Desire and Prayer

As I continue to grow in my love for the LORD and His word, my desire to talk to Him through prayer continues to grow as well. Someone who has helped me to treasure the privilege of prayer more is E.M. Bounds. He was a civil war chaplain and wrote numerous books on prayer. Please don't think I know him personally because he is at home with the Lord, (has been for quite some time now!) but through the reading of his books on prayer, he has become a mentor to me in regards to prayer. I have had the book for many years and it is one I cannot live without. I go to it all the time.

Do you have a desire to pray? A desire to talk to God? A desire for God? E.M. connects desire and prayer in such a way I had never thought of before. I pray this speaks to you this morning.

On pg. 31 E.M says: " Not praying is the fearful sign that desire has ceased to live. That person whose desire for God no longer presses into the inner chamber, has turned from Him. There can be no successful praying without consuming desire. .....Desire is intense, but narrow; it cannot spread itself over a wide area. It wants a few things, but it wants them badly. So badly, in fact, that nothing but God's willingness to answer can bring it relief or content.....Prayer is not the rehearsal of a mere performance. Neither is it an indefinite, scattered, petition. Prayer is an essential phase of a spiritual habit, but it ceases to be prayer when carried by habit alone." (E.M. Bounds, The Classic Collection on Prayer; pp. 31. Published by Bridge-Logos. Orlando, Fl.)

I love what E.M. says about prayer,"not praying is the fearful sign that desire has ceased to live." Wow! So the question we ask ourselves is, "Am I praying? If I'm not, what is my desire toward knowing and enjoying God? Do I really desire to know Him? Do I desire His presence, His will, His power in my life? Do I desire to pray?

Desire in my own life looks like this: When I desire a piece of chocolate cake, I am going to do all it takes to find a piece of it or better yet, make it myself. I won't wait to eat it, I'll eat it right then because there is nothing more I want than to be satisfied by the taste of it. The texture of it. The icing, the sweetness of the chocolate. I want it. I desire it. I can't get it off my mind until I have it. We know what desire is. But is our desire for God more than the desire we have for food? for material possessions? for money? for dreams and goals in life? 

As David said, "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD, all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple." (Psalm 27:4) He desired the LORD. He desired to seek after him, to live in his presence while on this earth. David, not without many faults, pressed in toward God through prayer. He brought his sadness, his triumphs, his fears and anxieties to God. He brought his praise and adoration to God. You can't be that honest and not desire the LORD.

Is your prayer just a habit of words or is it a growing desire to know God and dwell in His presence? Let this be our first and most passionate desire.

Friends, my prayer for you today is that God would illuminate your lack of desire for Him. Ask Him to give you a desire to know Him more and love Him more. For those of you who are passionate in your desire to know God and talk to Him, I pray you would continue growing in your desire more each day.

I love y'all and thank you for stopping Joy Treasure today.  Until next time.....Joy 2 U!