When we talk about the elements of worship, we include the singing of songs and hymns, the reading of scripture, the preaching of the word, drawing together in fellowship, and lifting prayers to God. We do all these things to bring God glory and draw closer in relationship with Him. We bring Him glory through our reverence to Him, the giving of our tithes and offerings, the work we do for the kingdom, and the sharing of the gospel. But let’s take a moment to look at what we really do.
In a typical church service, there is an emphasis on singing, reading, preaching, and giving. We seldom spend more than a few moments in prayer, and when we do pray, it seems stilted or something less than genuine. Instead of talking to God, we put on airs. We use words and phrases that make us look more pious or more holy. We offer an expected prayer, what our peers think prayer should be like, not what is in our hearts. In other words, we pray a prayer that is not genuine. Here is what Matthew 6:5 says about the attitude of prayer. “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.” So, how should we pray?
First, why are we praying? Are we pouring our hearts out to God? Are we speaking to Him? Much of the time we are using prayer as a transition on the platform. We are using prayer to move people up or down. The musicians leave the platform to find their seats in the congregation. The worship team goes up to the platform to sing the invitation. The pastor uses prayer to move to the foyer, so he can shake hands and interact after the service. The worship pastor uses prayer to transition to a song with a different key. I am not saying that moving during prayer is a terrible thing (no one wants to see all the eye noise of people moving about) but I am saying this is not the expressed purpose of prayer. Prayer is a desire to talk with and give glory to God, not a vehicle to move people.
Prayer requires sincerity. It needs to be genuine. We must mean the words we are speaking. When we ask for a blessing, we must truly ask to be blessed. We cannot be blessed without a willingness to be obedient. We cannot disobey God and His commandments for our lives and expect to be blessed through our disobedience. When we ask for revelation, we must have an honest desire to have our eyes opened to the truths of God and his word. When we ask for a miracle, we should not be surprised when a miracle occurs but should ask with an air of expectation that God will grant our prayers. Matthew 7:7-8 tells us to 7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Of course, we ask for what God has led us to petition. We should not and cannot ask for something that goes against who God is. This brings us to the next point.
Prayer requires preparation. We cannot have genuine prayer in Church on Sunday without preparing our hearts throughout the rest of the week. Through prayer, we develop our relationship with God. Through relationship, we develop intimacy. Through intimacy, we learn how to speak with God and how to listen to His response. In Ezra 9:5–6 we see how close Ezra was to God as he prayed. His soul was laid bare, an open book. He held nothing back, for he knew God knew him like no other. He confessed it all. 5 But at the evening offering I arose from my humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I fell on my knees and stretched out my hands to the Lord my God; 6 and I said, “O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have risen above our heads and our guilt has grown even to the heavens. Ezra would not have been able to come before God in such a fashion if he had not been prepared through a consistent and genuine attitude of prayer. We must mean what we say and be prepared to pray in a manner that follows God’s will.
A genuine heart and a prepared heart will lead to a heart that has the desire to know God. This heart will be repentant. For to know God requires one to be more sanctified every day and as we draw closer to Him, we draw stronger in Him. We reflect Him. We reflect Him in our speech, in our actions, and in our prayers. When we pray, we listen. When we listen, we hear. When we hear, we respond. We respond to what God says and we join Him in His work and we reap the benefits of a closer relationship with God.
The world doesn’t understand this. The lost world cannot talk to someone they do not know and with whom they have no relationship. But they can know Him. We need to tell them, and we will be equipped to tell them if we have a strong and deep relationship with God through His Son. But we must be willing to do the hard work. We must pray. We must study. We must worship.
Pray for opportunities to share the gospel today. Pray to be blessed through your obedience. Pray for a stronger relationship with God. Trust in His Son and get ready to be amazed at how God answers your prayers.
Worshiping God 