DAY 16: PRAY BOLDLY

I believe that we have become too complacent in our prayers. We pray too many safe, vague, and repetitive prayers.

When we don’t understand the purpose and the value of prayer, our natural tendency is to be lazy, praying things such as, “God, bless my friends, and bless my family. Amen.” But general prayers solicit general answers, and we rarely see God moving in the generalities of our lives. His movement is detected in the details, in the specifics of our days. Pray in such a way that when God answers your prayer, you know without question what He said!

Praying with boldness is a not a “Now I lay me down to sleep” kind of praying. It is not “God bless our food” kind of praying! Bold praying is militant praying, mighty praying in the name of Jesus! Bold prayer is the mountain-moving means by which we connect with the will of Almighty God.

If you’ve never been personal and precise with God, I encourage you to abandon “safe” prayers and take a risk for once. He already knows what we need. He knows the desires of our hearts. And He loves for us to shoot straight with Him, as sons and daughters to a loving Father above.

In my experience, God does business with those who mean business with Him. So away with half-hearted, heartless prayer! May we pray shamelessly and with great passion. It costs blood, sweat, and tears to pray boldly, to bruise your knuckles, asking, seeking, and knocking. But it’s worth it because when we pray, God moves!

I know this: the only prayer that God does not answer is the prayer that you don’t ask! We learn from Jesus that we are to pray passionately, desperately, fervently, and when the situation demands it; big, bold, audacious prayer!

It is important to note that boldness is not brashness, nor arrogance. Boldness is openness and confidence. Boldness flows from our unwavering confidence in the Gospel. Look back at Hebrews 4:16 on the previous page. This verse is telling us that when we come boldly to the throne of God we can store up grace and mercy for times of need. And when that time comes, we can be confident that God will hear us.