Acts 2:42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
The desire of Jesus Christ for His church is that we cultivate a culture of praying together that is based on His promises, and not on our experiences or “comfort zones”. The Psalmist wrote, “I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes always, even unto the end.” (Psalm 119:112) What he is telling us here is that when he would hear or read a statute of God, be it a promise or an exhortation to do something, he was determined to adjust his way of thinking or behaving to line up with God’s Word. The same holds true when it comes to praying together as a body. We all know the importance and value of spending time alone with The Lord. But there is a tendency to ignore gathering together with the saints in corporate prayer because we are introverted or simply do not feel comfortable or because it is not your proverbial “cup of tea”.
May I suggest that if that is how you feel regarding corporate prayer, take a baby step to incline your heart to the Scripture injunction and determine that you will make it a point to pray with one another. Some of you have been a part of this church family for years and have never come to any prayer meetings ever. Some have come but have never come back because you feel uncomfortable or are easily distracted by how someone else prays. I get it. But there comes a time in the Christian life when we must determine to forget how we feel and incline our hearts to attending a prayer meeting because our God exhorts us to do so in Scripture, and we all need all the prayer that we can get! Never base what you do in your walk with Jesus on your ever-changing emotions instead of simple surrender to the promise or the exhortation of God. The only way that our church family will cultivate a culture of corporate prayer is when you and I purpose to incline our hearts unto His statutes that exhort us to pray with one another and for one another. Selah
