Prayer is More than Words

And prayer is more than an order of words, 

the conscious occupation

Of the praying mind, or the sound of the voice praying.

- T.S Eliot

Matthew 26:36-46

³⁶ Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” 

³⁷ And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. 

³⁸ Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”

³⁹ He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

⁴⁰ Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? ⁴¹ Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless^[a]I drink it, Your will be done.” 

⁴³ And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.

⁴⁴ So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

 ⁴⁵ Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 

⁴⁶ Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”

The Time of Prayer

Throughout the story of Jesus life the Bible gives us things to look at, observe, and heed. It is here in Matthew 26 that we find one of the greatest prayers in the Bible. This is right before Jesus would be betrayed by Judas Iscariot and begin the ending of his life. Circumstance seems to deem a call home! Even Jesus in time of need makes a call to the Father. So then there is always a time for prayer. 

Psychology gives us a pretty good outline of when to pray. There are more of course but here are some categories. 

For example, times of:

• Sadness
• Anger
• Joy 
• Fear
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Lust 
• Shame

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22
16Rejoice always, 17pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19Do not quench the Spirit. 20Do not despise prophecies. 21Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22Abstain from every form of evil.

v.36-38
Where then should we go in these times?
Where did the Master go? God.
So it is with us, we need to make a call.

The Way to Prayer 

v.39-42 
a little further....on the brink of physical exhaustion because of what was on his mind; the wrath of God would soon be poured ut onto Him, he would be seperated from His Father!

Why? To save mankind......

1. Prayer is reverent and we need to know Who we are speaking to.
2. Humility is the forefront of prayer, we are asking for God to intervene on our behalf and for our good!
3. His will NOT ours for our lives should always be first. 

³⁹ He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

1. We make our request, God hears it and will respond according to His will.
2. God is Omniscient-all knowing of all people, at all times. Prayer is for us God doesn't need to be informed but rather wants us to be in line with the way He wants things to go.

⁴⁰ Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? ⁴¹ Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴² Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless^[a]I drink it, Your will be done.” 

1. It is ok to ask for something more than once. It is the constant knocking at heaven's door that will provide clarity and wisdom for that needed time. 

The Answer of Prayer  

v. 45-46 ⁴⁵ Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”

1. God always answers prayer.
2. He may say yes or no.

John 16:13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 

Apply It-
Dear one, Make the call home!  
Do you know when it is time to pray? 
God's will where is it in your prayer life top, botttom, not at all?
God's answer is the best one whether yes, no, not yet, or wait.

Prayer is Spiritual

^{Learning from Jesus} 

^Outline

John 17

This takes place right before Jesus was betrayed by Judas and before He would be crucified.  There are many things to be learned from Jesus prayer to God. 

Read v. 1-5

Jesus Prays for Himself

• Our relationship to God the Father is that of a Son. 

Read v. 6-18

Jesus Prays for His Disciples

• The key to a relationship with God is this phrase "the word".

John 1:14 

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

^{Read v.20-26}

^{Jesus Prays for All Believers of All Time} 

• We are to be used for His glory! 

Romans 12:1-2

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

• We are to be kept from evil and to keep from evil!

• Prayer is a spiritual act! 

^{2 Corinthians 10:3-5}

³ For though we walk in the flesh, we do not                     war according to the flesh. 

⁴ For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

Applying It!----

Prayer then is about communicating with God about how we put His word to work in our minds, actions, and lives so that we can be used for God's glory!

Where to Start?

Prayer is simply a two-way conversation 

between you and God.

-Billy Graham

 Conversation is one of our essential needs. Everyday we come into contact with people and speak back and forth. As one of God's dear ones, his children we need to know that we can speak to God and he will answer us. At first, when we first come to faith it can seem overwhelming to learn how to pray. And maybe even frightening for some. We will look at a few different passages in the Bible over the next weeks, today I want us to focus on the daily things of prayer to God. 

Luke 11:1-4
1Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
2So He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
3Give us day by day our daily bread.
4And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.”

God's relation to us.

v.1-2

1. Prayer is about God and then about us. The first part of this passage is pointing us upward to God. 

Where is God? ...v. 2 Heaven

That is the dwelling place of God and in us lives his Holy Spirit.

So there is communication back and forth.

His name ....

v.2 Hallowed 

Without sin......holy

What are we a part of? v.2

His Kingdom

What should we be seeking? v.2

His will

Daily I am to be talking to God abut His name, His kingdom, and His will! Most quickly you and I are able to find and come up with things in which we need prayer which is alright but lets make sure we view God as holy and sovereign  before we do any asking.

Our relation to God.

v.3-4

KJV- give us this Day our daily bread.......

There is a relation between eating and days.

So then just like we eat everyday so we ought to pray everyday.

Just like we eat multiple times a day we pray.

forgive our sins.....

1 John 1:9 

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

forgive everyone who is indebted to us.....

1 Thessalonians 5:14-15

Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. 15 See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.

do not lead us into temptation.....

1 Corin. 10:13

 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

deliver us from the evil one.....

Luke 22:31-32

31And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
32But I have prayed for you, that your faith fail not: and when you have returned, strengthen your brethren.
Conversation is limited to morning and evening and meal times...

It is vivid not this lifeless time-out we impose on our day because we feel like 

we have to. A conversational lifestyle is what prayer is. Yours, personal, real, meaningful, powerful.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22

16Rejoice always, 17pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19Do not quench the Spirit. 20Do not despise prophecies. 21Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22Abstain from every form of evil.

His Kingdom.
His Will.
His Name.