“You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).

My husband and I were recently able to spend some time at the ocean…and walking the beach is one of our favorite activities. I feel so connected to God as I look at the vast sea, thunderously breathing in and out. The familiar aroma of the salt-laden air and the pleasurable feeling of sand between my toes remind me how many of my senses are fully engaged in this simple experience. Here is a place where I can pray easily, with an intensity of thankfulness that I almost can’t describe. There is peace and rest in my soul…struggles, deadlines, and other rugged places in my life seem to get pulled with the tide out into the vastness to disappear in the depths. The ocean is also a spiritually relevant location to deposit my sinfulness, as the Father casts it into the sea of forgetfulness (Micah 7:19). No wonder I am energized and revitalized after spending time seeking the Presence of God in such a place.

When I got on the plane to come home, I asked God to help me re-create this physical place (the ocean) into a spiritual place…a meeting place with the Father that isn’t dependent upon where my body is located, but where my mind and heart are locked into His embrace. God has gifted His people with many key ways to place ourselves in His presence. And, incredibly, each means of connectivity with the Father’s heart is still intricately woven together into the Spirit-filled life of prayer. Wherever we are located, God is still fully present to us as we turn our attention upon Him.

My tent of meeting with God doesn’t need to be located on the beach, or in a retreat center…or in community with others in a worship service…although all of these are good places and are certainly necessary from time to time for seasons of refreshing. However, the ordinary and mundane places in life can be turned into the extraordinary and the holy as I shift my gaze from a place to a Person. God can sanctify my imagination…setting it apart for heart to heart communion. I can envision the ocean my Father created for my pleasure and His purposes with the eyes of my soul…and He turns His gaze upon me as I seek Him (Jeremiah 29:13). The Creator is present continually in my heart whether or not I am aware of His nearness.

Try locating your heart to the place you wish to meet with God, even if you are in a place you would rather not be. If we are continually wishing we were in a physical location that allows us the space and quiet and peace to meet with God…there may be huge gaps in our awareness of His Presence. Our prayer life suffers when we wait for the right time or the right location. Realize now that you can meet with Him as you care for an elderly parent, find yourself in traffic on the way to work, or even as you go about your normal everyday routine. God is…wherever you are. His gaze is always upon you, and His ear is always attentive to your prayers.

(c) 2013 Prayer Connect Magazine

Andrew Murray stated, “When God gives the Holy Spirit, His great object is the formation of a holy character. It is a gift of a holy mind and spiritual disposition, and what we need above everything else is to say: ‘I must have the Holy Spirit sanctifying my whole inner life if I am really to live for God’s glory.’”

Every morning my prayer is, “Father, show me how to be more like Jesus Christ today so that You will be glorified!” Knowing that every day I will fall short of this goal, I take joy in the smallest victories to this end! My flesh loves to be in control, and stubbornly clings to sinful things like anxiety and pride. However, God’s word faithfully restores my confidence in His ability to transform my heart and life day by day.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the voice of Christ within me speaks. Moment by moment in my every day ordinary life, I must bring my sinful thoughts, actions and words to Him as quickly as they arise so that gradually they will give way to His thoughts, actions and words.  I pray to be less, even though everything prideful in me seeks attention and recognition. This is not an easy struggle, but growing up in Christ is a narrow path strewn with worldly distractions and insidious idolatry that sets itself up against the transformational work of God. It is a battle that can only be won in the spiritual realm – not by my own determination and desire.

Without dying to my flesh, the formation of this holy character cannot be made manifest in me. Paul recognized that God’s children are susceptible to the deception of darkness without complete faith and trust in the One who created us and knows us best. Therefore, in his letter to “God’s holy people” in the city of Colosse, he shares a powerful prayer that, prayed for our lives and the lives of others, will transform us more and more into the image of Jesus Christ:

“For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light” (Colossians 1:9-12).

There is much to be gleaned from the purposes of Paul’s prayer for our every day lives. How we, God’s people, need to be filled with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. So often we struggle in the flesh to know the will of God, yet do we ever ask to be filled with the knowledge of His will? What a powerful prayer request! “Father, fill me with the knowledge of Your will for my life through all spiritual wisdom and understanding!”

Still, it is important to recognize that the term “spiritual wisdom” has often become twisted in our culture. Not everything with this label is Christian in nature. We must be vigilant to ask the Father to fill us, and those for whom we are interceding, with Holy Spirit wisdom through the very mind of Christ, so that we may have a clear and perfect understanding of His will for us!  The result? We and others for whom we pray will begin to live lives worthy of the Lord, pleasing Him in every way by bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, and being strengthened with all power according to the glorious might of God! Here we will begin to see the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit moving within and throughout our day to day lives. Is there anyone who would not want such a prayer of blessing and power?

Paul prays for the believers to be strengthened so that they might have great endurance and patience to withstand whatever struggles, trials or persecutions might come and so that they might be enabled to joyfully give thanks to God in the midst of their day to day lives – whatever may come! I am eager to give thanks to the Father when I am comfortable and life is going well; however, only His supernatural strength upholds my joy when that is not the case! How many do you know who need the courage of God in their lives right now to endure a trial? Maybe you need that in your own life. Isn’t it a powerful encouragement to see those saints who are able to live in full joy and confidence in the midst of pain or difficulty? Today, as we face the distinct likelihood of the end of days and the potential suffering that may take place, we must be prepared to endure with the strength of the Spirit, and to live out holy and victorious lives in the midst of it. Pray that God will give you and other believers such strength, so that we may joyfully give thanks to God, who has qualified us “to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.”

The way of holiness is to walk in the way of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we pray the powerful word of God into our everyday lives, and crucify our fleshly desires to lean into the desires of our Father, we will live more fully within the kingdom of His light. We will know the will of God for our lives, and please Him in every way. We will be given His strength and be sustained by joy and thanksgiving! May the formation of a holy character continue in us all for the glory of God!

(C) 2013 Prayer Connect

I recently came across the term “Christ-encountering prayer” through an article by Fred Hartley entitled, “A Praying Church Is a Missional Church” in Prayer Connect Magazine.  This concept grips my heart and had me asking the question, “What does Christ-encountering prayer look like in my life?” Heading to my trusty thesaurus, I came across some intriguing synonyms for “encounter” which stimulated some thoughts that describe ways to experience Christ-encountering prayer.  Let’s take a look together:

Meeting – Prayer allows us to meet with Christ in the same way that Jesus met with the Father while on earth. He went to lonely, solitary places to key in on the voice of the One who continually instructed Him as He functioned in the realm of the flesh: “Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:19).  What would your prayer life look like if you sought the activity of God in all things? Perhaps we could frame our prayer something like this: “Father, I can do nothing apart from You! Help me to see what You are doing around me so that I can take part in the activity of Your kingdom!” There is another kind of meeting with Jesus that is happening all over the earth…as God’s people intercede for those who have yet to know Him, the Father is moving through dreams and visions. Many times in closed nations, the only missionary that can get through is a prayer missionary. Continually, there are reports of Muslims who are responding to Jesus because they have encountered Him in a dream or vision. “Lord Jesus, may the prayers of my heart for those who are lost go places I could never dream of going physically. May You send dreams and visions in response to my prayers so that Your glory will be known throughout all the earth!”

Come across – Sometimes, in the ordinary moments of our lives, we come across the activity of God. It isn’t an intentional seeking-after, but more of an awareness that there is something of spiritual significance that has crossed our path. If we are too busy to notice, we may never have any unexpected and serendipitous times of prayer. “Lord Jesus, help my spiritual eyes and ears to be continually aware of Your activity and Presence, so that whenever my heart comes across something that intersects Your purposes, I will be aware that Your Spirit is stirring me to seek Your face.”

Bump into – At first glance, I thought this was a lot like “come across”; however, as I began to ask God what this might mean in a different context, I believe He gave me an interesting insight. Sometimes we casually come across something as we are aware of our surroundings and what may be up ahead of us…and other times we literally bump into a situation unexpectedly where prayer is needed immediately. Perhaps the most frequent occurrence of this is when a person is in need of a touch from Jesus that He wants to give through us! “Gracious Savior, when I bump into someone I know, or even a complete stranger, whose situation or life is in need of You, compel me to pray for him or her right then, knowing they may not be able to intercede in that moment for themselves. May I encounter You in them and minister to them as I would minister to You! Give me courage to step into their need and to connect their need with Your power so that they might also have a Christ-encounter.”

Grapple with (wrestle, struggle, grasp, grip) – Sometimes Christ-encountering prayer is difficult, and we question the pain or the suffering we or someone we are praying for may be experiencing. To encounter Jesus in the midst of hurt, sorrow or grief is to allow His heart to intersect our struggle even when we are arguing with God or trying to deal with things on our own rather than in His strength. Relinquishing control often comes as we place our difficulty on His altar and allow Him to move in response to our cries for help. “Lord Jesus, there are times in my life and in the lives of others when tough times come and we don’t know what to do, but our eyes are upon You! Let me encounter You in the midst of hard things. Thank You that I can grapple with You and that You understand that in my frail flesh I struggle – even when I know Your character is to work in and through every situation I encounter. May that reality continually sink in to resolve my fear and fill me with the hope found only in You.”

There are so many more ways to have Christ-encountering prayer!  He lives in us and lives to intercede for us. Since He is within us, His intercession becomes our own.

(c) Harvest Prayer Ministries

“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).

Living enough years gives you time to look back on the mistakes of your life with some degree of understanding. It seems to me that virtually every mistake, sin, or mess-up in my life has come from failing to understand and appropriate the truth of Colossians 3:3. It’s really very simple…I died. In responding to the call of Christ, I was crucified with him and it is no longer I who live.

Rather than a morbid thinking of death, in reality this brings astonishing freedom. I don’t have to worry about “me” anymore. Dead men have no worries. Since there is still some degree of strength and energy in this body, I am now free to focus on God and others. What joy it brings to not worry about self, living free to love others!

This dying-to-self life of freedom and joy must carry over into our prayer life. Free from the burden of worrying about self, I am free instead to give myself to intercession for others. Why would I spend the majority of my prayer time praying for myself and my needs? I’m a dead man! I am able to pour out my prayers for others knowing that my life is “hidden with Christ” and totally provided for. God, of course, wants to hear my needs and desires; however, He also wants me to intentionally focus upon His kingdom purposes rather than defaulting always to my own issues. “Dead men praying” should be a good description of our life of prayer.

Keeping a Kingdom focus is difficult when circumstances get tough, when we get discouraged, or when we simply get tired and worn down. Yet, we all know of people who epitomize Galatians 6:9: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” What makes the difference in those who can work tirelessly in thankless and/or tedious service to others…and those who “give up”?

When asked how she could work day in and day out caring for and loving the “poorest of the poor,” Mother Teresa simply answered, “I pray.” Her life example, as well as intentional teaching of others who worked with her, was to develop a consistent life of prayer. It was her observation that well-meaning people could sustain work such as she did among lepers in Calcutta and with the poor in many places of the world, for perhaps a year or two at best. However, those who willingly and joyfully pressed into difficult work for God’s kingdom day after day, year after year with joyful hearts could only be sustained by an unwavering moment by moment, constant and unfailing prayer life.

The transformational work of God that enables us to do “small things with great joy” (Mother Teresa) which have significant impact on lives, families, communities and beyond, are fueled by connectivity with the Father who gives us the strength to do all things! Nurturing holy habits of prayer are paramount to the endurance needed to run the race set before us. Trying to do so in our own enthusiasm and strength only sets us up for failure. It means the work is based only upon what we, in our humanness, are able to do rather than what God in His holiness and power can do through us.

One prayer habit that has been most helpful to me is an ancient one. It is called the Prayer of Examen. Scripture says much about examining ourselves and opening ourselves up to the Lord’s examination. Here are two such verses of many: “When you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent” (Psalm 4:4). “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24). The Prayer of Examen is a prayer practice in which God examines our hearts, minds and motives. As I have tried to make this more of a habit in my every day prayer life, I’ve discovered that the Holy Spirit has more of an opening to do a deep work in me…to purify my heart and life of those things which distract and deter me from living more fully for the sake of Jesus and His kingdom.

The Prayer of Examen is a powerful way to experience God in all things by intentionally thinking carefully about your day before going to sleep. Here are some helpful steps:

1. Bring to your mind as much as you can about what you did and thought about, what interactions you had with others, what things happened to you, etc. throughout the course of the day.
2. Think through all of the blessings you received and blessings you gave to others. Thank God for each one of them in turn, giving yourself opportunity to be truly grateful.
3. Consider all of the good you might have done but didn’t because you were too busy, missed the opportunity, were too afraid or uncertain, etc. Take time to confess those sins of omission to God with a repentant heart.
4. Repent of every unloving or unkind action including angry or harsh words that were spoken to others. Be still for a few moments and ask the Father to help you to consider how you could act in more loving ways and how you might make right any situation in which someone else was hurt or harmed by your actions or words.

Prayerfully taking inventory of your day allows you to learn how live more fully for Jesus and to serve Him in Christ-like ways. Taking this posture of humility on a consistent daily basis will give you the spiritual tools and strength to step more fully into God’s kingdom purposes for your life.