Torch, Fall 1990

-----------------------------------11111 Right now one of my priority prayers is that I would have a greater love for the Lord. Other priority prayers include family, my work, and major ministries that I am involved in. Let me hasten to add that priority prayers should not be general in nature. General prayers sound like this: "Lord, bless the missionaries," and, "Lord be with so and so." God delights when our petitions are very specific. I call this "model and serial number praying. " And we must be careful that our prayers do not become what Jesus called "vain repetitions" in Matthew 6:7. These are mouthed words that come from the head and not the heart. We are especially prone to this when we ask for the same things over and over again. Pretty soon we run out of different ways to ask so we just repeat words. How many different ways can you say, "Bless the pastor"? That is why we must pray more specifically. After priority prayers are petitions that are secondary. They are impor– tant, but I do not bring them to God every day. These might be for certain missionaries, friends , events, etc. How has making prayer a 0 priority affected your daily schedule? My whole day is influ– enced, and this starts in an unusual place-bed. A Q couple of years ago I started asking spiritual leaders I respect about their prayer lives. Almost every one said some– thing like this , "In the morning I fear to let my feet hit the floor without first committing my life again to the Lord." That has got to affect how the day goes for these individuals . I have adopted this habit. When I awaken, my mind is ready to talk to the Lord-sunendering to His leading for the day, confessing sin if need be, and even offering thanksgiving for whatever lies ahead. It took about 60 days to get used to this , but now I look forward to these moments. As the day progresses, two different kinds of prayer come into play: con– venient and uninhibited prayers. Convenient prayers are made in the shower, while dressing, and as I drive the car. I have given God all of my "waiting time." When I am on a business call and have to wait in an office, I pray. When I am stuck in a traffic jam, I pray. And when I am waiting in an airport, I pray. Convenient prayers may also be offered before phone calls, meetings, trips, and with a friend in need. Uninhibited prayer takes place in a secret place and is often scheduled. It is just me and the Lord with no distrac– tions. I love to be alone with God. In fact I look for ways to be alone. If there is not room in a car for all the riders, I like to be the odd-man-out so I can drive myself and be alone with the Lord. What are obstacles to Q making prayer a priority? I have already mentioned how unconfessed sin is a banier. Another obstacle is Q a wandering mind. Ephe- sians 6 teaches that we are in a spiritual warfare. Satan hates the Christian who prays. So he brings on distractions , sleepiness, fatigue , even illness. I don ' t think he ever runs out of emergencies to keep us from praying. Doubt and wony are problems. If we Christians really believed that prayer changes situations, we would pray more, much more. The Bible says to be anxious for nothing, but in prayer and supplication make known our requests to God (Philippians 4:6). Guilt is another area that plagues us. In the midst of prayer Satan reminds us of some misdeed. We feel guilt, remorse, and that we are even unworthy to pray. He knows that we have con– fessed this sin. He also knows that God has already cleansed us completely. But we let Satan place doubts in our minds. So we stop praying. In the Christian life I believe that guilt is brought our way more often by the adversary than by our Lord. What are the benefits of Q making prayer a priority? The number one benefit that I Q see is not so much that I get what I prayed for but the change prayer brings about in me. I am personally encouraged and God is glorified. That is the whole reason why we exist, to glorify Him. Also, I experi– ence gratefulness and have the joy of telling Him so. I am strengthened. When I pray and He answers, that gives me confidence in my God. Of course, the answer to the prayer itself is beneficial. But sometimes I do not get what .I want. Then He gives me grace to change how I relate to my circumstances. Is there anything else you Q wish to share about this priority? Just this. Praying is practicing the presence of God every 0 day. When I talk to Him, I ac– knowledge that He is God, He is in the room or car I am in, He is facing the same situation I am facing. The question I have to ask myself is, how many battles have I gone through today and not involved Him? If God is sitting in my office, I should be continu– ally conversing with Him. He has all the power, the wisdom, and my best interests at heart. One of my high priority prayers is that God would give me a greater apprecia– tion of Him, His love for me, His past work for me, and what He wants to do for me in my future. Reese Kauffman is president of Kauffman Products in Carmel, Indiana. He is president of the worldwide ministry of Child Evangel– ism Fellowship and a popular speaker on the Cedarville campus.