And Pray...

Prayer is not simply meeting with God, but God meeting with you.

In his diaries, George Washington wrote, “Let my heart gracious God, be so effected with your glory and majesty, that I may fulfill these weighty duties which you have required of me. I have called upon you to pardon me of my sins. Thank you for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, offered on the cross for me. You gave your Son to die for me and have given me assurance of salvation.” Can you sense the love that George Washington had for his God? His heart sought after God through personal times of prayer.

Prayer is an assault on our human autonomy. We want to put life on autopilot and keep going as if we don’t need help from anyone. But God says, “You do need me. You need my help to make it through life.” The way we express the fact that we need Christ is by spending time with Him and pouring out our heart before Him.

The key to meeting with God is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” God says if you will humble your heart and pray through seeking His face and turning from sin, He will hear you.

Prayer requires a heart that seeks after God. The Bible says if we will seek His face we will find Him. Isaiah 55:6 says, “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.”

If you wish to find God, you must seek after Him. If you approach prayer as just a time to spout off a list of things you would like done or rehearse something you’ve heard, then you will not find God. God wants you to humble your hearts and diligently seek Him and His will for you. God is waiting for you, but in order to find Him, you must first seek Him.

Not only must we seek God but we should also turn from sin. Second Chronicles 7:14 says, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” God wants His people to seek Him from pure hearts.

How do you approach your time with God? Do you view it simply as a time to run through a prayer list or do you truly want to meet with God and hear from Him? Take time right now to seek God’s face. Turn from any sin that is in your life and focus on Him. Spend time in His Word or in simply talking with Him. Ask Him to reveal Himself to you and to meet with you right now. Make sure that your time in prayer each day is not simply you meeting with God, but Him meeting with you and speaking to your heart.

Source: Daily in the Word, July 11, 2008