James 3:2b-3 You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
God cares more about our character than our comfort. There are prayers that are not answered because we have not petitioned and there are other prayers that are not answered because they were fostered by wrong motives. God looks at the attitude and the intention of our prayer. Many struggle to understand the will of God but a surrendered, contrite and humble heart cannot make petitions outside the will of God. The prerequisite to a powerful prayer that will be heard by God is to present ourselves ‘holy’ and ‘pleasing’ to God. We will understand the perfect will of God if we become ‘living sacrifices’. It is a radical cultural change wherein we decide to think, speak and live in a way that pleases God.
The children of Israel had corrupted themselves with the wrong cultural and religious practices of the Egyptians during their stay in Egypt for 430 years. In fact, they carried the idols with them when they left Egypt. “Cast away the detestable things your eyes feast on, everyone of you, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt.” (Exodus 20:7). Moses did a mass cleansing and decluttering program and got rid of the idols, yet twelve chapters later they mould a golden calf and fornicated. Many Bible believing Christians continue the cultural practices that are contrary to the Word of God. They seek the help of astrologers and follow the stars to guide their lives. Anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord (Deuteronomy 18:10-14). The children of Israel always found themselves in lack because their motives were corrupt and polluted.
Because you asked with wrong motives:
1. Interfere: Don’t let the world interfere with your core belief system. Our prayers need not be pleading and begging for what God has promised as our inheritance. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life (Matthew 6:25). Our prayers must be with authority not out of anxiety.
2. Intention: Our pure intentions make our prayer weighty. Prayer with passion and the right intention will be heard but a flamboyant prayer will fall back on the laps of the hypocrites.
3. Interrupt: Prayers fueled by anger, vengeance or wrath will not be heard. Godliness is opposite to worldliness. We must love when we have the right to hate, we must be generous when the world is greedy and we must forgive when the world rises up in revenge.
Prayers will be rejected, and petitions ignored if the motives and intentions are wrong.
Proverbs 16:2 People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives.
Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus may my intentions and motives be pure, holy and acceptable in your sight. Purge me from unforgiveness, animosity and revenge that could be hidden in my heart. Amen.
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