“The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.”  James 5:16-18

Prayer is not simply saying words and repeating formulas; prayer is “communion with God”. Through prayer we experience relationship with God; talking with God, listening to God, enjoying the presence of God.  

 Why should I fast?

• · Are you in need of healing or a miracle?
• · Do you need the tender touch of God in your life?
• Is there a dream inside you that only He can make possible?
• · Are you in need of a fresh encounter?
• · Do you desire a deeper, more intimate and powerful relationship with the Lord?
• · Are you ready to have heightened sensitivity to the desires of God?
• · Do you need to break away from bondages that have been holding you hostage?
• · Is there a friend or loved one that needs Salvation?
• · Do you desire to know God’s will for your life?

Why Pray?

1.  We pray because we love God.  Just as a man and woman in love desire to be together and communicate, so we – if we love God – will desire to be with Him and to fellowship with Him in proportion to our love for Him.

2.  We pray because we depend on God.  God is our source.  He is our life (Colossians 3:4).  Through prayer we receive the comfort, strength and all the other resources that we need in life – both naturally and spiritually. Prayer is as necessary to the spiritual life as air to the natural life.

3.  We need to pray in order to resist temptation.  “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” (Mt. 26:41).  Much sin is the result of the sin of prayerlessness.  Through lack of prayer, we are weak, others are weaker and Satan gains the advantage in our lives.

4.  We need to pray because it is necessary for men to invite God to act in salvation.  God gave the earth to Adam and his descendants. We must invite God to work here. If no-one invites God to work here, Satan (the god of this world through man’s universal rebellion – 2 Corinthians 4:4) will dominate the affairs of men and eventually the judgment of God will come.  By inviting God often and specifically, multitudes can be saved that would otherwise be lost.

5.  We need to pray because God commands us to pray. “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.” (Colossians 4:2). “Then he [Jesus] spoke a parable to them to this end, that men ought always to pray and not lose heart.” (Luke 18:1). The need to pray is as great as the authority of God which commands us: “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Prayer is so vital to all that God wants to do on the earth, and so essential to us, that God commands us to do it all the time. We should even deny ourselves sleep and food at times in order to pray more and with greater power. (Matthew 6:16; Luke 6:12; Luke 21:36; Colossians 4:2; 2 Corinthians 11:27).