Spiritual Growth - prayer

This week we are continuing in our mini series on Spiritual Growth.

Colossians 2:6-7

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as LORD, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."

This scripture highlights that accepting Jesus is not a one time event, but a continuous process of walking and living in Him. The Apostle Paul encourages believers to live a life rooted in and built up by Jesus.

What does this mean?

Being "rooted" in Jesus signifies having deep, firm roots in Him, like the roots of a tree. The roots of a tree go deep into the ground, drawing sustenance and stability. Similarly, when we are rooted in Christ, we draw strength and nourishment from Him, growing stronger, more mature and more like Jesus every day.

As outlined in last week's devotional, the three foundational pillars of Spiritual Growth are:

Engaging with God through the Bible (which we covered last week), engaging with God in prayer and engaging with God's people.

ENGAGING WITH GOD IN PRAYER

God is eager and willing to listen to us, no matter what we are going through, we can turn to Him and know that He is listening. Prayer is the opportunity to express every feeling, every fear, every longing and every desire to our Heavenly Father. As we open ourselves to God in prayer, He takes our burdens and concerns, our hopes and our fears upon Himself. We sense His love for us, and we can leave our cares with Him.

"Casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7).

Jesus prayed often, before making important decisions in His earthly ministry, and He was always in constant communication with His Father. He often withdrew to lonely places to pray (Luke 5:16). He took Peter, John and James up on a mountain to pray (Luke 9:28) and we see in Luke 6:12 and Matthew 14:23, "He spent the night praying to God."

Jesus knew the power of prayer!

Why would anyone stay up all night praying, unless they were convinced that it was not only essential but worthwhile.

Leonard Ravenhill, author and evangelist talks about prayer in his book "Why Revival Tarries" (1959):

"No man is greater than his prayer life. The pastor who is not praying is playing; the people who are not praying are straying."

He continues:

"Poverty-stricken as the Church is today in many things, she is more stricken here, in the place of prayer. We have many organisers, but few agonisers; many players and payers, few prayers; ...... Failing here, we fail everywhere."

The Prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective (James 5:16).

When we pray, do we believe that our prayers are powerful and effective?

If we do believe, and we know that God hears us, and that He delights in answering prayer, then why do we not pray so much more than we do?

Sometimes we forget how important it is and how powerful it is, and we get distracted by life, and all its busy-ness.

What would happen if we prayed more?

The more we pray, the more God answers and the more we see Him in our lives. Time spent with God in prayer allows us to renew our minds, strengthens our spirits and fill up with more of God's love and divine perspective, when life tends to drain us.

As we create space and make time to meet with our Creator, we find our connection to Him increasing, and our intimacy with Him growing.

Time invested in prayer and in studying the Bible is time well spent, and are meant to be enjoyed together. God speaks through His word, as the Holy Spirit enlightens our minds and hearts to understand it. It is like a river that runs through every aspect of our lives, refreshing, nourishing and growing us, and the Holy Spirit uses to transform and change us for the better.

How wonderful is that!

Next week we will conclude our series on Spiritual Growth focusing on 'Engaging with God's people.'