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The Essence of Prayer

The Cambridge Dictionary defines essence as the basic or most important idea or quality of something.  What is the essence or the most important quality of our prayers?  Is it what we ask for, how we ask, our ability to believe, our persistence, or is it how we live our lives?  Each of these are a part of our prayer life and come out of our faith.  They combine to create an image and fragrance before God,  When the Lord looks from Heaven He sees our lives, the  things we do and don’t do.  He discerns our thoughts and the intents of our hearts.  We can say we love Him with all our hearts but He knows if we love Him a little or a lot.  We can say we trust Him but He knows if we truly trust in Him or something or someone else.  All these factors play a role in whether our lives are a sweet fragrance unto the Lord or a stench in His nostrils.  

There is a Spanish worship song titled Perfume a Tus Pies. The words of the chorus are: 

Yo quiero enamorarme más de Ti. 

Enséñame a amarte y a vivir
conforme a tu justicia y a tu verdad. 

Con mi vida quiero adorar.
Con todo lo que tengo y lo que soy,

 todo lo que he sido te lo doy.
Que mi vida sea para Ti
como un perfume a tus pies. 

An English translation would be something like this:

I want to be more in love with you.
Teach my soul to love you and to live
conforming to your justice and your truth.
I want adore and praise you with my life.
With everything that I have and I am,
everything that I have been, I give to you.
Let my life be to you
just like a perfume at your feet.

Our lives have the capability to be a sweet fragrance like a perfume unto the Lord or a sour smell or stench in His nostrils.  What changes would we have to make to become a sweet fragrance.  The chorus of Perfume a Tus Pies takes that thought one step further.  The chorus expresses the desire that one’s life may be an offering of perfume at the feet of the Lord.  This is something that must be in our hearts to do and something we do willing.  Paul said in Romans 12:1, “I beseech ye therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service.”  A good starting place would be to pray, as the chorus says, for God to teach our souls to love Him, to live according to His ways and truth, and to praise Him with our lives.  One might find it encouraging to look up the lyrics to this song.  Here is a link to the song if you would like to listen to it :

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In this video Dr. Stanley Toussaint explains what prayer is for. God has blessed Dr. Toussaint with an ability to explain things with a clarity of wisdom that makes his messages both enjoyable and edifying to listen to. In this video he contends that prayer is “asking God for something” then gives a compelling defense for that statement. You will learn six words used for prayer and what they mean. The video was filmed at a conference for spiritual maturity and Dr. Toussaint gives this message on prayer because prayer is a vital part of spiritual maturity. Prayer enables us to know God better. Click on the picture of Dr. Stanley in the link below to watch.

What is Prayer and What’s It For?

If I Had More Faith Would God Answer My Prayers?

If I Had More Faith Would God Answer My Prayers?, is the title of an article written by Thomas L. Constable. Dr. Constable is a former faculty member of Dallas Theological Seminary and the founder of Dallas Seminary’s Field Education department (1970) and the Center for Biblical Studies (1973). Virtually, every Christian has asked themselves that question. Jesus said “…Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you” (Matthew 17:20 KJV). Dr. Constable gives an interesting insight on what faith is needed for answered prayer. Click on the button below to read his article.

Whitney has an interesting take on how to pray the Bible. He share how he prays the Bible and the explains difference between praying and interpreting the Bible. It is an interesting article with practical advise you can put into practice right now. Click the button to read.

Sid Litke (ThM, 1984) wrote an article addressing that question. He writes, “Like parents who must teach their kids to want and ask for the right things, God teaches us to pray for the right things—things in line with His will. Those are the prayers God answers. The Apostle John wrote, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:14–15). Pray according to God’s will. Out of context the words “we know we have what we asked” seem like a blank check from God. Can we have what we want just by asking God for it? Not at all. A condition precedes the promise: “If we ask anything according to His will.” Click the button to read the article.

Michael Haykin is a Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality wrote an interesting article on the need for corporate prayer or praying with others. Haykin advocates “Let us pray-Both privately and together and as brothers and sisters in the family of God! Click the button to read.