move into the upcoming week, aim to pray more selflessly and ask for discernment and the ability to recognise what God is saying to you.
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