God's Word: Let's Pray It

Last Friday in this space I sought to remind us that the church is in a battle. In a battle, good armies pay attention to three main things: the strategy for victory, the tactical application of that strategy, and the logistical considerations required to support the tactics.

In the church, our objective is to glorify God by worshiping Him, obeying Him, and bringing the lost to Christ: that’s the strategy. The tactical application of that strategy includes the “how-to’s” of ministry. Logistics involves finding the supplies, asking God to meet our needs.

But just read most of our prayer lists, and you might conclude that we are an army that has turned things upside down: preoccupied with logistics, but mostly unaware of our strategic purpose or our tactical orders.

So, what then must we do to expand our practice of prayer?

The obvious first answer is to remember that we are, indeed, at war. There is a devil who hates God and His people, and there is a world increasingly hostile to the clear claims of Jesus Christ. Even our own sinful natures are at odds with God. We need to re-orient our entire outlook into a constantly conscious awareness of the state of war that exists, and in which we are called to be warriors.

A second way to expand our prayer-lives is to learn to pray what’s on God’s heart, rather than simply praying those felt needs that preoccupy our minds and emotions. However, maintaining a focus on the big picture can be tough: as the old adage says, “It’s hard to remember that your job is draining the swamp, when you’re up to your elbows in alligators.” But, to carry that illustration out, if we would ask God to help us drain the swamp, then little by little the alligator problem would go away.

God knows the big picture, the overall strategy of the church, and we must learn to pray strategically about that big plan. That means catching hold of His heart, learning to pray back to God what He tells us in His Word.

In practical terms, it works like this. As we spend time reading God’s Word, He enlivens His Word as He seeks to pour into our hearts that which is on His heart. Then, we simply pray His Word back to Him. The Word of God then serves not only as the guide for your life, but as your prayer list.

A good place to start this approach would be in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Carefully read the first chapter, and highlight the big-picture plans God reveals there. Then simply pray back to God the strategic matters He lays on your heart.

That particular chapter is filled with God’s eternal purpose for Christ and Church. As I read that amazing text, it always excites me to consider what God wants to accomplish through the church. But let’s do more than consider it.

Let’s pray it!