Beloved,
Last Sunday morning, we looked at Jeremiah’s prayer to God which began with an, “Ah!” This was a prayer erupting from heartfelt desire.
Few have written more on prayer than the Methodist minister by the name of E.M. Bounds. While I don’t endorse everything the man wrote, no uninspired writing on the subject has done more to stir me up to seek the Lord than Master Bounds. Below are some excerpts from a chapter he wrote titled, “Prayer and Desire.”
“Desire is not merely a simple wish; it is a deep seated craving; an intense longing, for attainment. The deeper the desire, the stronger the prayer. Without desire, prayer is a meaningless mumble of words. Such perfunctory, formal praying, with no heart, no feeling, no real desire accompanying it, is to be shunned like a pestilence. Its exercise is a waste of precious time, and from it, no real blessing accrues.”
“One might well ask, whether the feebleness of our desires for God, the Holy Spirit, and for all the fulness of Christ, is not the cause of our so little praying, and of our languishing in the exercise of prayer? Do we really feel these inward pantings of desire after heavenly treasures? Do the inbred groaning of desire stir our souls to mighty wrestlings? Alas for us! The fire burns altogether too low. The flaming heat of soul has been tempered down to a tepid lukewarmness.”
“God requires to be represented by a fiery church, or he is not in any proper sense, represented at all. God, himself, is all on fire, and his church, if it is to be like him, must also be at white.”
Bounds’ words are convicting. Who of us can say we possess these Godward cravings as we ought? Which is why Bounds writes, “We ought to pray for the desire to pray; for such a desire is God-given and heaven-born. We should pray for desire; then, when desire has been given, we should pray according to its dictates. Lack of spiritual desire should grieve us, and lead us to lament its absence, to seek earnestly for its bestowal, so that our praying, henceforth, should be an expression of the soul’s sincere desire.”
External expression of the soul’s internal desire. That is sincere praying. That is why the shorter catechism defines prayer as “an offering up of our desires unto God.” No heart desire equals no sincere prayer. Desire is vital, and only God can give it. So let’s ask Him for it. And let’s allow every trial and temptation He ordains for us to fan such fiery longings in our hearts.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Nick
