Prayer Closet

Let's start at the top, the beginning, where time began.  Yeah, that beginning!

In the beginning God created the heavens, the earth, and man. He did this with a purpose. God desired to have a relationship with man, and He gave man the desire for a relationship.  I believe God and Adam had the closest relationship of all time. They walked in the garden together!  Not just once in a while, that was their daily pattern.

God realized that Adam needed a human relationship also. ("It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him" Gen 2:18) So, He made woman, Eve.

We don't have a timeline for what took place in the garden, but we know once Eve came along the first sin was committed.

(Side note: The first man, the wisest man, and the man after God’s own heart, also the greatest king of Israel, all fell because of women. Not because women are bad, but because they can be men’s weakness, therefore opening a door to the enemy.)

God didn't give Eve to Adam to replace His and Adam’s relationship.  Not at all.  He gave her to him to be a help meet.  Adam’s relationship with God was to remain most important.  Whether it did or not God only knows.

Once Adam and Eve had sinned and hid, they heard the voice of The Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. (Gen 3:8)

Walking together in the garden in the cool of the day was Adam and God’s pattern. The cool of the day, of course, being the morning, making God the first, most important thing in Adam’s day.

Adam had the amazing privilege of walking and talking with God Almighty.  We have that privilege as well!

The more common term, because most people don't go deep enough to consider it walking with God, is prayer. We need a consistent place of prayer or we will fail.

Adam fell because he listened to the one person he trusted, the only person he knew.

We don't have that problem now sharing the world with 7 billion people, but it makes prayer and a relationship with God all the more important.

We have a world of people we can use to try to fill our need for relationship, but no matter how many relationships we have on this earth none will fill the void, which is a need for relationship with God.

Money can't buy the fulfillment that a relationship with God brings, but people have tried to buy it. No wife or husband will be "the full package" and satisfy all of your needs, but some people have sure gone through spouses.  We need a daily life of prayer.  We need a relationship with God.

I am very thankful that God gives lifelong friends, but many friendships don't last forever. Feelings are hurt, trust is broken; things God will never do.  Where do you turn when these things happen? What do you do? No friend has the ability to comfort you like God does.  No friend can truly "always be there", but God can and is.  He is just waiting for us to speak with him.

On nights when you feel alone, your heart is hurting, the darkness is overwhelming, and you're crying yourself to sleep, God is there waiting for you to call on Him.

Prayer is what you can do when you have no answers, no direction, no peace, and no strength.   God can be each of these to you.

But you can't receive answers or direction from God unless you hear His voice, and you won't recognize His voice unless you're familiar with it.  The familiarity of His voice comes from consistent prayer.

Consistent prayer occurs in our prayer closet. (Matt6:6 "...When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.) 

*

The closet referred to in Matthew literally means; a secret room.

When we, on a daily basis, seek God in our prayer closet, we will get to know him like never before.

My Bishop has, for as long as I've known him, been a man of prayer. I've seen God work in his life where the only explanation was, "He's been with God"

My Dad, for almost my whole life, has been a man of daily early morning prayer. There have been countless nights that I've woke up afraid until I tuned my ear to hear my Dad praying, then peace would come in an instant. Other times I've woke early in the morning and been able to fall back asleep to the soothing sound of prayer being lifted up.

Many stories about men of prayer fill the bible, but many more have taken place in recent generations.

Men like John Wesley who spent two hours in prayer daily, and would start by four in the morning. He has been seen by others coming from his place of prayer, "With a serenity to face next to shining".

  John Fletcher stained his walls with the breath of his prayers, many of which were all night.

  Martin Luther said: "If I fail to spend two hours in prayer each morning, the devil gets the victory through the day."

  Payson wore grooves into his hard-wood floor where his knees pressed so long in prayer.

  Joseph Alleine got up at four for his "business" of praying until eight. If he heard others up and about their business before him he would exclaim: "Oh, how this shames me! Does my master not deserve more than theirs?"

The importance of prayer cannot be stressed enough. And, the power through prayer can't be fully realized in this life.

My hope is that all realize that both are great, and will therefore pray to enter into relationship with Jesus!

(The stories of men were found in E.M. Bounds book: Power Through Prayer.  I highly recomend it.)

* This is an image of my latest lettering project.  I'll be giving away two prints to subscribers at the end of this week, the 14th.

Some signed prints will also be for sale.  To purchase contact me : jchart4@gmail.com.

Thank You.  Don't forget to subscribe!