For a condensed version of Jonathan Edwards’ call to prayer see http://www.sbaoc.org/blog/?page_id=762 or go to www.sbaoc.org and go to “BLOG” and then “a call to prayer.”
James 5:16 The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
We all want to have effective prayers, but few are willing to pray the price to obtain a righteous heart that will pour forth effective prayers. It is not that a righteous heart can be obtained by the works of man, but we must see the need for a righteous heart and seek the Lord for one. How many of us really desire to have a pure heart? No, I am not meaning the standard heart that flees from outward sins, but a heart that desires to be wholly the Lord’s. Do we really want a heart that is broken and weaned from all that is not seeking the Lord? Do we want hearts that breathe forth the heart of Augustine? In a bit of a paraphrase, he said that we love the Lord too little if we don’t love all things for His sake. Do we really love our wives, children, churches, hobbies, and so on for His sake? We think that a good Christian refrains from certain things and perhaps does others. Oh no, if we are going to see a true reformation and revival in this land it will only come if there are righteous hearts praying to the Lord for it. But again, these hearts do not come by works and they do not occur overnight. The Lord will send fiery trials to burn the dross from our hearts and purify out loves and desires so that they are for His sake. We must stop playing religious games by playing church that is not truly out of love for Him and His sake. We must stop thinking of revival as anything but for the sake of His name. If we want one simply as a church growth method, even if that is hidden from all others, we will not see a true revival and we will not see the glory of the Lord we claim to love above all things. Are we willing to be nothing for His sake? Are we willing to be nobodies for His sake? Are we willing to be shamed and cast out of churches and denominations for His sake? Until we do, we are not serious about true reformation and true revival. Let us seek the Lord for broken hearts in order to seek Him for His sake.
Various thoughts on Prayer by Anonymous Authors:
I have knocked on the door a long time for an answer to prayer. Indeed, but are you at the right door?
I have prayed for years for God to answer this prayer. But have you really prayed to God out of a desire for Him and are you seeking the answer to your prayer for His sake? I have prayed for years for God to answer my prayer. Have you sought the Lord so that the desire of prayer actually came from Him and is according to His will?
There is a difference between internal and external prayers. External prayers are simply words that are not really from the heart. External prayers are those prayers that can be very religious and ask the right things, but the heart does not really desire them. Internal prayers are those affections and desires that are the wings of the soul that take it to the presence of God whether they are verbalized or not.
One sign of an internal prayer is that the one that is uttering the words is willing to do what it takes for that prayer to be answered. It is easy to ask God to do things and yet be unwilling to be the means by which He will answer the prayer. This shows that we don’t truly desire what we ask.
A heart that desires God and breathes after Him in prayer is one that does not desire self. This is a heart that is willing to suffer to be done with self so that it can seek the Lord and His presence in true prayer. A heart that is seeking the Lord in prayer is seeking to be done with self and is at war with self so it can continue to seek the Lord out of true love. Loving prayer to God can only be done in denying self and taking up the cross to seek Him in prayer. Denying self and taking up the cross is the only way to follow Christ in prayer. Let us be done with the thought that there is such a thing as easy prayer. Prayer is costly and requires the death of self because a soul cannot seek God and the self at the same time. A desire of true prayer is always “death to self” because self is constantly hindering the soul as it seeks the Lord.
*** Do we really desire revival? Do we really want to count the cost and also pay the cost of our very selves? If not, we are not really praying for revival yet. May the Lord teach us how to truly pray from righteous hearts.
God Loves... Himself 
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