And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. – Matthew 6:7
“The real sermon is made in the closet. The man — God’s man — is made in the closet. His life and his profoundest convictions were born in his secret communion with God. The burdened and tearful agony of his spirit, his weightiest and sweetest messages were got when alone with God. Prayer makes the man; prayer makes the preacher; prayer makes the pastor.” – Oswald Chambers
The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
– Psalm 145:18
“Few Christians have anything but a vague idea of the power of prayer; fewer still have any experience of that power. The Church seems almost wholly unaware of the power God puts into her hand; this spiritual carte blanche on the infinite resources of God’s wisdom and power is rarely, if ever, used—never used to the full measure of honouring God.” – E.M. Bounds
Let us pray:
Praying in this moment would be presumptuous of me. Let’s just marinate in what E.M. Bounds shared.
I know there will be some people who will shout how they know all about that power and glory. My first reaction is to ask us to refrain from shouting.
Maybe Mr. Bounds is talking about a prayer level we know nothing about. Some of us start shouting when we get to the rooftop of a private house and I think Mr. Bounds is speaking on a skyscraper level. Maybe there is more. Maybe the answer is found deep in God. Maybe there are untold riches of grace and miracles we don’t really know about because we don’t see them regularly manifesting in our lives and in the sacred places we congregate.
And I am not talking about emotion. We can manufacture that very well. I am talking about true power.
Maybe we are in need of a new normal. What about a miracle-working prayer life where cancer flees bodies and dead people rise from the grave? What about an intimacy with God where the peace that passes all understanding falls on those who stand within our presence without us saying a word? What about a contagious joy that envelops the hearts and bones of those we interact with on the daily?
Thank you Mr. Bounds for challenging my imagination. Thank you for enlarging my territory for a prayerful thirst.
