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The Power of Prayer

Prayer is religious nourishment. Just as the body desires bodily provisions, so the soul desires religious provisions. Prayer changes us. Prayer is powerful. Prayer has the authority to alter conditions, other people and even the path of history.

God ‘closely attends to the prayers of God-loyal people. Your prayers can make a difference in what happens. The Lord is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous. Prayer and careful preparation are not opposed to each other. As well as talking with God, it is wise to get advice from others.

What made the early church so powerful? Surely, part of the answer is the prayer lives of those first believers.

Pray regularly

What made the early church so powerful? Surely, part of the answer is the prayer lives of those first believers. Christian prayer is powerful because we pray, not in our own name, but in the name of Jesus. The name of Jesus is so powerful. The only way to deal with demonic power is through the name of Jesus. No demon is a match for Jesus. Jesus sets us free from demonic forces.

Pray in all circumstances

The woman was a slave who made a lot of money for the people who owned her. Her owners were furious that she had lost her supernatural powers. They seized Paul and Silas, ‘roughed them up’, ‘arrested them’ and hauled them off to court. They whipped up the crowd against them. Life is not always going to be easy if we start making a difference. Some of our views may be very unpopular or even illegal. ‘Attacks’ are not necessarily a mark of failure; they may be a sign of success.

The magistrates bowed to the pressure and ordered that they should be stripped, severely flogged and thrown into prison under heavy guard where they ‘clamped leg irons on them. The prison officer would have been used to people coming into prison angry, cursing and swearing. By contrast, he sees Paul and Silas praying, worshipping and singing hymns to God. There is great power in this combination of prayer and worship. An earthquake shook the prison and every door flew open. The prison officer in charge was about to commit suicide as he thought all his prisoners had escaped and he feared the consequences. Paul, faced with freedom, chose instead to stay, and bring his jailor to Christ. When Paul assured him that all the prisoners were still there he asked, ‘What must I do to be saved?’ Paul explained what the prison officer had to do and thus he, and afterward, his whole family believed in Jesus and were baptized.

These events were so clearly supernatural that Paul saw the astonishing power of God behind the human agency of his words. Prayer has the power not just to change our own lives but also circumstances, events and the lives of others.

  • Question of

    To what extend do you agree that prayer has the power not just to change lives but also circumstances?

    • To a large extent
    • To a little extent
    • I do not agree at all
  • Question of

    To what extend do you agree that the impact of David’s prayer was to change the course of history

    • To a large extent
    • To a little extent
    • I do not agree at all
  • Question of

    To what extend do you agree that your prayers also can change the course of history?

    • To a large extent
    • To a little extent
    • I do not agree at all
  • Question of

    To what extend do you agree that there is great power in this combination of prayer and worship?

    • To a large extent
    • To a little extent
    • I do not agree at all

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What do you think?

8 Comments

  1. The lost sheep looks for his master by bleating, and we can bleat to God too, and he will always hear the distinctive bleating, or praying, of every soul in his fold.