The Benefits of Praying (Pt.4)

May the blessings of the Lord rest upon you in the name of Jesus. We began this month by looking at the preliminaries of prayer, and the Lord been faithful to us we have learned a lot from the revelation he has given us. I told you that I will be praying for you on 21^st of April, 2019, and to the glory of God, I have done that. What I am waiting for right now are your testimonies that will be mind-blowing.

Today, I have an interesting revelation to share with you concerning the benefits of praying. My desire is that, as you read these revelations from the word of God, you are able to practice it and apply it into your lives.

The Voice of God

If you ever want to hear the voice of God, the first place to begin is to culture yourself to be a prayer warrior. A man who is always praying is a man that will continue to hear the voice of God. Throughout the Scriptures, you will notice that people who are committed to the lifestyle of prayer are those who always hear the voice of God. So, as a child of God, your moments of prayer are the moment of hearing the voice of God.

Acts 13:2

As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

Do you know? That even Jesus had to practice this to be able to hear the voice of God always during the time of his ministry in the face of the earth?

Luke 3:21-22

1 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,

22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

It was as Jesus was praying that the voice from heaven spoke, “Thou art my beloved son; in thee, I am well pleased.”

If indeed you want to continue to hear the voice of God, the number one key you must hold dear to your heart is the lifestyle of prayer.

Faith

The easiest way to grow your faith is to spend time with God. The more you spend time with God in prayer, the more your faith grows.

Acts 4:13

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Do you remember Uncle Peter, who denied Jesus before a little child? (Matthew 26:69-70). After spending time with Jesus, Uncle Peter became bold and fearless. That he could even rebuke his persecutors right in their faces. What happened to Peter? His faith simply grew. Has this ever happened to you? Sometimes when you go very deep in prayer, you feel like you can ask for anything at that moment and get it. At that point, your faith rose to that summit because you are spending time with God in prayer. The place of prayer is the platform for the development of your faith.

Sanctification

There is a popularly quoted Scripture and I will also quote it, “my eyes are too holy to behold iniquity.” (1 Peter 1:16). As frequently quoted as the Scripture may be, there is a great revelation in it that guarantees our sanctification when we pray to God. God loves you very much. And he desires to spend time with you more than you want to spend time with him. In the Garden of Eden, God comes down in the cool of the evening to spend time with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3: 8). If there is sin in your life, the first thing God does in order to ensure that your communication of prayer with him is not hindered is to purify you. The moment you open your mouth to pray, God set afoot the process of your purification. If not, your time of prayer with him will be profitless. You see, beloved of the Lord, to be prayerful is to live a life of sanctification. And what is the benefit of sanctification? The Bible says blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8). Seeing God does not only mean when you go into eternity. It also means that you will see the hand of God in every sphere of your life. The benefits of prayer outweigh anything you can imagine.

If we can actually look at the life of old saints in the Bible, we can learn a lot from them. The Bible says in the book of Psalm 119:164:

Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgements

For David, he goes into the presence of God seven times a day. Each time you go into the presence of God whether, for prayer or praise, you are purified and sanctified. David understood this principle, so he praised God seven times a day. In other words, David was purified seven times in a day.

Revelation

If you need revelation concerning your life or the word of God, then prayer should be your tabernacle. It is at the place of prayer that God reveals to you things concerning your future. Even revelation from the word of God is gotten in the place of prayer (Act 13:2). It was as the disciples ministered unto the Lord in prayers that they got a revelation concerning the life of Paul and Barnabas. The devil is aware of the huge benefits of prayer that is why he prefers to keep believers busy throughout the day and not to have a single time for prayer so that they can miss out on divine revelation. Friends, if we are in need of revelation, then we must always pray.

Deliverance from Temptation

Jesus didn’t want his disciple to fall into temptation so he urged them to pray.

Luke 22:46

And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

The disciples neglected the counsel of Jesus concerning prayer, therefore, their fall into temptation was inevitable. The devil sends temptation in order to trap the believer into sin and subsequently destroyed the child of God. Prayer is a shield against all the temptations of the devil. A prayerful believer, will no doubt, escape all the temptations of the devil.

The Place of Transformation

2 Corinthians 3:18

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

The Bible says as we constantly behold his face, we are being transformed into his image. And it is impossible to behold the face of the Lord without going into his presence. As you enter into his presence in prayer, you are being transformed into his image. When that happens, we lead exceptional Christian lives that will transform our entire generation. This transformation happens in the place of prayer.

Friends, I want you to begin to look at prayer above the normal flow of communication between you and God. Do not also view your prayer as a platform for asking God for this or for that. It is above that. It is through prayer that you can get divine direction, hear the voice of God, be sanctified, and be transformed into the image of God. Do you want to get all these benefits of prayer? If yes, look at your prayer as a lifestyle.

God bless you.