Good to Great in God's Eyes - Pray Great Prayers, Part 1

When some people pray, nothing happens.

They say sincere words. Talk with God really nothing happened with other people pray amazing, supernatural, unexplainable things happen. What's the difference how do you pray great prayers. That's will explore today stay with thanks for joining us for this Thursday edition of living on the head with Living on the Edge features the Bible teaching of Chip Ingram daily discipleship program today here in store for very thought-provoking message, challenge the way you think about talk just before we get started, let me encourage you to try using chips message while you listen chips notes containers outline your references and much more will help you remember what you hear and maybe even share what you're learning quick download just go to LivingontheEdge.org and click listen now if you have a Bible open it now to John chapter 16 let's join Chip for his message. Pray great prayers as 1982 and there's a professor at Dallas seminary name Walt Baker and what was a career missionary and that the seminary had been pulling on his sleeve to say, come, come teach missions at the seminary one or a worldwide impact and also I can't leave the field he'd been in Haiti for over 20 years.

I said Walt you gotta come because you could do more good sending students and giving a world vision to these bright young people with a heart for God. He said okay tell you what I'll do. I will come to Dallas seminary.

I will teach missions as long as God wants me to with this one condition.

Every summer I have the entire summer off and I will take of group of students, and we will go to Haiti and we will do ministry in one of the most poor needy desperate countries. I cannot let my heart ever get disconnected from Haiti. He was my missions. Prof he was a friend of a leader in our church. I found myself with three or four pastors in three or four businessmen getting on a plane going to Haiti and we we flew in we gotten jeeps. We gotten buses with chickens. We rode on donkeys and we ended up in a jungle compound that was a hospital.

I remember walking to the hospital and had multiple cribs and these were orphans and little babies that been abandoned that needed medical attention. It was a medical orphanage compound and they did teaching and ministry and food and I walk through and saw all these kids and if you've never been to Haiti you've never seen poverty. The only thing that has ever come close is in the in my experience and I saw these kids and I saw this need, and I was a young pastor and one of the elders was from the church and Walt and I stayed in a little part. They had a little missionary house and a family lived there and we had a little room with a cot here and had little room with a cot herein, you know, is the goal man is a chip you like to join me in prayer before we go to bed I'm thinking of course.

And we came over and he knelt down and I knelt down and there was a little desk. Can you not that we can have a little good night prayer in a Lord, thanks for the day and help these orphans and spend a long trip chips probably tired and I'm kind of tired and Lord sure would like you to do a good thing and he said Chip wanted to start so I prayed a real sincere, good night prayer probably three minutes and 35 seconds max.

And there was a long silence between my prayer in his prayer, and then I heard them begin to pray as you begin to pray.

I felt almost like a huge Paul and the he put on top of my shoulder and he began to pray and he began to pour out his heart for Haiti and these children and these people, and as he began to talk with God the way he talked to God and the passion in which he talked to God I had one of those times were my confession was. I wouldn't pray in.

I just realize I was in the room with the man of God who knew God at a level in a way that I had never heard and never experienced a nose on my knees kind of chills going up and down my spine and a man who was an intimate communion with God, who had lived with this need for now, probably three decades of ministry prayed to a God that had power prayed in a way and a depth of relationship that I had never heard and he didn't praying a three minute prayer and I begin to see why God used Walt Baker's life and not all I can say is that something happened inside that I thought Lord I don't want to pretend and imitate his prayers, and I don't want to act more holy and use the words the way he used the boards but God I like to know him and know you the way this man does. I want to pray. Great prayers. I want to know you in such a way that the level of intimacy and the reality talk to God in such a way that he actually expected that God was going to do what he asked. He prayed with a sense when he interceded with a sense of authority that this is the issues that are on the table and there is unlimited resources and I'm asking that God has made these promises and I need you to do this for these orphans and this is what we need and then there was a sense of reverence and at time pauses of silence that made me very uncomfortable where there was just holy communion in the room. I want to talk about praying, great prayers are invitation are key taxes on the front of your notes. It's from Jesus what he said in the very last night for his disciples in that day, the day when I'm gone, you will no longer ask me anything.

I tell you the truth, my father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Imagine if we believe that to even a small degree. My father will give you what ever you ask in my name. Up until now you've not asked for anything in my name, my name my merit on the basis of my relationship on the basis of my work. Little did they know his name would be what would occur at the cross and his resurrection and in his name and his authority, in its you can come to the father based on all the crisis done and you can ask the father to do what you know. The sun's will is. It's like he was saying. I want to give you a spiritual MasterCard that it has my name on it and when you bring this card to the father. He recognizes where it's come from and is unlimited supply, but you can only charge things that are according to my will and ask and you will receive and your joy will be made complete never to talk about praying, great prayers and, as we do. I'm not in any way of telling you that this is the only way to pray. I'm not going to give you the basics of prayer. This is not a overview of this is how prayer works in general. This is one man's observation okay just one guy's observation after walking with God for about 30 years and after studying the Scriptures after being around people that I've seen God use their life and answer their prayers so unscientific data before you. This is not a systematic. This is the way all prayers are to be prayed, but if you want to move from praying as a Christian to praying. What I believe are great prayers in God's eyes. I think there's six characteristics characteristic number one of great prayers.

Great prayers are deeply personal. Great prayers are deeply personal great prayers begin and end with God himself great prayers flow from a passion to know God to meet with God to enjoy God and to be known by God.

Great prayers are not rote, and they are not routine. They are not perfunctory and they are not about performance. Great prayers are intimate and personal and relational and heartfelt.

Let me give you some examples of great prayers survey of old and New Testament when you want to hear and Moses greatest prayer I believe is in Exodus 3318 and 19 and he seen great things. I mean he seen miracle after miracle after miracle yet when he comes before God. What's his prayer. Yahweh God of gods, God of heaven. Show me your glory, you realize what is asking I've seen your works.

I've seen your miracles.

I've seen your power you share with me your covenant name I am that I am I want to see all of who you are to court.

Scott says Chino Moses you don't know what you're asking if you saw all of me you would be toast because you have no idea of the unapproachable light, and the absolute holiness and the unlimited power of who the God created all that there is good Moses. What I will do is I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and I will place my hand over you and I will pass by, and I will let you see the manifestation of my presence and then you member then God speaks as he passes by and talks about the very characteristics of who he is full of goodness and mercy, slow to anger filled with lovingkindness. What's Moses prayer he wants to know God. He wants to see God. Great prayers are deeply personal. You go from Moses to David. Here's a man who wrote what Cano a good section of all the Scripture in the Psalms, a great warrior a great musician.

What you really want me. Here's a king that hasn't like 700 wives 300 concubines great warrior army.

What would you really like a life. This is a man that has probably more than everything, probably a lot more than he should've had in Psalm 27 says one thing I desire right. One thing I want this is what I would desire of you that I might behold the beauty of the Lord and that I might worship you.

I might see you. I want to know you. I want to come into your temple. This is the thing that I desire that I might really taste and see who you are.

Great prayers are deeply deeply personal there about not getting something from God. There about being with God himself. Paul for all the success in ministry. When you zip open his heart. What does he want forgetting what lies behind and pressing forward to what lies ahead. What's he want.

I press ahead. I charge ahead. I leaned forward. I want to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering, he says, more than all these things after giving his pedigree more than all these things knowing him. That's what I want. I want to know him and the power of his resurrection.

All the other he uses the word is like dung or rubbish compared to knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, and even Jesus in the final prayer John 17 three-member what it was.

This is eternal life that you might know him and his beloved son. See great prayers. Don't start with technique. It's not about how long it's not about the actual word you say great prayers first and foremost are deeply personal and that's why when the disciples wanted to learn to pray, they came to Jesus and you get the picture. If you study there were cut over, overhearing his prayers, and you know they watch this pattern. I need go up in the mountains and actually when they wanted to kill and hot. How did how did Judas know where eBay Judas know where eBay because he had a pattern there's a certain time on the day he would go to the garden and he prayed and so they came to him and settle it literally teach us to pray and member you know we we learned as kids.

Most of us, our father literally. Bob Abba, father, and we take that for granted like oh yeah that's kind of the we called the Lord's prayer.

It was a radical notion in the day.

By that point Judaism God was so transcendent. There were all these rules and there's all the written rules and all the verbal rules and all this stuff in all this religion in here this radical teacher comes and does his miracles and teaches like no one else will you teach us to pray the Pharisees, you know they keep their disciples to pray John the Baptist. He teaches theirs give us a prayer. How should we pray and he says this is how you ought to pray, say, our father Abba met that word but was a what would a little tiny boy or little tiny girl would say to their daddy. It's a term of endearment.

It's a term of access it's it's what a little kid says when I actually saw it happen.

We were visiting Israel. We were by a pool and and you and I don't remember a lot Hebron I praise God for all the guys and I took the years, but today what I got through it.

Thank God for it. I could remember a whole lot but I do remember as I studied Hebrew, and then they talked about the Aramaic in this little word but what it meant. Any unit made sense and I wrote my notes son sit next to the pool and there is a man there in Israel and he's talking with his wife and he has a drink in his bathing suit and and there's this little boy. That's about three and he wants his dad and he wants his dad and his dad is busy and finally he goes over on his swimming's torts and he pulls and he pulls a ghost of a Abba Abba and his dad just reached out with one arm and lifted him up and put them on his lap and I learned that's what Jesus was saying he is the Almighty powerful God of the universe who invites you to call him Abba to come with childlike dependency to come without an agenda to come to know that you are deeply loved to come. Knowing he is a good God these for you, but he cares that there's nothing that ever can come between you that he loves you and in every time of need.

The way you come to God first is as Abba father great prayers first and foremost are deeply personal facet characteristics of great prayers are there birth in brokenness, they are birthed in brokenness prayers to get God's attention and that he calls greater free of self-confidence. There characterized by desperate dependency in an overwhelming sense of need.

Brokenness it's it's when you pour out your heart to God. It's when you know it's you always have the right words but because of a time of fear at time of crisis or time of remorse or time of grief or time of sorrow or perplexity new don't know what to do you come before God and there is a sense of bankruptcy and you can't work it out and in your brokenness. You pour out your heart before God and and and underlying the sense of what you say is I need you I need you. God I need you all got I really need you great prayers are birthed out of brokenness. Examples are Moses said in Exodus chapter 40 member. You know he's he's he's the superstar when he is 40 years old. He can handle it that he gets a 40 year education then God meets him in the burning bush and he has the burning bush experiencing God is holy, takes off his shoes and then God says Moses I got a job for you. He gives him the job. In Exodus 40 member Moses I can do that I'm inadequate. I'm slow speech and slow of tongue, and you can use a guy like me and you know there's other people more qualified and there's no way you and I just can't and he he just and then you listen to the dialogue with he and the father and his his prayers that he learns to pray are out of not someone that has a together it's indispensable to God but someone who recognizes after 40 years, the distance between God and him is a big gap.

And so he prays out of his brokenness, but it's a pattern alter the old New Testament. You know when you hear David's prayer in Psalm 51 here's a man that is godly. Who knows God in a weak moment. He ends up doing what committing adultery and then later murder and then he lives with that guilt is piling up for almost a year until Nathan comes and confronts him and says David let me tell you little story gives him a word picture you're the man. And then he's broken from within, and he realizes the depth of his sin and you open up Psalm 51 and we get to overhear David praying his prayer of confession of restoration to the father and you know you get to about verses 13 or 14 and David Udo is an Old Testament Satan.

You know he's the king and he's got bull's-eyes at Calvin. He's got goats and he can make sacrifices until literally the cows come in and he says to God you help is by your grace. I've been forgiven and he says you know if current offerings were really what you wanted. I mean I would bring them, but out of his brokenness. He says the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit. A broken spirit and a contrite heart, O God, that I will not despise the great prayers are birthed out of brokenness and when you come to the point where you're spiritually bankrupt.

I don't mean just saying words where you have desperate dependency in great need and you recognize it. God promises who always meet you and when you meet God, which is the whole point of prayer things happen in you in and through you. So you have Moses you have David Nehemiah. Another great example just hope here's a man who was at the pivotal point of all Jewish history and Jerusalem is burned down. The walls are falling apart. The gates are burned with fire. God's agenda is going south. The people were exiled and he's it is a businessman with a great position and he hears about the sad news and it says and when I heard the news from Hanan I my brother. I sat down and I wept and I mourned and I fasted for some days. If you pick it up and not in Nehemiah chapter 1 verses four through 11 you will hear one of the most phenomenal great prayers and all of Scripture, not from a profit, not from a pro not from a Bible teacher from a layman position with high capacity, high leadership in this area were God has placed in his right hand man to the Persian king, and in those 11 or so verses. He will have 44 references to God either by personal pronoun or adjective he has God centered prayers.

See what you gonna see when prayers are birthed out of brokenness. There is this thing that happens there in brokenness because these people see the holiness of God and where they really are with God. And it's the distance between God's holiness and where they are and where we are, that produces this thing called brokenness in the clearest picture of course is Isaiah 6 and he sees God in all his glory and was he say woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and woe is me and the coal from the angel comes and touches his lips and he first gets a high view of God an accurate view of himself and that brokenness then leads to a commitment to God's agenda here, my Lord, send me great prayers are birthed in brokenness and so when Jesus was teaching his disciples. He started deeply personal our father then what did you teach him, who art in heaven, holy war, how would be that nine he is holy and compared to we are, that produces a sense of righteous brokenness for God's application.

But if you're just joining us, you're listening to living on the truth Chip Ingram. In today's talk for a great prayers is from trip series.

Good to great in God's eyes.

He created the series to help Christians mature in ways that God thinks are important so the idea of becoming great, rather than a prideful thing becomes a personal passion to delight the heart of God. To learn more. Let me encourage you to check out. Good to great on our website@livingontheedge.org or just give us a call at 1-888-333-6003 will trip you talked about brokenness being required for us to move to a deeper level of relationship with God, but he never wants us to stay there.

I mean, he always lifts us up to a greater appreciation of victory and success in Christ when you pray for the ministry of Living on the Edge.

What does success look like more listeners more resources will Dave. That's an easy one. Of course we keep track of those things.

But let me tell you what success is. Success is a change life and it's the reports of literally thousands of change lives. But that happens one person at a time. I used to think the people didn't listen to the radio anymore and we learned recently that we have more than 100,000 more listeners this year than last year and you know as evil listen on podcasts. They download the app. What I will remind people is what happens. Candy rights and says to put simply Living on the Edges help restore my family. At one point my husband and I both thought things were so bad there was no way to make it better, but thankfully Living on the Edge was there to help point us to God's will for lives heard one of chip sermons on the radio that spoke directly to her situation that I found out I could download the chip Ingram app on my iPhone and listen anytime I wanted.

So I did.

I started listing on a regular basis.

A year and 1/2 ago and now my husband listens to, through God's transformation in our lives, we started seeing restoration in our family because the powerful impact your ministry has had on us. We decided to come monthly donut your broadcast ministry. We realize that if your ministry helps save our marriage, then it can also bless and help others do the same.

Thank you for all that you're doing to further God's kingdom.

May God bless you abundantly in the years to come. You know what I want you to know what these matches are really about its helping the candies and families of the world unite think about rescuing the next generation. This is where it starts. I mean, the great majority of everything that happens that shapes our lives.

It really begins in our family.

Here's my request.

Would you partner with us this month and join this match that we could help thousands and thousands of more families become different kind of Christians that change the world. Thanks so much. If you're already partnering with us.

Thank you. Richard just cheered as part of your success story. And if you're looking for a way to make a difference.

Let me suggest that partnering with Living on the Edge would be a great way to do that. Especially right now because, thanks to a handful of friends of the ministry. Every gift we received between now and December 31 will be doubled to send a gift.

Just give us a call at 1-888-333-6003. That's 1-888-333-6003, or if you prefer, you can donate online at http://livingontheedge.org will be. Thank you in advance for your generosity will trip you sent something in your message today that I'm hoping you'll expand on the little you said few things reveal our heart like the prayers we pray Millward you get that well. We spend time with the people that matter most.

When we spend time with God were communicating. He matters he matters the most. The second thing that prayer reveals about our hearts is that we are either depending on ourselves, are depending on him and I think the third thing I learned about about prayer, even Jesus, we can't do it alone there. There is a time to pray only alone, but to be motivated and to be refreshed.

There's just times where I don't have it in me. Everyone needs either a prayer partner or a group of people that you can pray deep with and seriously with if you don't learn to pray you'll never see God's power. If you don't learn to pray you'll never hear God's voice and you'll never learn to pray just by yourself, yet with some other people and learn to pray great prayers. Would you like to take Living on the Edge with you to the gym more on your next run will you can. For those of you want to listen to Living on the Edge anytime. Just download the free chip Ingram app search. Chip Ingram and Google play or the app store today will I hope you will be with us again tomorrow as Jeff continues his series. Good to great in God's eyes so venomous they really say thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge