Communication: Restoring Prayer In The House

In every war—ancient or modern—one of the most consistent strategies of the enemy is to cut off communication.

You can have the most advanced weapons, the bravest soldiers, and the best intelligence in the world, but if your lines of communication are severed, you become vulnerable. Isolated. Disoriented.

Armies don’t just attack enemy soldiers—they target the radios, cellular towers, satellite relays. Why?

Because they know that if they can stop the flow of communication, they can confuse their enemy and win the war.

But, it is not just on the field of battle. Every area of human endeavor (from politics, to business, to households and marriages) require good communication.

All over the nation Christians are gathered

and most of the gatherings look mostly the same.

People will sing

People Hear a sermon

Most of the people Greet or be greeted by a Christian

BUT THE VAST, VAST MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE WILL NOT PRAY

Not that nobody will talk to God

National anthem prayer - important to start the game, but has little to do with what happens on the field

Transition filler prayers - a few words uttered to signal that we’re moving to the next part of the program.

Mindless recitations - Recorded, repeated, but not relied upon.

We sing about God, we preach about God, but there is little to no direct, intelligible, specific, focused communication with God.

It is a shame because (like most organizations and relationships) this area of communication is the place where we need the most help.

Prayer is power. But prayer is hard.

It is hard because it is unnatural

Everything else we do in our gathering has a logical, comfortable parallel

We worship. But singing is natural.

We have scripture. But reading is natural.

We have preaching. But, public speaking is natural

Prayer is how we really engage the spiritual realm

We speak to someone we cannot see with our eyes.

We listen for someone we cannot hear with our ears.

We wait for someone we cannot touch with our hands.

More that we need help with praise or doctrine or fellowship, WE NEED HELP TO PRAY.

It is the only thing the disciples ever asked Jesus to teach them.

If the church is to be a community of mutual support and edification…if we are called to help one another…I can think of nothing more impactful than that we would help one another to pray.

COMMUNICATION: Restoring Prayer In The House

PRAYER

Matthew 6:5–13

5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

10 Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

11 Give us this day our daily bread,

12 and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

God Wants To Restore Our Confidence In Prayer

Twice Jesus repeats, “And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”

(God said it Solomon) If my people…

(James the Lord’s Brother affirms it) The effectual, fervent prayer of the righteous…

(John the Apostle describes it) And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. (1 Jn 5:14–15.)

And yet there things that erode our confidence in prayer

We become Too Busy - You spend all of your time working to cover the bases

We become Too Burdened - The wind is knocked out of you

We become Too Bitter - God has allowed something to be taken from you and you don’t want speak to Him

We become Too Blessed - God has been too good to you without prayer and you don’t think it's necessary.

The antidote for a loss of confidence in prayer is secrecy and simplicity

SECRECY: Go into your “inner room” or “storage closet”

Not forbidding corporate prayer, but performative prayer

Not just the inner-room of the house, but the inner room of the heart.

We have learned that prayer is only praise or petition (you haven’t spent much time in the psalms

Questions

Doubts

Anger

Fears

The Desert Fathers often spoke of the heart as the true prayer closet, where we withdraw not just from people, but from distraction, from ambition, from noise. Even when surrounded by people, the heart can still be “shut in” with God.

SIMPLICITY: God answers simple prayer

You don’t have to pray long eloquent prayer warrior prayers

You don’t have to pray prayers filled with doctrine (sermons with your eyes closed)

You don’t have to pray loud, cadenced prayers

The Father will reward you when you pray. (a little more peace…hope…confidence)

God wants to restore our Competence in prayer.

Confidence in the power of prayer does not mean that we know how to access the power that is available to us in prayer.

Medicine doesn’t fix sickness, medicine rightly administered does.

I have lysol in my kitchen (powerful for disinfecting the countertop…dangerous as a food topping)

Jesus gives a model

Prayer must be Grounded in relationships (Our Father in Heaven)

Our Father…

He loves us, provides for us, protects us, imparts His characteristics to us

More radical than we recognize.

Nobody called God Father in Jewish world.

THIS IS WHAT GOT JESUS KILLED

Not “my father”, but our Father

Jesus involved others (feeding the 5,000, raising Lazurus, at the Garden)

Jesus switch to the plural pronoun

One lust: “if your right eye” (5:29-30)

Adultery

Divorce

Vengence

In Heaven…

Donald Trump is “in the White House” is not a statement about his physical location, but the power vested in him.

God is close and capable

Prayer must be Focused on God’s glory

May your name be regarded as holy

May your kingdom come

May your will be done

THESE ARE THE CORE PETITIONS IN PRAYER BECAUSE THESE ARE THE CORE PROBLEMS IN LIFE

Prayer must be Conscious of our own vulnerability

Daily bread (provision)

Forgiveness (pardon)

Protection (the evil one)...

YOU ARE NOT AS STRONG AS YOU THINK YOU ARE.

God’s house is not called a house of programs or even a house of preaching. God’s house is to be called a house of prayer.

God wants to restore our Commitment to prayer

“When you pray”

The only way we become more confident and competent in prayer is to do it.

We have to find ways to pray in our regular gatherings

We have to invest more in corporate prayer meeting

We have to gather in homes for prayer

One Christian writer said, “To be Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.”

Beloved the church cannot be a place where we come and hold our breath.

It’s time to breathe again.

Let’s pray together now.

Faithfulness to God’s Word – 2 Timothy 3:16–17

“Lord, keep us tethered to Your Word. Let every sermon, study, and conversation be shaped by Scripture.”

Walking in the Spirit – Galatians 5:25

“Teach us to walk in the Spirit, not the flesh — producing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Dependence and Gratitude – Deuteronomy 8:17–18

“Guard us from pride. May we never attribute the success and growth of this congregation to ourselves but to Your sovereign kindness.”

Provision for Our Congregation – Philippians 4:19

“Lord, provide for the needs of this house—every ministry, missionary, and mission You’ve assigned to us. Supply resources, space, and partners so that we can serve without lack and give without fear.”

Hospitality and Love for Neighbors – James 2:1; Romans 12:13

“Make us a welcoming community for visitors and teach us to love all without partiality.”

Boldness in Evangelism – Acts 4:29–31

“Grant us boldness to speak the word without fear. Let our conversations be Spirit-led and fruitful.”

Fruitful Discipleship – Matthew 28:19–20; Colossians 1:28–29

“Form mature believers in this community. Give us patience and perseverance to walk with people until Christ is fully formed in them.”

Love and Unity Among the Congregation – John 13:34–35; Ephesians 4:3

“Bind us together in love. Heal divisions, end gossip, and make us one as You and the Father are one—so the world may believe.”

Closing Prayer (Prayed Together)

“Lord, make Ambassador Church a praying church — humble, unified, Spirit-filled, and fruitful in every good work. Amen.”

Maybe God is calling you today…

Discovering faith (your prayed, somebody else prayed)

Coming back to the Lord

Calling your to this community of prayer