"Unleash the Power" (Part 1)

“Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for Christians everywhere, I have never stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the wonderful future he has promised to those he called. I want you to realize what a rich and glorious inheritance he has given to his people. I pray that you will begin to understand the incredible greatness of his power for us who believe him.” (Ephesians 1:15-19 NLV)

In 1907, the great preacher, E.M. Bounds, wrote these powerful words which are still challenging the hearts of God’s people to this day:

“God’s plan is to make much of the man, far more of him than of anything else. Men are God’s method. The Church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men...What the Church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use - men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men - men of prayer. (Preacher and Prayer, E.M. Bounds, 1907, p. 5,7)

This is Paul’s prayer for those he loves. This is also my prayer for you, those I love and pray for continuously. Over the last forty years the Lord has allowed me to have an insight into some of the most intimate details of people’s lives. I have arrived at some conclusions that burden my heart. I am convinced that most of the followers of Jesus are beaten down and living defeated lives. Satan has beating up on the Body of Christ one-by-one. He has convinced scores of believers that they are losers, inept, and ineffective in their Christian walk. As a result they have taken a seat on the sidelines of life in exchange for the satisfaction of knowing that if they do nothing then they won’t have to face failure ever again. Satan is having a field day with the foot soldiers of the Kingdom! God’s desire for you and for me is that we would unleash the power He has provided for us in order that we might live each day to His glory and honor. God’s desire for each of us is that we might live in the fullness of His presence and come to understand the immeasurable grace and power that He has for us.

One of the greatest barriers that prevent us from unleashing God’s power for our lives is our misunderstanding of prayer. Far too many believers today understand prayer to be some kind of "heavenly 911." I’m not suggesting that God doesn’t want us to cry out to Him when we are in the throes of despair and needing help, but if that is our primary understanding of prayer then we are in trouble. I want to suggest three keys to unleashing the power of God in our lives through prayer. You need to know something as we begin. If you pray simply to have power you will miss it and find yourself powerless. Today I will only mention them. Tomorrow we will start looking at each in depth.

1. Pray seeking intimacy. When we humble ourselves before God we should seek first and foremost to come to know the Father in a deeper way.

2. Second, we need to pray seeking a greater dependence. God never intended for us to become enslaved by the things that plague us. What He does intend is for us to throw up our hands in surrender to His holy power; power that is able to deliver us from the shackles of sin’s slavery.

3. Third, we need to pray seeking understanding. As we walk with God we need for Him to give us understanding or we will become disillusioned and end up walking away or spending all of our time frustrated.

As we have begun a new year, make a commitment today to pray in these three ways. As you do, the promise of God is that you will find and possess His power over the world, the flesh, and the devil.