Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Are we a church of prayer?  I read an interesting quote by Richard Burr that said, “The level of one’s spiritual life will never exceed the level of one’s prayer life.”  And so the questions we might ask ourselves are these:  What exactly is prayer?  Are there different kinds of prayer?  How often should we pray?  Does the level of prayer in each person’s life affect the work of the church?  What might the results of prayer be?

Prayer is the communication we have with the Lord.  It can be a conversation of thought, of words expressed  aloud, or perhaps shared with the Lord in the reading of Scripture - such as praying through the Book of Psalms.  It should always be open and honest (since God knows what is in our hearts, nothing will catch Him by surprise so we can’t fool Him by telling just parts of a story or situation), reverent, and most certainly should include ample time to “listen” for the Lord’s response or leading.

Are there different kinds of prayer?  Certainly.  There are times when we pray in groups, such as during a worship service.  There are times when we pray in small groups, such as Bible studies or youth group or as a family.  There are times when prayer is a time when just two people are sharing their hearts with the Lord.  Lastly, there are the times when we pray to the Lord, just one to one.

So, if we see the applicability of Pastor Burr’s statement, then how often should we pray?  Well, because prayer is an important part of our relationship with the Lord, we can compare it to the relationships we have in our lives!  For a married couple, a family, or good friends, does the frequency and depth of communication have an impact on the quality of the relationship?  Of course.  The more consistent and meaningful the conversations, the deeper the relationship will grow.  It is just as true, then, in our relationship with the Lord.  The more we engage in those conversations (sharing and listening), the stronger that relationship will be. Conversely, the less often we pray, the weaker that relationship will be.

Does the level of an individual’s prayer life affect the church as a whole?  Yes.  The church is made up of the people of God, those who follow the Risen Lord and love Him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love others unconditionally.  The greater the strength of each individual’s prayer life, the greater the combined strength of the church in its prayerful witness to the community and world.  A church filled with people of prayer is a church filled with an effective outreach to the community.

And the result of deep, fervent, prayer?  It will change lives for eternity.  It will change communities, states, and a nation.  Fervent prayer will change the dark things of this world to light.  Fervent prayer will turn a cold, hard heart to one of warmth and softness.  Why will these things happen?  It is part of God’s will.  He wants us to pray and, when we do, He will lead us to more and greater prayer.  As we learn to pray more effectively within His will, He will answer more and more of the prayers.  As this process evolves, a natural result will be the increase of our spiritual lives and relationship with the Lord.  As the level of our prayer commitment goes up, the level of our spirituality will follow.

May Grant Reformed Church always be known as a Church of Prayer.  We don’t have big programs to entertain the public.  We aren’t able to serve meals to hundreds of people each week.  We don’t beam a TV show to tens of thousands every Sunday.  But we have committed and faithful members who can do something that is still eternally powerful and effective, doesn’t cost a cent, has no limits, and is 100% in the will of God…we can pray.

Let us do so throughout each day, and rejoice.

For the Glory of the Name,

Pastor Mik