Purpose of Prayer - (from Todd's email)

Sup fellas, I want to start a multiple part series on prayer. It should make for good discussions and great growth. Prayer is the most talked about and most common practice of Christians but yet is the least activity that we are involved in because why? They/we don’t get results. So, I want to dive in to the very core of this integral part of our lives. This is all scripturally backed, but I am also pulling mostly from Myles Munroe's "Understanding the Purpose and Power of Prayer." So, these ideas/theologies are not originally mine, but I believe it is something some of us may be missing from our "Kingdom" way of thinking and living.
First, a few questions.....
If God is sovereign, then why should we pray?
If God can do whatever He wishes, then why pray?
If God cannot be affected or influenced by humanity then why pray?
All valid questions for someone who does not know, but the Bible says we are commanded to pray. Jesus never said “if” you pray, He said “when” you pray (Matt. 6:5). We are EXPECTED to pray. So, you are praying, but no answers are showing. You may already know, but if not we will see why as we go on in this series. See, prayer is meant to be answered; otherwise God would not ask us to pray. He would not waste our time, He is too practical for that. Jesus expected to be heard. It says in John 11:41-42 “Father I thank you that you have heard me, I knew that you always hear me.”

So, why does God need/command us us to pray? Without God, man cannot, and without man, God will not. Let me explain this.
Genesis 1:26 “ Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
Two words are at the heart of prayer, “let them”. God gave us authority, rulership, and governorship over the earth, He did not say “let us have dominion”, but “let them”. This separates us from God. If He had said “let us” then He would have been included in the activities of earth. God took Himself out of the equation and made us the authority of the planet. God himself was taken out of authority by law, His Word. So here comes a bold statement….whatever happens on this earth is man’s responsibilities. So, all the corruptions of the world are not God’s problem, they are our problem! To the people that ask “if God is love and in control then why does He let this evil happen?”, the previous statement is the answer. Everything we are suffering from, we created. God left the management of earth to us, humans.
Now do not take me the wrong way here. This does not mean that we are diety or equal to God. Adam and Eve could fulfill their purposes only by depending on and communicating with God. Similarly, we can fulfill our purpose only as we are connected to our power source. However, we must recognize God’s high esteem and purposes for us. In essence, God said to man “Let Me rule through you so you can appreciate, enjoy, and share in My governance. The word human is actually a combination of 2 words, “humus” which means dirt, and “man” which is the spirit being (male and female) that God created. God took the spirit man and put it inside the earth suit or “dirt” suit. This is whom God gave dominion over the earth. So, stick with me here, any spirit on earth without a physical body is, according to God, illegal. That’s right, illegal. The only person that God gave legal authority over the earth to is a “human”. That law, God will never violate. Why? Because God is a spirit with no physical body. So, God will never enter the earth without a physical body (but of course He does later on) or without cooperating with us (through prayer as you will see). So, the most powerful creature on earth according to God’s Word is a human.
Still not sold on the whole illegal thing, consider this. Don’t you think that God could have stopped Adam and Eve in the garden? He could have yes, but that would have violated His Word, His law. He saw the impending destruction, but all He could do is watch, and Satan knew that. If God had broken His word then there would be no reason to trust God’s Word ever again. So, if you think about it (and another bold statement i guess), the fall of humanity was a result of God’s faithfulness to His Word.
See, God is as sovereign as His Word. He is sovereign until He speaks, and then He is limited to His Word. The scriptures back this law. God also chose never to violate His Word, and Holiness protects His integrity. So, when He spoke, His Word became law. Psalm 138:2 says, “I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.” (KJV)
The Hebrew word for name is “being”. That’s why when Moses asked God what is your name, God replied “I Am”. Why? Well, the Hebrew concept of name is the thing, for “I Am” means whatever God is at the time. It changes to whatever you need God to become at the time. So when God said I place my Word above my name, He was placing His Word above Himself, so when He speaks, He Himself becomes submitted to whatever He says. Heaven and hell will pass away before God will ever violate His Word, right?
But then God did something wonderful and it is shown a couple chapters later, He made a promise to the devil in Genesis 3:15. Paraphrased it says the woman that satan used to destroy humanity, God said she shall provide for Me(God) a physical body to enter the earth.
We will pick up here next week.
I am only emailing this, I do not know how to post on the blog site, because i am not a member, just a follower, (maybe you have to be invited to join). So if someone could please post it for me, I would appreciate it.
trying to die to myself,
-todd