Friday // 9th February 2024
Praying with understanding!
So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding..*
1 Corinthians 14:15
Praying without understanding or without applying the principles of prayer is usually ineffective. It is rather a waste of time. It brings frustration and causes believers to remain in the middle of problems and circumstances that can be overcome through prayer. They are left unable to fulfill their calling as God’s priests and ambassadors in the world.
Prayer is meant to be answered—or else God would not ask us to pray. He isn’t interested in wasting your time and efforts. He is too practical for that. He is interested in results, not just “many words” (Matt. 6:7) spoken in prayer. Jesus’ approach to prayer was also very practical. He didn’t pray without expecting to be heard. At one point He said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me” (John 11:41–44). We need to know how to approach God and to learn the kind of prayers God responds to. We need to pray as Jesus prayed.
God is loving and gracious. He knows we have a limited understanding of Himself and His ways, and that we struggle with our fallen nature. That is why He will at times answer our prayers even when they are weak and full of doubt. However, as a loving Father, He wants us to grow and mature. He doesn’t want to leave us in our weakness and uncertainty.
Your brother in Christ,
Apostle Ashok Martin