10 Sep IHOP (International House of Prayer) Can I have your order please? Part 2
Last week, we began discussing a series on prayer all revolving around a “restaurant” theme that I believe will revolutionize your prayer life and help you get the right “order” every time! This week, before we get into greater depth, please allow me to lay some foundational prayer principles that will lay the footing for a very powerful prayer life!
4 Powerful Principles of Prayer:
- Prayer is a Demonstration of Love.
I tell my wife Anne, “I love you” almost every day. However, there are certain days like her birthday and our anniversary when she needs a “demonstration”. When Anne celebrates her birthday, can you imagine if I said to her, “Honey, today is your birthday so I just wanted to let you know I love you extra special today!” That’s obviously not going to cut it…she needs a demonstration of my love to her!
Many years ago on Mother’s Day, my friend and father-in-law, Al Holderness, bought his wife the most romantic gift ever! They had just purchased a dog and “Romantic Al” got the gift that keeps on giving…a fire hydrant for the dog to urinate on! (Needless to say, the phrase “Al, ‘urine’ trouble” took on a whole new meaning to him that day!) Jan, his wife, was hoping for a much better “demonstration” of love! Prayer is a demonstration of our love to God!
- Prayer is a Recognition of Grace (Heb. 4:16).
Here the Bible tells us, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” When we come to God in prayer, we must always base our approach on what He did not what we’ve done. If we come to God flaunting all our good works (or even all our bad works) we inadvertently turn the throne of grace into a throne of judgment! When we come to God flaunting all of Jesus’ good works…we receive the grace God longs to give to us! You see, grace is not getting what you deserve…it’s getting what Jesus deserves!
Life is filled with things we work for and therefore deserve. That’s perfectly acceptable when it comes to the commerce of our society. You work eight hours and you get eight hours worth of wages. There is nothing wrong with that…that’s how our economy is set up. However, we can’t carry that attitude into prayer!
Have you ever noticed little children know nothing of the merit system. As they grow up they begin to figure out “If I clean up my room I am more likely to get from Dad what I want.” However, when they are little they truly receive by grace. When my son, Johnathan, was four years old, he made a “bad choice” so I put him in time out. After the time out was over he came unashamedly bounding up into my lap and asked for a present! Johnathan understands grace! While I am certainly not winking at the consequences of sin (sin will take you farther than you want to go and keep you longer than you want to stay), I am touting the vitality of grace!
In keeping with our restaurant theme, imagine going to a nice restaurant and finding a roach in your food. You would demand to see the manager and demand your money back! Imagine another restaurant scenario in which you were dining in a nice restaurant and had eaten a lovely meal…only to find to your dismay, you had left your wallet at home. Out of nowhere a customer nearby who had overheard your situation steps up and pays for your meal. Your attitude could only be one of thanksgiving for his kindness and grace!
This is the appropriate attitude to have in prayer! Never go to God saying, “I’ve fasted, I’ve worked in the nursery, I’ve served you sacrificially…now You must answer my prayers.” Always go to God in prayer based on Jesus’ goodness…not yours. We must always go to God on His merit…not ours! Prayer is a recognition of His grace!
Next week we will continue our series on “IHOP…International House of Prayer.”