A Prospective on Priorities Part Two
by Randall Worley (Transformational Thinking)
In the first installment of "A Prospective on Priorities" we discussed the power of focus. We now turn our attention to the primacy of prayer. For most the subject of prayer evokes feelings of condemnation and ineptness. Your awareness of its importance and your lack of initiative perpetuates spiritual inertia. When you read that you should "pray without ceasing" you feel that to be an unrealistic requirement considering the relentless demands of your daily schedule. It is not my intention to accentuate that feeling by condemning you, but correcting your perspective on prayer. Over the years I have observed the devoted and consistent prayer life of people that I admire and have found myself discouraged rather than encouraged. I heard it said once that sometimes "there is nothing worse than a good example." I know that sounds strange. But, the simple truth is you cannot make the mistake of starting where someone else is. You have to start where you are. I am sure you have heard the maxim that "the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step." Stop what you are doing right now and ask the Lord to impart to you a fresh desire to seek Him. The word "desire" is a compound word that clarifies the impetus you need to get started. "De" and "sire". The prefix "de" meaning "from" and "sire" meaning "father" or from the father. Discipline is a important component to mantaining the priorty of prayer, but discipline alone will dissipate in time. The discipline of the Pharisees in prayer was legendary but the Lord said that their heart was far from Him. Allow me to be vulnerable with you about my own struggle in the last few months. For sometime I continued going through the motions of ministry having a degree of perceived sucess with a prayer life that was almost nonexistent. My focus had been ministry "for" Him rather than "to" Him. I have learned that it is possible to know about Him and still not know Him. The Lord told me thirty years ago that I would either seek him by choice or by crisis. Unfortunately crisis was the catalyst that helped me to regain the priority of prayer. I have learned to embrace the Lord's judgment rather than question it. Judgment is not a negative thing but really the Lord's severe mercy turning us back to the ulitmate priorty of knowing Him. The Lord is jealous for us and will not allow anything or anyone to take precedence over our relationship with Him.I had allowed providing for my family, financial fears, and fear of the future to take precedence over my need to seek Him. Matthew 6:8 says "your Father knows what you need before you ask." This verse begs the question "if He knows what we need before we pray, why ask?" Prayer is the only way to differentiate between real needs and felt needs. The purpose of prayer is not to inform God about our problems but to inquire of Him that we might see what He sees. God does not come into our illusion to deliver us; He invites us through prayer to enter His reality. He alone is our source and our solution. Ironically, the problems that persistently plague us indicates to us, who or what we have allowed to become our source. Our desire to seek Him can be fickle vacillating between intensity one day to indifference the next. I am learning anew the inestimable value of beginning every day by asking the Father to infuse me with desire. A desire that is throughout the day only one degree away from boiling over into passionate intimacy with Him.
by sconto lipitor
December 8th, 2008 (04:12)