Prayer works.
Do you know anybody who believes that?
Sure you do, and so do I.
I know Christians who believe it and non-Christians who believe it. In fact, as I’ve traveled around the world, I’ve seen for myself that religions everywhere believe in and practice prayer. Buddhists pray. Muslims pray. Hindus pray. Confucianists pray. Once when I was in China, I visited a Dalai Lama seminary and, believe me, they pray!
Do all those prayers accomplish the will of God? Do all those prayers work?
No, they don’t because they’re not all the kind of prayers that God hears. They’re not prayers of spirit and truth. They’re not “the earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man that makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]” (James 5:16 Amp).
They’re just empty religious words.
Thank heavens, as born again children of God who pray in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, our prayers aren’t like that. We don’t ever pray just routine, religious words that are empty of heart and void of power.
Or do we?
If we’re totally, heart-searchingly honest, most of us would have to admit that sometimes we do. We don’t intend to, of course. But often, without even noticing it, we slip into a kind of mechanical praying by reciting rote truths we have prayed many times before. Putting our mouths on automatic pilot, we say out of habit what we have learned to say. We pray from the neck up, uttering words with no spirit and no real heart.
Such prayers are not an expression of our relationship with God; they’re just empty religion. They’re not true fellowship; they’re only outward form.
But unlike pagan worshippers who have no alternative, we’re not bound to those kinds of prayers. We can break free from them because through Jesus we have a living relationship with God.
We have the help of the indwelling Holy Spirit who can deliver us from our dry-as-dust routines and direct us into a fresh flow of real, Spirit-breathed fellowship. We have the privilege of praying not just with our heads but with our hearts.
Scripture Reading: Matthew 6:5 – 8
On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”