Here are notes from the first session at the Desiring God Conference on prayer. We heard from Joel Beeke on the Pastor's Prayer Life.
Joel Beeke.
As I studied the reformers in regards to prayer, I became convicted. Tonight, I want you to know that I am preaching to myself.
We need to repent of prayerless praying. My father said that the greatest problem in the church today is prayerless praying.
Tis is the difference between the reformers and us. This is why their times and ministries were more blessed than us.
Isaiah 64:6-9 says, "6We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7There is no one who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have made us melt in[218] the hand of our iniquities. 8But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. 9Be not so terribly angry, O LORD, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all your people."
James 5:13-18 says, "13Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. 17Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit."
Private prayerful prayer is what we need.
Thomas Watson said, "Private prayerful praying is the soul's breathing itself into the bosom of the Father... and is heaven's greatest weapon."
According to acts 6, prayer is to be half of our ministry. But if today we pastors spend 5% of our time in prayer, we are among the most blessed.
When we have a lot to do, our prayer goes in like an accordion rather than out. We regard prayer as an interruption of our personal ambition.
Luther wanted to pray out loud because He said he wanted the devil himself to hear.
Prayer is harder than any other aspect of ministry.
Our three-fold enemy seeks to discourage us in prayer. Time, noise, busy-ness.
The goal isn't long periods of time, but quality.
Jesus comes to kiss me when I am engaged in private prayerful praying.
One pastor used to rise at 4 in the morning for prayer. When he heard others up working before him, he was distressed and asked, "Does not my Master deserve more than theirs?"
We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses whose prayers rebuke us.
We call our prayerless praying prayerful praying. Prayerless praying freezes before it reaches heaven. Prayerful praying pierces praying.
Prayer is to be one half of our ministry that gives the other half it's ultimate success.
All our excuses are obnoxious excuses in the sight of God.
We are unfriendly to God because our prayerlessness shows that we don't want to be with God.
Aggressively, dependently seek a more faithful prayer life.
This requires us to do two things: take hold of ourselves and to take hold of God.
I. Take hold of yourself. How? Seven ways...
1) Remember the value of prayer. We would rather die than to give up prayer. It is essential. It is essential for every duty we do in the gospel. Never engage in any activity of ministry without praying first. It is the most Christ-like thing we can engage in. What a blessing that we have been called to exercise this value of prayer.
Unanswered prayer is even a value. Just to have a place to go with every need is worth more than anything money can buy.
In prayer, I will either receive what I ask or what I should have been asking for in the first place. Refuse to leave God alone.
2) Make and keep prayer a priority.
How hard do you pray after the sermon is over? Get on your knees and pray, "O God, bring home the sermon."
Rate prayer above everything else.
When we don't pray, we lose our power and authority.
Leave time in-between visits. This is so you can pray. Pray your way through the day.
3) Pray with sincerity.
The way to pray is to tell the Lord everything about you while knowing that He knows everything about you. We can't settle for less than sincerity in our prayers. God loathed a divided heart. Sincerity in prayer requires integrity in our marriages. Avoid professionalism in our prayers.
4) Cultivate a continual spirit in prayer.
Pray without ceasing. When you are really close to God, you pray as a lifestyle.
A minster needs much more grace than common men. I am a bird out of my nest when I don't pray. We feel something's wrong until we are back in the nest of prayer.
We have so few impulses to pray, we must take advantage of them.
5) Work toward organization in intercessory prayer.
Our church members deserve pastor who prays for them. The people ought to know
3 lists. lose. Worldwide. Every day. Others, once a week. Others, once a month.
Take a page from the church directory every day.
6) Read the Bible for prayer.
Listen to God and then talk to Him. Read verse by verse and pray. Pray your way through the scriptures. Fill your mind with scripture and your prayers will have life. Pray to God in His own language.
The best books of prayer interweave the Bible
7) Keep biblical balance in your prayer.
Worship. Praise. Thanks. Intercession. Petition. Confession.
Learn from others who pray.
II. Take hold of God in prayer. How? 3 principles.
1) Plead God's promises in prayer.
How much does God like to see a child plead His very own promises, His very own handwriting. He loves to be "sued upon His own bond." Prayer is nothing but the promise reversed. Beseech Him for blessing on His own Church, His own word, His own ministers.
2) Cling to the glorious Trinity in prayer.
God dwells in our minds most when our prayers most dwell on God. Before we pray, we must pause and fixate our minds on this glorious God. Cling to each person of the Triune God. Our Father's hands are full of grace because our Savior's hands were pierced for us.
We are a bundle of needs.
Run to Him; He runs to meet you. He will run to you with legs of mercy.
When we pray, "God, take hold of me" God will take hold of you.
We ought to labor in prayer to know each person of the Trinity one by one. The love of the Father, the fellowship of the Son, and the comfort of the Spirit.
3) Believe that God answers prayer.
Why are we so surprised that God answers our prayer? Faithless prayer is fruitless prayer.
If you want to humble a man, ask him about his prayer life.
There is more to know about God and prayer. Ask God to make you a praying Elijah. James presents Elijah as someone like you and me. What we need is to pray for our own prayer life.
Pray to be a contemporary Elijah.
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