COMMUNICATING WITH GOD

by Creflo Dollar |

One guarantee we have in life is that it will never be completely trouble-free. Dealing with its challenges would quickly become overwhelming if we didn’t have the ability to communicate with others and ask for assistance. When difficult situations present themselves and we have no clue how to handle them, we can either devise our own strategy and rely on our own perceived cleverness, or acknowledge that we need divine help. When we’re in trouble, prayer is the only real solution.

Prayer is direct communication with God; however, praying is something many people haven’t learned how to do properly. As children, we were taught to say our prayers at bedtime, but it usually involved memorizing words and repeating them back on cue. Religion teaches us to pray only at certain times and only about certain topics; by contrast, God wants us to talk with Him constantly, share what’s in our hearts and on our minds, and keep those lines of communication open. His will for us is to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Some people feel like they have to fit their prayers into a pre-specified formula before they’re accepted. Others want to put on a show with their loud, public prayers. God wants to free us from all those expectations, which are simply religious trappings.

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But thou, 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. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him (Matthew 6:5-8).

Whether we’re struggling or everything is fine, what’s important to God is our attitude while we’re praying. Thinking about everything He’s done for us, including sending His Son to give us authority over trouble and to empower us to live victorious lives, leads us into gratitude and thankfulness. He wants us to come to Him with our needs while at the same time thanking Him for having already made provisions to meet those needs before we even knew we would have them. “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:4, 6, NKJV).

God loves us and wants to hear from us anytime, anyplace, anywhere. Whenever something is troubling us, He wants us to come straight to Him. There are no forbidden topics, and nothing is off-limits. Even when things are going great in our lives, God still loves to hear from us.

If we’ve accepted Jesus, then we’re God’s children and He’s our heavenly Father. The bottom line is that God wants to grant us what we request, in the same way an earthly father wants to give his children what they ask for. When we trust Him enough to believe His Word, He’ll honor our prayers. “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7, NIV). This is a solemn promise from God.