All for love

In chapter 2, Cymbala realized that end of the day, what people really wanted was love. In prayer, their first love for God was rekindled and in turn, they started to see the people around them and pour out love upon them.

Whenever prayer is mentioned in a Christian setting, I notice that eyes tend to glaze over and people check out. It's so cliche and banal. It doesn't do much for us. Most of us associate prayer with something dull and/or difficult; something we know we ought to do more, but don't and therefore makes us feel guilty.

If only we could see God's design in inviting us to commune with Him. After all, in all of scripture, He designates His house as one thing--a house of prayer. The moment of His zeal in the temple is recorded in each synoptic gospel. Back then, the temple was the physical representation of His house, but on this side of the cross, we are the temple of God--both as individuals and as a body. He still desires that His house be called a house of prayer and the zeal in which he will cleanse us today is just as fierce today. And why wouldn't it be? The invitation is to fellowship with a holy God.

Those of us with a guilt ridden internal drive often stop at that place of fear, however fear is never a good motivator. The original quote about the house of prayer comes from Isaiah 56:7, "Even those I will bring to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples."

Beloved, first notice that He is the one drawing us to the holy mountain...and it's not to scorch us, but because He wants to makes us joyful. We come to a throne of grace to find mercy by the blood of Jesus, our savior. The first love that makes prayer work is the love of God for us. He is the one that draws us near. The invitation is always there to come. The people of Brooklyn Tabernacle discovered this through their time spent with Him in prayer and as a result of experiencing it anew, their first love for God was rekindled.

Remember that we are always responding to His love. He loves us first. Unless we can receive that reality, prayer will always be difficult, feeling laborious and burdensome. Prayer flows much more easily when I know that I am loved. I open up my heart knowing that I am safe in Him and welcomed as a child, as a bride, as a friend. This is the second love that makes prayer work--to love God back with all that we have.

And then, as we love on Him, He begins to show us the things on His heart. He shows us how He feels about circumstances and people. We may bring things that are on our heart and in the course of talking with Him about it, we get a new perspective and a new understanding. We begin to feel what He feels about the things on this earth and that is the birth of intercessory prayer. It's not simply because we see a need, but because we see God's desire in a situation or in a life and we cry out for love.

Without this filter of looking out through His eyes, we end up leaning on our own judgments, our assessments and, therefore, our own solutions. The sad thing is that what we hope would happen in situations and people is often a far cry from the God-sized dreams born from heaven and so we tend to work for less and settle for less. I'd rather have what eye has not seen and what ear has not heard, beyond what I can ask or imagine which comes in the place of prayer.

That doesn't mean prayer is always easy. There are times to labor, to birth things. There are times of warfare. There are times when you sit in quiet, trusting He is near. Even in all of these things, the reality of God's love for you, your love for Him and His love poured into you for others are essential. The work is often in believing Him.

Have you been made joyful in the house of prayer? It is available for you. I pray that you will taste and see that the Lord is good and continue to hunger and thirst for more. For love He draws you. For love, respond to Him.

~ Noella