The Prayer Factor

“For everyone who comes to Me and listens to My words and does them, I will show you what he is like.  He is like a man building a house, who dug and went down deep and laid a foundation upon the rock;  and when a flood arose, the torrent broke against that house and could not shake or move it, because it had been securely built or founded on a rock.  But he who merely hears and does not practice doing My words is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation, against which the torrent burst, and immediately it collapsed and fell, and the breaking and ruin of that house was great.”  Luke 7:47-49

God is earnestly calling His people to prayer and to hear His voice and to respond to His instructions.  Many of us claim a deep desire to experience God, but few of us are willing to take the time listen to His voice and follow the Lord’s leading.  Our prayers are often more like an invitation to God to come and be a part and bless what we are doing.  Listening and then reacting to God’s voice in following Him is the prescription to building a strong foundation.  The Bible tells us that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spririt.  If we truly believe that, we will want to give that temple a strong foundation.  That foundation is found in listening and obedient prayer. 

In this world we have been told that we will have tribulation (John 16:33).  The question is how will we stand?  Will we stand on the foundation of the rock which is rooted in prayer, or will we seek to stand on our own strength and get blown away by the disrupting torrents that come?  God tells us to listen to His voice and respond to His call in His way.