Learning Effective Prayer through the Lens of God’s Love for Us

Do you want to know God more? Do you want to discern what His voice sounds like? How you can have a more effective prayer life? These have also been my desire. I want to always listen and know when God speaks to me, and be quicker to obedience as a result. It would be amazing to study through the Scriptures how to strategize and tactfully execute the things the Lord calls us to through prayer, and know how to best apply them.

Though that was my original intent in beginning my Bible reading through Genesis again, the Lord revealed to me an even deeper desire in my spirit as His Spirit illuminated another theme in this context. If I hazard a guess, I’d say that these longings you and I may be experiencing are really showing that our spirits are craving a deeper relationship with Jesus. We want to learn how to hear His voice and communicate on a closer level because we want a more intimate relationship with Him. The beauty in this quest is that God most certainly can do two things at once. In studying more about prayer, we’re learning more about the character of God and His relationship with mankind. As I walk with you through this study, instead of only looking at it from the aspect of what we can get from God, we are flipping the perspective lens to understand it from both sides of the relationship: God to man and man to God. It is my prayer that we both can grow more intimately with Jesus through what we discover together.

One last note before we begin in Genesis 1, sometimes these posts will give a broad overview of a chapter in the Bible; other times we will stop and meditate on one verse. It just depends on the conversation taking place and the significance of what’s happening/being said. Use this as an opportunity to get into Scripture yourself and read the section and context around what we’re discussing that week. These posts won’t be written from a teaching standpoint, but merely a welcoming invitation for you to join me as I ponder this perspective of Scriptures with the Lord.

Genesis 1

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day.” Genesis 1:1-5

When God speaks, powerful things happen; creation happens! A variety of land, plants, trees, and the complexities of animals and planets were formed. God is the ultimate Creator and Entrepreneur! John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Hebrews 1:2-3 says, “In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word…” God created and sustains everything in this universe by His Word!

God’s First Words

It is fascinating that the first words God decided to have recorded were, “Let there be light.”  – Light to separate the darkness. This was before the sun, moon, and stars were created. What do you think this light was and why would God have been comfortable to exist in darkness beforehand? My thought would be that He created the light of His glory. Revelation 21:23-24 says, “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God illuminates it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.” Quite possibly, the first part of creation on earth will be what illuminates His Kingdom for eternity. To me, this shows His almighty sovereignty. God is content in Himself and so darkness did not bother Him. It is for us He created this distinction of light and darkness.

God’s First Conversation

The first conversation is between God Himself as the Trinity.

“‘Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.’” Genesis 1:26 (bold added)

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in perfect unity agreed on this plan for mankind and brought us into existence. This is a window into the beginning evidence of God’s love for us in that He not only desired to create us; He sought to give us authority over every living creature. He was choosing to make us managers of His good creation; what a deep level of trust!

God’s First Words to Mankind

The next aspect of God speaking came with blessing (again, life-giving words).

“God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.’  God also said, ‘Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This will be food for you, for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so.” Genesis 1:28-30 (Underline added)

God’s first recorded words were life and blessing. It reflects His nature and the beginnings of the LORD’s prayer,

“…Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
(meaning ‘let Your name be kept holy, or treated with reverence’)
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.”
Matthew 6:9-10 (ESV)

This chapter should give you and I plenty of reasons to praise our Creator and exalt His name high!

Let’s pray,

“Creator, thank You for Your phenomenally good work!
Thank You for making every piece of creation on earth with never-ending detail so it continually points back to You as the only reason that all can exist and be sustained as it is. Thank You for holding everything together and keeping life going by Your powerful word. LORD, forgive us when we do not give You enough credit or reverence for everything we are and have been given. It is all by You, through You, and for You, and Your glory! May Genesis One cause us to humbly be in awe of You and Your abilities to make the impossible possible. May we realign any parts of our hearts that are not humbly under Your will and authority. ‘Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ All glory, honour, power, and dominion are Yours, oh Lord, forever and ever! Amen”