Dr. Allen Smith

Chapter 1 What Is Prayer?

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Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV) 6  Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

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In this chapter, we will be going through several things that actually make up what prayer is. In doing so, we need to remember, if something is important to us, it is also important to God. We should never fail to bring our most cherished and private thoughts to Him in prayer.

Even though I was raised in the home of an alcoholic, and I did not get saved until I was 12 years of age; I  remember when I was a child I had a plaque on the wall of my bedroom. That plaque was my first introduction to prayer. The words on that plaque said, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” I do not remember the first time I read those words, but they were my first introduction to prayer.

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If there is anything the Bible clearly and plainly teaches, it is prayer and the fact that God answers prayer. But, did you know it is actually possible to pray a prayer that is heard by people around you, but it is not heard in Heaven? Prayer is also one of the most self-revealing acts of a human being. It is simply communion with God.

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Prayer is spiritual communication between man and God, a two-way relationship in which man should not only talk to God but also listen to Him. It is not simply asking God for something. It is two-way communication between you and your Heavenly Father.   It is a two-way relationship. Man should not only talk to God, but he should also listen to what God has to say! There are different ways to listen to Him. God will speak to us with a still small voice in our hearts, and He also speaks to us as we read and study His Word.

 

As we pray, we should keep our spiritual ear open, so we can have that direct communion with God that we need. Prayer to God is like a child’s conversation with his father. It is natural for a child to ask his father for the things he needs. God wants a better conversation from us than just that. Prayer is communion with God. It is the closest, most intimate relationship with the Creator you any of us can have, and God wants us to have it!

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Luke 18:1 (KJV) 1  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;     

It is very clear there, Jesus said, “Men ought always to pray.” Now, always means “all the time”. But, what do the two words “not faint” mean?  They mean, “do not lose heart, believe and keep praying!”   

     

Luke 18:2-7 (KJV) 2  Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: 3  And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. 4  And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; 5  Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. 6  And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. 7  And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

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This little woman kept bringing her petition to this judge. He kept turning her down, but she kept coming back. She was persistent, she would not stop. She did not lose heart. She kept coming back. She had faith that he would grant her request someday. Finally, she started wearing him down, and it wasn’t long until he granted her petition. God wants us to be like this little woman. He wants us to continue bringing our requests to Him until He provides the answer. We need to be persistent with our prayers! Sometimes our prayers are not answered the first day. Sometimes they are not answered the first week or even the first year. Why is this? I do not have the answer to that except sometimes God wants us to keep praying about a particular matter.     

                                                                                

Jesus Himself advocated prayer, but WHAT DID HE MEAN? When all is said and done, WHAT IS PRAYER? What does the word mean? If we are to understand the secrets of PRAYER, we must first understand what PRAYER is.

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Psalm 25:1 (KJV) 1 Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.

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The bottom line is: PRAYER is the turning of the human SOUL and SPIRIT to the Living God. Just think about that for a moment. Simply put, PRAYER is the turning of the human personality, the human mind upward toward God. When one truly prays he does not lift up his heart to saints, to denominations, or to people, but to God. Prayer is the turning of the immortal spirit of man toward the Mighty Creator of the universe. Prayer, then, is communion with God. God wants us to have communion with Him!

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Psalm 65:2 (KJV) 2  O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.

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Prayer is the communing between your spirit and the Great Spirit of the universe, which is the Living God.

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Genesis 3:8 (KJV) 8  And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

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Adam communed with God in the cool of the day in the Garden of Eden. The two of them communicated with each other. Fellowship is another word for communing or communication. When you are in fellowship with another person, you are keeping the lines of communication open. We can have that communion or fellowship with God if we desire to have it. But, if we do not want to have that fellowship with God, we are not going to have our prayers answered!

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So prayer is relating to and communing with God. When you are in a position to commune with God, you do not fear Him. You do not approach Him to accuse Him but to love Him through fellowship with Him. This communion, this communication, this fellowship with God, is prayer.