Faith in the Prayer Room

In my old apartment, I had two closets in my bedroom. I remember the day when I downsized, stuffing all of my belongings into one. It didn’t matter to me about the space I lost. The birth of a prayer room was in order and I was on a mission! It felt good to create a sacred place for Jesus and I. I was committed to spending time with him and I was so excited. During that time though, I don’t believe I comprehended what it meant to have faith while praying. The only thing I was concerned about was the creation of the prayer room and being obedient by spending time with him. I was passive in my beliefs that the rest was going to work itself out. Bringing my needs and wants before him was a priority, but was I convinced he would answer my prayers? I was hopeful, but I wasn’t confident. 

There was a song I used to listen to by The Script called Breakeven. The song was catchy and the lyrics were meaningful to me at the time, so it was a win-win. But when this verse came on: “Just praying to a God that I don’t believe in,” it would rub me the wrong way every time. I was conflicted by the verse because that was my truth. In the past, I had prayed so many faithless prayers that all of them were probably tap dancing on my ceiling.  If you know the song, you know the man was trying to save his relationship by any means and decided to pray to God as a last resort. How many of us are using God as a last resort to patch up what our hands could not fix? We run to him with partial hope for our deliverance, while doubting he will answer. Our needs go unmet, we blame him for it and still, we find ourselves back at square one- praying to a God we don’t believe will help, while simultaneously hoping this prayer will be different. We skate through this perpetual cycle of insanity without realizing we have the authority to change course. So how do we begin?

For starters, a relationship. We are relational beings, we were created for intimacy. It takes commitment to sustain a relationship and nobody likes a user. God is not a genie. We cannot approach him with our requests, demanding for the blessings and turn around and store him away when we no longer need him. He wants a relationship, he wants to communicate with us. The bible is not the only way he chooses to communicate  and there are a variety of ways you can spend time with him. A prayer room is an option, but you can also meet him on a hike, at the beach, on a masseuse’s table, in the bathroom, or even in a museum. The options are limitless,  just let your creativity be the driving force. With that being said, please do not make the same mistake I made. I thought that I could externally show my commitment by creating the space, but I failed to seek him with intention that existed outside of my requests. I wasn’t allowing the communication to flow, if it wasn’t in the realm of him answering my prayers. 

  It is written in Matthew 21:22, “Everything you pray for with the fullness of faith, you will receive.” This verse should not be regarded as a cliche statement that has lost it’s depth; it is a promise. A promise he has made to take care of us and not withhold any good thing, if we believe in him. A promise, he is prepared to deliver on if we approach him in faith. But whose faith are we operating in? We need to understand that his faith and our own faith are not compatible. Our flesh is weak and our minds are fickle; anything we choose to do in our own power is limited. I found this to be true when I lost my job in 2016. Confused and in shock, I could only pay one month of expenses and I was scared to death of eviction. The faith I had in myself to succeed and take care of my basic needs evaporated in an instant and the weight of uncertainty was heavy. My faith could not weather me through the storm; it was limited and prideful. At the time, I could not understand why God betrayed me. But as I reminisce, I had stepped out on my own and took an assignment that was never approved by him, therefore the quick exit was a blessing in disguise.  I should have realized that the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord-Psalm 37:23. God’s faith will give you a new perspective-one that is higher than your circumstance, his faith will renew your strength and provide you with a peace you never knew you were thirsty for. 

Faith in the prayer room has never been about your prayer requests. God is aware of your problems and he has already set a plan in motion for you to conquer them. And if we are in full agreement that God’s word is true and he keeps his promises, what would be the true purpose of prayer? As previously stated, a relationship. Is prayer not an opportunity to reconnect with the one who longs for us? In his presence, we have free, unlimited access to personalized coaching sessions that will equip us with the knowledge and wisdom for our journey. We are even gifted with an internal guide- the holy spirit to help us stay in alignment, should we veer off course. There is no way for you to lose regardless of how bad your situation looks. And if you would allow him to teach you and to love on you, it is in that secret place that you will begin to activate his faith and the answers to your problems will be revealed. You are already blessed! Your father has plans for you and has invited you into his heart. Will you accept the invitation?