Mentoring Men for the Master

HOW TO WALK ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF HALLELUJAH AVE.

I often speak of walking on the Sunny Side of Hallelujah Ave.  Is this just rhetoric or is it reality.  It is reality for any born again person who will pray according to the guideline of Ephesians 5:18.

Please note 7 components of prayer:

  • Pray always. This does not mean to keep on saying your prayers.  Matthew   6:7 says, “we are not heard for our much speaking.  Praying always means.
    1. always be in communion with the Lord
    2. always be God conscious
    3. always be God dependant.

Don’t ever have to pray, “we come into Your presence”, because we should   never leave His presence.

  • Pray with all kinds of prayer. There is more than one kind of prayer, such as intercession, thanksgiving, or praise.  The believer who only ask for things misses out on much.  Intercession alone brings great victors.  Read Job 42:10 and James 5:16.
  • Pray with your eyes open. The phrase, ”watch and pray” occurs often in the Bible.  Nehemiah worked on the wall while others watched and prayed  (“Neh. 4:9).  Peter went to sleep when he should have been awake praying and Satan won the victory.  God expects us to use our God-given senses so we can detect Satan when he is about to work.
  • Pray with supplication. The word supplication means to be definite and specific (Mark 11:24).  People who just pray in generalities will probably cease praying because they never know if any prayer is answered.  The supreme motivator for prayer is to see your prayers answered.  Thus, you should ask specifically and then you will see God answer.
  • Pray in the Holy Spirit. The Bible formula for prayer is this; to the Father, to the Son and in the Holy Spirit.  Only by the spirit can we pray in God’s will (Romans 8:26).  Illus:  The word “help” is a word of seventeen letters in Greek which means “take hold the other end”.  This reminds me of the times when my Dad would say to the boys as he was moving heavy objects, “I will lift this end while you take hold of the other end.”  How wonderful to know the Holy Spirit lifts our prayers to the Father and interprets our hearts so our prayers can be answered.  Illus:  I prayed for mother to live to be 100 but I had her highest welfare at heart.  The Holy Spirit told the Father this, and God took her home at 99 to save her for more sorry.
  • Keep on praying. This means stick to it and don’t quit.  Many Christians stop praying just before God is ready to give the victory.  Illus:  Doris and I prayed for her father’s salvation 33 years before he finally accepted the Lord. Just seven months before he died, he came to me and asked me to tell him how to be saved.  In several places we are specifically commanded to pray without ceasing- Luke 18:1; 1 Thess. 5:17;  Ephesians 5:18.
  • Pray for all the saints. The Lord’s prayer begins, “Our Father”, not “My Father” .  We should pray as a member of the great family of God everywhere.  Below is an example of how you can manage your prayer life in order to accomplish this.
  1. Sunday  – I pray for missionaries and the World Mission of Christ.
  2. Monday –  I pray for who are in authority.
  3. Tuesday –  I pray for the lost masses of the world.
  4. Wednesday –  I pray for my friends.
  5. Thursday –  I pray for spiritual leaders of our nation and world.
  6. Friday –  I pray for my relatives.
  7. Saturday –  I pray for pastors and local churches.

The evidences of prayerlessness:

  1. Burdens
  2. Discouragement
  3. Depression
  4. Weariness
  5. Frustration and Confusion
  6. We lie down our guard.
  7. Satan moves in.