By Dr. Johnnie Blount
Prayer: Simple yet misunderstood
Prayer is likely one of the simplest yet, most misunderstood privileges in the Bible. My goal is to demonstrate the contrast between prayer and truly comprehending our power and authority. Without understanding our power, it’s impossible to grasp prayer. Whenever I listen to various ministers deliver their sermons, I find their teachings impressive. However, when it comes to their prayers, it’s clear some of them lack understanding of their own authority. They seek the Lord’s intervention to rectify their issues.
Speak to the mountain
The Lord has explicitly instructed us in Matthew 17:20 “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you”. We are to use our power and authority to cause the situation to obey us. Jesus displayed this when He spoke to the storm and it obeyed Him in Mark 4:39.
Jesus mentioned in Luke 18:1 that men ought to always pray and faint not. Paul echoed this message in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. He emphasized the importance of praying without ceasing. A lot of individuals think that prayer is for seeking Father’s help to get their desires fulfilled. Or they think prayer is for sharing their challenges with Him. This was my perspective for a significant portion of my life and my work as a minister. I frequently prayed, confiding in the Father about my difficulties and pleading for His intervention to resolve them. I was unaware or ignorant of the fact that He had already bestowed upon us authority and power to manage the issues we encountered in our daily lives by speaking to them.
Life and death in the power of the tongue
Now, when I need to be healed I declare that He sent His Word and healed and delivered me from my destruction. The Word itself inspires me when I voice it and hear it. Proverbs 18:21 teaches us that life and death is in the power of the tongue. That inspires me to speak the Word because I know that the Word is life, health, prosperity, peace, joy, and deliverance. The Word stimulates our faith and causes our confidence to grow.
We have the authority
Exercising our God-given authority allows us to direct our situations to align with the teachings of the Bible. When the physician diagnosed me with leukemia, every day I instructed my blood to be healed. The Word has already revealed to me that because Jesus bore stripes to cure my body from all sickness and disease, I was healed. We are instructed in Luke 10:18 that Jesus has placed all illness, disease, and demonic activity under our feet. If these are under our feet, it signifies that we are not subject to them. It is imperative that we acknowledge our authority over everything upon and in the earth. Therefore, we must approach our thoughts, actions, speech, and prayers with this understanding.
Spending time with the Father
In essence, prayer is simply spending time with the Father without requiring anything from Him. I converse with Him, love on Him and praise Him for supplying me with all that pertains to life and godliness. At times, I find myself in prayer simply to express gratitude for the guidance on what actions to take or how to manage the situation. I also acknowledge that this is a finished work that has already been accomplished. I might question whether there are any further steps or information I should be aware of. He will then reveal it to me, or I might receive a Bible verse, or someone could share a Word of Wisdom regarding the matter. In anticipation, I expect understanding to emerge, recognizing that Father completed His works from the foundation of the world.
Prayer is an activity we can engage in among others, at our jobs, during our shopping trips, or while hunting in the woods. It’s crucial to keep in mind that the Father resides within our hearts. We don’t need to summon Him from above because He is nearer to us than the air we breathe or the blood circulating in our bodies.
There is a time for everything
There is a time for everything: a time for prayer and a time for using our authority. As a child, I discovered that a barking dog was barking to shake our self-assurance. Occasionally, they will lunge at you, as if preparing to attack. When this happened to me I remained motionless as the dog approached. He was attempting to intimidate me into fleeing, hoping to inflict pain on my heels or legs. However, by maintaining my stance and commanding for him to halt, he approached me, stopped, and barked fiercely. But, he refrained from attacking me because he recognized my dominance.
Who abides in us
Life operates in a similar manner. Once you grasp the concept of authority, you must be firm and assertive, commanding the noisy dogs to quiet down. Thus, in the spiritual dimension, we possess the Holy Spirit within us. This grants us that our authority and power causes the situations to obey us in the name of Jesus. The Bible instructs us that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess. This applies to every aspect of our lives. We must know that we know, Who abides within us, and that is the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.