Imagine this scenario: You are about to spend time in prayer, fully prepared and equipped with the gift of praying in tongues. However, there is one nagging doubt in your mind that hinders your confidence in the effectiveness of your prayers.
You’ve also been feeling as though your prayers are just mere words with no discernible impact on your life. This discouragement weighs heavily on you, yet as a believer, you understand the importance of persistent prayer.
Despite your inner doubts, you push yourself to pray, hoping for the best. Deep down, you question whether your prayers are truly worthwhile. At times, you even struggle to find the motivation to pray.
As you begin your prayer, you ponder the reasons behind these persistent doubts. One thought that crosses your mind is the possibility that your sins may be blocking your access to God. You now embark on a journey of repentance, seeking God’s forgiveness and purification.
However, even after this act of repentance, the situation remains unchanged. Frustrated, you question what else could be preventing you from experiencing the goodness of the Lord and enjoying His presence.
If this resonates with you, I have an answer that I discovered when I found myself in a similar situation. Allow me to share with you what to do when faced with such circumstances.
My discovery – The story of the Prodigal son
Through my own observations, I have noticed that many believers often overlook a crucial aspect when it comes to prayer and experiencing God in their lives. There was a time when I encountered a situation where my prayers felt dry, leaving me questioning the reason behind this lack of connection with God.
I expected prayer to be fulfilling, to flow effortlessly, and to lead to breakthroughs since I was communicating with the Most High.
Even so, I struggled in prayer and just like many other believers, I began to wonder if it was my sins that hindered me from experiencing God’s power.
As I delved deeper into this issue, I discovered that sin may not always be the primary factor preventing us from experiencing God and achieving breakthroughs in our lives.
This realization was inspired by the parable of the prodigal son. Upon revisiting this story, I noticed that the prodigal son was solely focused on seeking forgiveness from his father, believing that his suffering was a consequence of his wrongdoing.
However, when he returned to his father, it was evident that his father was not concerned about the sin actions. Instead, the father’s focus was the return of his lost son. The emphasis here is the importance of being found rather than dwelling on past mistakes.
Jesus shared this parable to illustrate the forgiveness bestowed upon us by God. Essentially, this story serves as a reflection of how God forgives us. The biggest take away from this account is that when we distance ourselves from God’s presence, we inevitably succumb to sin and defile ourselves.
Therefore, we become susceptible to numerous attacks from the forces of evil, leading to a chaotic existence.
Often, during our prayers to God, we find ourselves feeling distant from Him. Our pleas may seem dry, lacking impact, as if we are merely speaking to ourselves. This occurrence primarily arises due to our detachment from God.
The concept of forgiveness
It is worth noting, that sin in the presence of God is inconceivable. The Bible says that those who are born of God cannot sin, and this statement holds true. When we are in God’s presence, His goodness overwhelms us, preventing us from engaging in sinful behavior.
However, the reality is that we drift away from God before succumbing to sin. Therefore, when it comes to repentance, we do not repent and then come to God. Rather, we come to God first, and this act of approaching Him automatically encompasses repentance.
When we refer back to the story of the prodigal son, we notice that the father did not verbally acknowledge his son’s repentance. Despite the son’s admission of sin before both the Father in heaven and his earthly father, the father did not explicitly say, “I forgive you.”
Instead, he swiftly instructed his servants to bring a robe for his son and prepare a feast with festive lamps.
This illustrates a significant aspect of God’s nature. We come to realize that God’s goodness surpasses our imagination.
Approaching God with confidence
As human beings, we often perceive forgiveness as a process involving asking someone for forgiveness, receiving their acknowledgment, and subsequently restoring the relationship. However, with God, the act of simply presenting ourselves before Him is enough for Him to extend His forgiveness.
This principle also applies to prayer. Sometimes, individuals approach prayer with the mindset that they must repent before coming before God’s throne; but this contradicts God’s Word, which encourages us to approach His throne with confidence.
In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.
Ephesians 3:12
When we approach God with confidence, it signifies that we understand our right to be in the presence of our Heavenly Father.
This realization transformed my perspective, allowing me to approach God confidently instead of running away from Him and avoiding prayer.
When you draw near to God, the dryness, heaviness and guilt that you experience especially during prayer vanishes. Additionally, you will realize that your desires are naturally fulfilled, in the presence of the heavenly Father.
The Bible even assures us that in His presence, there are eternal pleasures. I personally experienced this during a worship encounter. I found myself in a peaceful place, surrounded by a bright light, for what seemed like only three seconds.
Even in that short time, I could attest that the presence of God surpasses any pleasure this world can offer. After the encounter, I wept for nearly 15 minutes, mourning the misery of the earthly life we live.
This life, separated from God, is a cause for sorrow because our proximity to God is limited to prayer, and it can be challenging to sustain that closeness due to the cares and worries of this world.
From that day forward, I made a firm decision to always draw closer to God and to remember that if my life isn’t going as planned, or if there are unfulfilled desires in my heart, it’s because I have distanced myself from God.
Summary
To achieve a strong prayer life, we need to adopt God’s perspective on forgiveness and prayer with the understanding that what He desires most is communion with us. Even if our prayers may seem dry to us, they are pleasing to Him.
So, let go of fear and thoughts of sin and repentance. Instead, present yourself before God, knowing that He has forgiven you because the very act of presenting yourself before Him is an act of contrition.