Impossibility

“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing." (Martin Luther King, Jr.) 

Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again. (James 5:16-18, The Message)

 

What barriers hinder your prayer life from being a powerful part of your Christianity?  (Do what you need to do to erase these seven hindrances from your prayer life.)

1.      Disobedience-Yet if I had closed my eyes to my sin; the Lord God would have closed his ears to my prayer. (Psalm 66:18, The Passion Translation)

 

If there is a sin in your life you refuse to repent of, it will affect your closeness to your heavenly Father.

 

2.      Pride-¹⁰ “One time there was a Pharisee and a tax collector. One day they both went to the Temple to pray. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood alone, away from the tax collector. When the Pharisee prayed, he said, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not as bad as other people. I am not like men who steal, cheat, or commit adultery. I thank you that I am better than this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week, and I give a tenth of everything I get.’

¹³ “The tax collector stood alone too. But when he prayed, he would not even look up to heaven. He felt very humble before God. He said, ‘O God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.’ ¹⁴ I tell you, when this man finished his prayer and went home, he was right with God. But the Pharisee, who felt that he was better than others, was not right with God. People who make themselves important will be made humble. But those who make themselves humble will be made important.” (Luke 18:10-14, Easy-to-Read Version)

False pride keeps us attached to our sins of entitlement, which shows a lack of God’s grace and humility.

 

3.     Unforgiveness- When you are praying, and you remember that you are angry with another person about something, then forgive him. If you do this, then your Father in heaven will also forgive your sins.” (Mark 11:25, International Children’s Bible)

 

While reconciliation takes two people, forgiveness only requires one individual. Bitterness and resentment can hurt you emotionally.

 

4.     Independence-  I [Jesus] am the vine, and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear great fruit. Without Me, you will accomplish nothing. (John 15:5, The Voice)

Don’t be the kind of person who only prays to Jesus (when you are in trouble). You need to be dependent on Jesus for everything in your life (if you expect Him to be present in your time of need).

5.     Doubt-But when you ask God, you must believe. Don’t doubt him. Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that is blown up and down by the wind. (James 1:6, Easy-to-Read Version)

Your faith must be in only God, and not your abilities. He wants to answer your prayers, but faith cannot be used as a tool to control Him.

6.     Passivity-You jealously want what others have so you begin to see yourself as better than others. You scheme with envy and harm others to selfishly obtain what you crave—that’s why you quarrel and fight. And all the time you don’t obtain what you want because you won’t ask God for it. (James 4:2,The Passion Translation)

 

You must offer specific prayers for specific answers. Your heavenly Father wishes to hear from you (although He already knows what you need).Sometimes God needs you to be the answers to some of your own prayers (and not Him).

 

7.     Selfishness-And if you ask, you won’t receive it for you’re asking with corrupt motives; seeking only to fulfill your own selfish desires. (James 4:3, The Passion Translation)

Sometimes, you can pray for all the right things for all the wrong reasons.  Is there a lot of interference between your prayers and God?

“God made you to be the answer to someone else’s prayers. Keep your eyes open.”  (facebook.com/GodStillspeaks.com)

 

Prayer is not a “spare wheel” that you pull out when in trouble, But it is a “steering wheel” that directs the right path throughout life. (Anonymous)

 Dear God, I am not okay. I am not myself. I am drained. Please calm my mind. Heal my heart, and take away my worries. Amen.[i]

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[i] Inspired by the sermon “Abolish Barriers: Powerful & Effectual Prayer,”  (installment one) Sunday January 10, 2021, Pastor Dave Jansen (CPG).  All CenterPoint churches have returned to an online format because of the increase in COVID-19 cases in central Ohio. Sunday morning online services can be viewed at facebook.com/centerpointchurches or centerpointchurches.com/live. (In-person services will resume on Sunday, January 24, 2021 at all CenterPoint campuses)