Prayerless Praying: Rebuilding a Life of Prayer

Copyright © 2013 Emmanuel Muyumba.

Book edited by Magdalena Wakolele.

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Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™ All rights reserved.

Bible scriptures marked (KJV) are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture taken from the Amplified Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

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ISBN: 978-1-4908-1509-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-1508-4 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013920229

The Author’s royalties from this book will go towards promoting the kingdom of God and exalting our Lord Jesus Christ throughout all nations.

WestBow Press rev. date: 11/13/2013

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Preface

Introduction

PART I: PRAYER BOARD STATEMENTS

CHAPTER ONE

Statements

CHAPTER TWO

Prayer Shapes

PART II: THE DECLINE

CHAPTER ONE

First Stage A Little Sleep

CHAPTER TWO

Second Stage: Rushing Through Prayer

CHAPTER THREE

Third Stage: When Time Is The Boss Of Prayer

CHAPTER FOUR

Fourth Stage: Mind Pollution

CHAPTER FIVE

Back To My Point

PART III: PRAYER AND PRAYING MAN

CHAPTER FOUR

First Praying Character: Elijah

CHAPTER FIVE

Second Praying Character: Joshua

PART IV: LIKE A CHILD

CHAPTER SIX

A Spirit Of Submission Towards Prayer

PART V: PLEADING WITH GOD

CHAPTER SEVEN

The Knowledge Of God’s Planning

CHAPTER EIGHT

Sighting God’s Grazing Pasture And Leading The Flock There

CHAPTER NINE

Man Of God How Is The Condition Of The Flock’s Soul

PART VI: A JOYOUS PRAYER

CHAPTER TEN

On My Knees

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The Morning Grace

CHAPTER TWELVE

Awaken The Dawn

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Everyone’s Experience

PART VII: PRAYING THE MIND OF THE SPIRIT AND THE LANGUAGE OF THE SPIRIT

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Praying The Mind Of The Spirit

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Praying The Language Of The Spirit

PART VIII: ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Learning All Over Again

Chapter Seventeen

The Prayer Life Of Christ Was Based On Father-Son Relationship

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

He Did Not Omit Intercession In His Prayers

CHAPTER NINETEEN

His Redefined Of Prayer

CHAPTER TWENTY

Ask, Seek And Knock

EPILOGUE

Author’s Letter To The Reader

Appendix 1 That Which Laughs At You In Your Praying

Appendix 2 Prayerless Praying People Groups/Signs

Appendix 3 Persistence Principles Asking, Seeking, Knocking

Appendix 4 Living On Your Knees

Appendix 5 Prayer And Expansive

Appendix 6 Intercession As The Work Of A Priest

About The Author

To the Body of Christ and the preserving saints of the Kingdom whose faith is being refined through hardships and persecution

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I thank God who has enabled me to write Prayerless Praying. He is the author and the finisher of my life and I give him glory through for the knowledge imparted in this book.

I would also like to acknowledge the following individuals and groups:

a)   My faith family at Light of Life Community Church, who stand by me with great love and much acceptance.

b)   My family who has been supportive throughout my life

c)   Pastor Bienvenue Mambo who is a good friend of mine and also his loving and caring wife Therese Mambo.

d)   My editor, for putting my words in order and giving them meaning.

e)   The great men of God who have addressed the subject of prayer at various times over the centuries. Their teachings have helped many to grow in the area prayer.

f)   And finally, all my friends in the Body of Christ, who have partnered with me in the work of the ministry.

PREFACE

Many will probably wonder about the origins of the phrase prayerless praying. It is simply the expression of the words that were received by me from God.

This book will not teach you how to pray, but it will invite you to again, see the need of prayer in your life. Some have posed the question as to whether or not a certain need or situation merits prayer. Others have prayed and yet have seemingly not received any answers. And still others have given up on prayer altogether. The latter can be likened to a desperate gambler who persists on throwing money into a slot machine again and again without any returns. The money is eventually lost and the gambler is left with bitter disappointment.

Prayer is not a gamble, it is faith in action. Faith is what we should model when we pray. There are those who only pray when they come to church on a Sunday, thinking that that is enough. When the minister calls them to a collective amen they go home, only to return to church the following Sunday and say amen at the prompting of the priest. They are believers who serve God once weekly; raising hands and simply following the lead of a preacher. Prayer, for such people, is a dull religious act.

The bible, however, teaches us that prayer is so much more than just a mere ritual. In the nature of prayer we have nothing new to say other than what the bible itself teaches. I do have something to say to you: keep praying and not grow weary of it.

This book seeks to show the trend of decline in the level of prayer in the life of a believer and also to provide effective tools so as to ensure the restoration of a fruitful prayer life.

The content covers practical issues. Often, such issues cause us not to pray as we should. The book incorporates principles that have been taught in the word of God and preached throughout the Body of Christ.

I believe that you will respond to the call of this book to establish prayer as a vital part of your daily life. The book is meant to be an encouragement; simply read it with an open mind and allow the Lord to sort out your personal life as you continually engage him through prayer.

My prayer is that the Lord would convince you to come back and lead the life of prayer that you used to. I believe that you have a sense of the voice of God reaching out to you, through this book.

I further believe that with the help of the Living Spirit of God, you will be able to understand and to apply the truth so as to be submerged deeper in the revelation of the power of prayer.

Finally, let us look to the example of Jesus, who being both man and God, practiced prayer. He awoke early to pray while many, including the disciples, were still asleep. He was a man of prayer and of the word. He never made excuses to any of his challengers. In fact those who considered him to be a deity were astonished to see him praying. He who had unlimited access to the throne of God the Father, humbled himself on his knees to teach us how to pray. Shouldn’t we then pray as well, rather than give many excuses as to why we do not pray.

Prayer should not be an activity that only a few members of an intercessory team or a designated prayer group should engage in, rather it is something that we should all partake in. Even members of the early church gathered to pray.

May God bless you as he unleashes the truth of his word to you!

INTRODUCTION

A prayerless praying life develops when a believer ceases to care about God’s business. The person changes over time and withdraws from God. Christian values may recede into the background and their fervor in serving God decreases. Prayer becomes just a meaningless ritual and no more.

Enough is enough. Why is it that prayer is so neglected in the lives of today’s believers? Many go before God with prayers that contain half sentences; they start a prayer that does not end with amen. I have seen them acting on a Sunday morning using so many words and making a show of praying in tongues but the prayer life they live on a Monday morning is something else - it is Prayerless praying. Often believers only pray when they are moved by a great need. All at once, they expect God to rush to their aid. Do you seek God when only problems are crouching at your door or is it something you do daily?

If one fails to pray one fails to live a holy life. There is no way prayer can be separated from a Christian life. Taking away prayer is taking away holiness. Take prayer away from a believer and his soul is taken away from God. I would even be so bold as to suggest that: prayer works out salvation. There is no way that one can live a holy life if one is not praying.

The question now arises: if one is not praying what is one doing? Perhaps occupied with sin? I liken prayer to a spiritual shopping experience in which all my needs are provided for. If I need to shop for faith; it is increased in prayer. If I need to shop for strength; it is implanted prayer. All I need is provided for in prayer, because there is no other way to request and receive from God other than in prayer. God is going to avail much but only if we pray, he is going to give much only if we ask him in prayer by faith in Jesus’ name. Many believers start out living a life of prayer but end up with a prayerless praying life. How long before the devil takes us away from God, if we continue with this prayerless praying life. Men ought to pray and always pray, Paul said, without ceasing. Can I trust prayer? Indeed, I should, because it is the greatest weapon the devil fears. When one saint spends time on his knees everyday for the world, more souls come into the kingdom. If saints are not praying heaven withholds its blessing from us.

The only enemy we have to prayer is Satan, because he knows that there is no battle he can win when the saints are on their knees. Throughout this book I am going to place much emphasis on prayer and will also draw attention to the power that is released through prayer. Over the centuries men of God have written a lot on prayer and yet there have not been many generations who were renowned cultivating a culture of prayer. People such as John Knox are reported to have prayed give me Scotland or I die, and God answered him. Others prayed give, me souls or take my soul away. Is it because these men were supernatural men, that God granted their requests? No, I say these men where as natural as we; they simply understood the power of asking. Men like James Dobson focused on family. He prayed and obtained promises, from God, regarding his family to fourth generation. George Meuller took care of four thousand orphans because he understood that all needs are to be brought before God in prayer, men like John Wesley prayed wholeheartedly to God and at the end of their lives there was much reward. This is how we should be encouraged to pray because the fate of the world will be affected by our prayers.

The bible recounts the testimonies of numerous people whose lives were transformed by the power of prayer. I have witnessed the power of prayer in modern times as well, for the God we serve is a promise-keeper and his promises are much greater. God has recorded his promises in his word, the bible, and he patiently waits for promise-seeking people to say, I have read that you said ask of me and I will give thee. There is not much time to entertain ourselves with useless meetings that carry no anointing and involve no prayer. One man even went so far as to suggest that people should not be allowed to pray for more than five minutes, during a Sunday church service. It is sad that human beings have regressed to the point, that they deliberately limit God’s influence in