The Power of Prayer: A Journey Toward God

Embracing the Call to Pray

In preparation for this morning, I read a story about a fire. A newspaper wanted close-up pictures, so they hired a plane from a nearby airport. When the photographer arrived, a plane was ready and waiting. He jumped in and yelled, Take off! The pilot obeyed without question.

Once in the air, the photographer shouted for low passes over the fire. The surprised pilot asked, Why? The photographer replied, Because I’m a photographer! That’s why I’m here. The pilot, alarmed, responded, You mean you’re not the flight instructor?

Both men made dangerously wrong assumptions. The photographer thought he was in the right plane. The pilot assumed his passenger had the necessary skills. I can only imagine their assumptions quickly turned into fervent prayer. Isn’t that what we often do? We know prayer is good, yet we often give it less attention when all seems well.

The Importance of Prayer in Our Lives

Prayer is universal. Every religion prays—Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Jews, and even those who don’t identify with a religion. When life takes a dramatic turn, we instinctively reach out for something greater than ourselves. Some burn incense, others lay out sacrificial food, and many turn toward Mecca. These actions vary, but they all reflect a common human desire to connect with a higher power when our resources fall short.

Why do we pray? Ecclesiastes 3:11 tells us that God has set eternity in their heart. The psalmist reminds us, The fool says in his heart, there is no God (Ps 14:1).

But what if real prayer—life-changing and life-shaping prayer—isn’t just for emergencies? What if our prayers are meant to deepen our relationship with God? They should be our spiritual bread and water, enabling us to truly live. As followers of Jesus, we are called to pray to a God who delights in us. He has created us for a relationship with Him. Our prayers are not mere obligations or rituals; they are invitations to experience the joy of who He is.

The Struggles of Prayer

Yet, here’s the challenge: we know we should pray, but it can be hard. Sermons about prayer often leave us feeling guilty rather than joyful. We know we should pray, but making it a normal part of our lives isn’t always easy. We may even recall times when our prayers didn’t seem to yield results, leading us to wonder if they’re just echoing against a closed ceiling.

This experience clashes with what Scripture tells us. Jeremiah 33:2-3 states, This is what the Lord says, He who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it—Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

God wants us to know Him and to trust Him, even when the answers don’t make sense. We might feel like God doesn’t care or love us, especially when our prayers seem unanswered. Yet, as believers in Jesus, we are assured that God is passionately committed to us. We are invited to draw near to the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace in our time of need (Heb 4:16).

Seeking God's Face

We are called to pray and seek God’s face (2 Chron 7:14). Seeking His face means focusing on His greatness, glory, love, and power. Historically, making eye contact with royalty was seen as challenging authority. Lowering one’s gaze was a sign of respect. Yet, with the King of all kings, we are invited to seek His face. God desires an audience with us, welcoming us into His presence without reservation.

God, our Heavenly Father, takes the initiative to break down every barrier so we can run into His presence. We are not to crawl or cower but to run into Him as His beloved children. Just like you and me.

David Wilkerson observed, We have absolute access to the very presence of the living God. Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith (Heb 10:19-22). This access was granted after Jesus was crucified, died, and was resurrected. The veil in the temple was torn in two, allowing us to meet with God face to face!

The word boldness in this verse means with open, undisguised publicity. Beloved, that “publicity” is for the devil’s sake. It means we can confidently declare to every demon, “I have a right by the blood of Jesus Christ to walk into the presence of God and talk to Him!”

The Goodness of Our Father

Jesus reminds us that we are approaching a good Father. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? (Lk 11:11). If you, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?

I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened (Lk 11:9-10).

The Challenge of Belief

Our problem is simple: I don’t believe it. Not really. Jesus isn’t saying, “Just believe it, and you will have it.” He’s not a heavenly vending machine. James clarifies that we should pray for what God wants to accomplish, not merely for our enjoyment. Our prayers should align with God’s heart as we come face to face with Him.

So, what does He want? Ephesians 3:16-17 tells us, I pray that out of His glorious riches, He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. This love surpasses knowledge so that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God (Eph 3:17-19).

Understanding Our Prayers

Given what He wants us to know and have, how is it that we often pray too small? The more we understand what we’ve been given in Him—His power, hope, and inheritance—the more we can pray as beloved children of the mighty King. We are called to ask God to do far more than we have seen or believed. Our far more comes not just from asking but from knowing Him and obeying Him.

As 2 Chronicles 16:9 reminds us, God shows Himself strong to those who are fully committed to Him.

The Need for Strength

Simply put, our strength must be in Him because our power is only in Him. This power is essential in a world where Satan seeks to rule. He opposes us from every angle—through anxiety, fears, and uncertainty. He also reminds us of past failures and hurts, wanting to keep us mired in guilt. But if you are in Christ, you have been set free!

Charles Spurgeon wisely noted, Prayer pulls the rope down below, and the great bell rings above in the ears of God. Some scarcely stir the bell, for they pray so languidly; others give only an occasional jerk at the rope. But he who communicates with heaven is the man who grasps the rope boldly and pulls continuously with all his might.

A Call to Bold Prayer

For our church, our call for the year ahead is to be people who pray and seek God. We must pray boldly as we have never prayed before—for our families, friends, and church. We should pray for revival, understanding that prayer will change us before it changes the things we encounter.

Prayer works to align us with God’s will before any demonstration of His power through us.

To that end, we also want to be people who will fast and pray. Jesus told His disciples that This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting (Mk 9:29).

I must admit, I haven’t spent much time fasting. It wasn’t emphasized in the churches I attended. Yet, the Bible is filled with references to fasting. Jesus and Paul both practiced it. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke of fasting as something not if you do, but when you do. Fasting is a time marked between His ascension and return (Mtt 9:14-17).

Fasting is not meant to be seen as super spiritual. Instead, it’s a way to see God move. It acknowledges our need for the spiritual over the physical, the heavenly over the earthly, and the supernatural over the natural. It’s about coming to God in humility, desperate for Him to do what only He can do.

God's Call to Fasting

For a few moments, let’s closely examine what God says about fasting in Isaiah 58.

Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to My people their rebellion and to Jacob’s descendants their sins. (Isaiah 58:1)

For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them. (Isaiah 58:2)

Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high. (Isaiah 58:3-4)

Is THIS the kind of fast I have chosen? Only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is THAT what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? (Isaiah 58:5)

Is not THIS the kind of fasting I have chosen? To loose the chains of injustice, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set free the oppressed, and to break every yoke? (Isaiah 58:6)

Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your ow