There is the possibility of having two kinds of prayer. One kind has its source in our own will that is motivated by our need for relief from uncontrollable circumstances, uncooperative people, or unexplainable pain (physical or emotional). Sometimes God will hear and respond to your prayers for the sake of satisfying your own needs, yet His own will is not fulfilled. Such prayer does not have much value.
In 1 Samuel 8, Israel asked for a King. They said to Samuel, "Give us a king to lead us." Samuel prayed to the Lord telling Him what the elders wanted. The Lord said, "...they have rejected me as their king... warn them solemnly..." Samuel did as the Lord instructed but soon returned to the Lord and told Him the people were still demanding that they have a king. The Lord answered, "Listen to them and give them a king."
Again, even after having seen the miracle of the parting of the Red Sea, the Israelites soon forgot what the Lord had done and they gave into their cravings in the desert. "He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul." Psalm 106:15. Those that will not wait for God's counsel, shall justly be given up to their own hearts' lusts, to walk in their own counsels.
The other kind of prayer is prayed as the will of God which has been reproduced in us through our surrender to the Holy Spirit. Although we are immature and weak, we may nevertheless approach God and let His Spirit bring our will into God's will and our thought into God's thought. Gradually, the will and thought of God which we have known and entered into becomes in us our prayer. Such prayer is of great value.
Which one of the two types of prayer do you think Satan is most concerned? Did he unleash his demons to stop the elder's demand for a human king to replace the Lord? Not hardly. Did he send his most powerful, dark angels to quiet the cravings of the rebellious Israelites? Why should he? When Jesus prayed to His Father in the Garden of Gethsemane, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." do you think Satan was concerned? I think so! What Jesus was about to do on the Cross was going to change everything. Satan did not want this to happen. This must have been why Jesus had to struggle in prayer that night. He returned three times to the Father asking Him the same thing.
When we pray the will of God, our prayer will shake up hell and affect Satan. For this reason, Satan will rise up to hinder such prayer, as such prayers which come from God touch the powers of darkness. Spiritual warfare results. The enemy attacks in order that our prayer might be discontinued, delayed, or thwarted all together. We MUST surrender our will so that we might learn to pray as Jesus taught us: "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
Next week: "Prayer and God's Work"
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