The Christian Letter, Volume One: Chapter 17
“But when you do a kind deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your kind deed shall be in secret. And your Father Who sees in secret shall Himself reward you openly. And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the congregations and on the corners of the streets, to be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father Who is in the secret place. And your Father Who sees in secret shall reward you openly. And when praying, do not keep on babbling like the gentiles. For they think that they shall be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” (Matthew 6:3-8).
The Mighty One knows, and so we have little need to ask it, and even less to banter on like parrots who know only a handful of words; rather let us pray in secret, thereby being honest, asking what ought to be asked because of our desire for His Will to be done … on earth as it is in Heaven. The Rabbi’s prayer follows Matthew 6:3-8, so let us hear Him now teach us to pray.
“Our Father Who art in Heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come
Thy will be done
On Earth as it is in Heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive all those who are indebted to us
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil
For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever
May it be.”
-The Rabbi
Those are some of the finest Words to ever grace paper … but what of this prayer today? Do we hear this in heart and action? Is the Rabbi’s prayer usually read in monotone?
To grasp the amount of wisdom contained in this prayer is nothing shy of an adventure; however, no one can know this prayer if they muddle the words, just to get through it, and be done. Let us be more daring than we are supposed to be, by considering what the Messiah said, to know His Word—His Prayer.
“Our Father Who art in Heaven”
Take a moment to hear a whisper of Shalom from the throne, and also to realize His high position and our lowly one. Picture a slave given audience with the king of a great and noble land … and then magnify this image greatly. This ought be our position: kneeling, or lying upon the floor on our face, in fearful respect, and trembling love. He calls us His own—how much lower, my dear brothers and sweet sisters—how much lower, then, should we bow?
“Hallowed be Thy Name”
Let us know what this means. This is not just a redundant prayer. Holy is the Name of the Creator. Alas, do we honestly treat His Name as such? You cannot disregard a person’s name and still be respectful to him or her. How much more so, then, is His Name to be hallowed? How much more so the Great and Mighty Creator’s Name?
“Thy kingdom come”
Are we living a life where we honestly want to see His kingdom come today? … Or would we rather it come a few years from now. What would it take to desire His kingdom today? Perhaps a life of ministry accepted and freely given in love would tear down our own kingdom, thus allowing His Kingdom to be our desire. Seek to know His Kingdom by the Word.
“Thy will be done”
This is a great teaching. Far too often, we ask our will to be done. Is our sickness, often caused by our eating what He has asked us not to, His will or ours? Are our needs, more honestly called wants, His desire for our life or our own folly? Yes, even in begging for life sometimes death comes. Even when asking for love sometimes all we have is hate upon our backs. I know it. I know it well. But I say it boldly: to ask for anything other than His will is to assume us the wiser.
Yet, I take comfort in being an answer to prayer, in being that miracle someone so longs for. He asks of me, and to not help is equal to harming. Not being an answer for prayer, is indeed not praying.
How can you be an answer to prayer? Simply worded, but, oh, so great and adventurous a quest: His kingdom sought in the life of all who you can touch. What is life like in Heaven? Take a moment to close your eyes and picture what He has proclaimed. Take some time. Pause right now and reflect on His Word.
“On earth as it is in Heaven”
What is in Heaven? The Ten Commandments are in Heaven. A vegan diet is in Heaven. Indeed, one cannot say this prayer over a hamburger and not be a liar and a hypocrite. War is not in Heaven. A hint of self-righteousness is not in Heaven. You’ll never boast about yourself in His Kingdom with even an, “I did it.” Those who have given up their way of life for the way of the Messiah’s life are in Heaven. Luster so marvelous the streets are golden but the greed for it is unheard of. There is no sun, nor the worship thereof, in even a shadow of a shadow’s form, for there will be no shadows to hide in, as Yahoweh is the Light. But most of all: Yahoweh is there! Is His Spirit in your heart? If so, then He will guide us to what His kingdom proclaims. I will share what to do if you do not feel this Guide, in just a few paragraphs.
Ask Yahoweh for His Will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Yet Heaven’s ways are untaught today … and I have a lot of unlearning and learning to catch up on. From profanity, to greed, to lust, to the eating of flesh, there are many things in life that are not in Heaven. I am seeking to remove them from my life, and Yah has blessed me with a valuable key to riding myself of these things not of Heaven, though, to be sure, it will take some time. I will share more on these Heavenly wisdoms in due time. Stick with me. But in the meantime, I ask you to persevere, and as always … check His Word, not your understanding of His Word.
In Heaven do not think we will ascribe unto Yahoweh false titles and worthless generic names. Do not think we will be allowed to alter the Sabbath, hate our neighbor, or other detestable things from the world’s orgy of lies. Yahoweh will not change to appease our atrocities.
“Give us this day our daily bread”
Not give us this day pork chops. Those who are content with bread are people who know what it is like to have none. What kind of bread? The Bread of Life for which I long, for sure, but perhaps also our food needs.
“Two matters I have asked of You—deny them not to me before I die: remove falsehood and a lying word far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me my portion of bread; lest I become satisfied and deny You, and say, ‘Who is Yahoweh?’ And lest I be poor, and steal, and seize the Name of my Elohim.” (Proverbs 30:7-9).
“And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive all those who are indebted to us”
I will speak deeply on this highly important teaching to you in my letter on forgiving the forgiven, so I will simply say but one big thing here. … All.
“And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil”
Sometimes deliverance is so easy we forget it. Flee from temptation even if it requires kicking and screaming, and even if it simply means not getting in your car. Be like Joseph, who ran from the seducing woman. Yes, if you have to, run! He will always provide you a way to; even if you are in prison He will open doors in your heart into which you can turn. Though, often, it is as easy as not watching a film.
“For thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever”
Alas, all too often we ask for things even a spoiled brat would not ask for. Thus, I stress, “Not as my will, but Your will be done.” We are to be an answer to prayer. Yet, sadly, many today refuse to walk in His answer already given. The Forever Torah present in His Kingdom! For His is the Power! Unto Him give all glory! Yes forever and ever we shall praise Yah for He is Worthy!
“Amen”
Is this a close of prayer? Does saying amen mean: “Now that I am at the end of my list, I’ll say goodbye”? Amen, which most feel means, “may it be,” is not a magical communication stopper. How we live life is our prayer, as He always hears and sees us. So what is after spoken prayer? Praising Yahoweh by the melody of: HalleluYah. What is the best way to HalleluYah? By being so in love with Yahoweh that we study His Word, and then seek to live as He proclaims (2 Timothy 2:15 and Psalms 119:97-104). Yet, even so, sometimes the wicked one wants us to pray his prayer of silence. Or that of greed unfulfilled.
Have we traded His Teaching for folly?
Prayer: Acknowledging a Higher power
Folly: Asking Him as if He were but our slave or pet
Prayer: Caring about His very Name
Folly: Changing it with the times
Prayer: Longing for Him
Folly: Longing for self
Prayer: Desire succumbed to His Desire
Folly: Insisting that oneself is right about the One
Prayer: Hunger for the Spirit
Folly: Spirits for the hungry
Prayer: A request for just enough
Folly: Requests followed by more and more of the same
Prayer: Asking the Superior to cleanse our inferiority
Folly: A silence deafening the ears of the heart
Prayer: Letting go of the hate to make room for Love
Folly: Forgetting what the Maker of the heart has not
Prayer: Take my hand, and lead me dear loved One
Folly: Take my hand, and let me lead You
Prayer: Admiration of acknowledgment
Folly: Amen as a goodbye
Folly? Sometimes the greatest folly is a half-truth. “And He said to them, ‘Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, “Friend, lend me three loaves, since a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I do not have food to set before him,” then the one inside answering, says, “Do not trouble me, the door is already locked, and my children with me are in bed. I am unable to get up and give to you”? ‘I say to you, if he does not get up and give to him because he is his friend, he shall get up and give him as many as he needs because of his persistence. And I say to you: ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you. For everyone asking receives, and he who is seeking finds, and to him who is knocking it shall be opened. And what father among you whose son asks for bread shall give him a stone, or if he asks for a fish shall give him a snake instead of a fish, or if he asks for an egg shall give him a scorpion?’” (Luke 11:5-12).
I have had this passage read to me so many times. Because of this hearing this, with men’s theology, I suffered greatly. Why! Why, when I prayed for life, did He give me death! This lie almost cost me my very soul! … I was a broken man. Would not a loving dad give bread and not a stone, but yet I asked for life and watched my friend, and my faith in prayer, die in the same fading eyes. However, when you read the Word you find things of great importance that many preachers stop just shy of, “If you then, being wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father from heaven give the Set-apart Spirit to those asking Him!” (Luke 11:13). The Messiah wasn’t speaking a name it claim it lie, or even that He’d give you a loaf of bread … but that He would give the greatest gift of all to those who ask for that gift. A greater gift than life: The Holy Spirit. Do not be dismayed if you pray for food and die of hunger, or beg for life and the life fades before your eyes. Pray persistently instead for His Will to be done, His desire of the Holy Spirit guiding you in the fruit of the Spirit. Do not lose your hope like I almost did.
“And you, therefore, have grief now, but I shall see you again and your heart shall rejoice, and no one takes your joy away from you. And in that day you shall ask Me none at all. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My Name He shall give you. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask Me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in My Name.” (John 16:22-23). By the bleakness of the false prosperity gospel, we are to ask and we shall receive, but we don’t, do we? The Messiah, however, doesn’t give us some fluffy lie, rather the Truth. Now is a time of suffering … but when we see Yahoshuah, then no one will take our joy from us, and it is at that point, at the transition of time and mortality that what we ask for in His Name we will be given. Nobody will treat prayer face to face with Yahoweh Almighty the way we do today. Indeed, our prayers will be that of praise. We will ask Him to lift His throne higher, and we will bow down so that we are lower. That prayer will be answered, and I for one cannot think of anything else I would ask for. The give-me prayers of today would not be. On Earth as it is in Heaven? Praise Yah, O my soul, Praise Yah!
… Ah, but doubt haunts us all, doesn’t it? Even John, sent to prepare the Way for Yahoweh Himself, questioned the Messiah, “and said to Him, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’” (Matthew 11:3). But why did he fall for a short time?
“For look, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for that which Yahoweh has said to her shall be accomplished!” (Luke 1:44-45). In the womb, John knew, but thirty years later he was uncertain. Why? He knew the moment he saw the Messiah, and he even sent his disciples to stay with Yahoshuah: “Again the following day, Yohanan was standing with two of his taught ones, and looking at Yahoshuah walking, he said, ‘See the Lamb of Elohim!’ And the two taught ones heard him speaking, and they followed Yahoshuah.” (John 1:35-37, see 29-34 as well). Yet when John was in prison and about to die, he questioned, and the Messiah’s answer in Matthew 11:2-6 confirms what John already knew in 11:2-3. “And when Yohanan had heard in the prison of the works of Messiah, he sent two of his taught ones and said to Him, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’ And Yahoweh answering, said to them, ‘Go, report to Yohanan what you hear and see: Blind receive sight and lame walk, lepers are cleansed and deaf hear, dead are raised up and poor are brought the Good News. And blessed is he who does not stumble in Me.’” (Matthew 11:2-6). And blessed is he who does not stumble on account of Me.’” (Matthew 11:2-6).
The Messiah said: “And blessed is he who does not stumble in Me.” In other words, “Don’t lose faith on account of My mighty works. You know I am the One, but you’re going to die. We all do. Do not lose faith because of it, for I am still the I AM!” So when we have trouble, let us not fall away because of the Messiah’s good works, but let us rather know this: if we follow the Messiah, then we are called to live in this world as citizens of an entirely different kingdom. Have you ever been downtown and saw a person who was obviously from a different country? That’s supposed to be us, folks: completely different.
So even if death comes by beheading, on the cross, or by cancer, let us take joy in the Good News, which is not as meaningless as the soft modern day church whispers, but rather as bold as the Word roars! “See, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16). Truly within our adolescence in Torah, and our feel good world, we have become as shrewd as doves and as innocent as snakes. Truly, we needn’t stay that way. Have faith! Have faith! … Have faith even as death cuts to kill.
“And when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall come to be the word that has been written, ‘Death is swallowed up in overcoming. O Death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your overcoming?’” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).
Sometimes the healing we ask for was already given in His original plan for us. The health found in a good marriage, and what He gave us to eat in the beginning. A testimony for Him is much more powerful if you follow His footsteps and die, than if you walked apart and lived. Many today pray to a god they made in their own image, hoping to provoke or appease him with the false promises so common to this lying world. Let this not be us. Rather, let us praise Him, asking for His Will to be done and for us to be guided fully in it.
Let us pray prayers of thankful worship, not begging. For too many of us ask and ask. Let us pray persistently for the Holy Spirit, and let us be content with Him, and not covet something less than His Spirit. Let our prayer not be to remove the sickness, but that, “If it be your will, O Yahoweh Almighty, then please take this cup from me, if not, then I pray Your Spirit remain with me, for He has drunken my cup!” Let us not live and die as beggars, but rather let us live and die unto Him, and for us to do this is only possible with His Holy Spirit.
David prayed to the Judge, asking for justice, to vanquish any enemy of the people of Israel. “And He spoke a parable to them, that they should always pray and not lose heart, saying, ‘In a certain city there was a certain judge, not fearing Elohim nor regarding man. And a widow was in that city, and she came to him, saying, “Do right to me on my adversary.” And he would not for a while, but afterward he said within himself, “Even if I do not fear Elohim nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I shall do right to her, lest by her continual coming she wears me out.”’ And the Master said, ‘Hear what the unrighteous judge said. And shall Elohim not do right by all means to His own chosen ones who are crying out day and night to Him, and being patient over them? I say to you that He shall do right to them speedily. But when the Son of Adam comes, shall He find the belief on the earth?’” (Luke 18:1-8). In this parable a widow pleaded with an evil king, but the King we serve is not evil and will, one day, yes, upon Judgment Day, fulfill His Torah. On that glorious day when the Bridegroom returns, justice shall be done swiftly! Praise Yah! Ah, but who is evil? Will every widow be avenged for the laziness of those who were supposed to care for her?
“If you love Me, you shall guard My commands. And I shall ask the Father, and He shall give you another Helper, to stay with you forever—the Spirit of the Truth, whom the world is unable to receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. But you know Him, for He stays with you and shall be in you.” (John 14:15-17). His Truth is His Word. It has been here all along, we only need to seek it, walk in it, and not fear what others might say or what the consequences are when we walk as the Messiah did. We need to be willing to walk away from our past sins and walk a new life—a new prayer. Even if we fall into the lake, let us walk where Yahoshuah is, for I tell you no lie, Yahoshuah will pull you up (Matthew 14:29-32), and again I tell you no lie: Peter grew into greater faith that day, and every day he walked with the Rabbi. Let us, like he, walk where He walks, daily, ever growing closer. Ever learning the answer by asking the question, “Rabbi … teach us to pray.”
The most important thing about prayer isn’t requesting miracles, but fellowship with Him. If Yahoweh healed all who asked for it … none would die. I love my grandmother. She was a marvelous woman, still human to be sure, but a good grandmother nonetheless. Yet, upon her passing, she was resuscitated by the doctors. She told them they’d better not do that again! It was time. It is said that a woman always knows when to leave. In this life, be it eighty plus years or eight trimesters, death will come, sickness will leave its mark, but what is time? For while it is no lie that Yahoweh does save and does heal, and may well be pleased to hear you ask for it, the truth of it all remains: in order for us to truly be alive—we must first die (John 12:24). A stray bullet taking a loved one with the horror of no preparedness for that of which no preparation is able, or the slow death of a loved one from a long illness, the pain of this world is indeed difficult. Yet, even in these times, prayer is still meant for praise and fellowship with a King who wears sandals and weeps.
The Messiah healed in the Scriptures, and He is the same Healer today; yet, what did He really heal? I tell you no lie, every one that He healed, later died. What He did was give them hope … He gave us hope. If He suspend gravity every time we tripped, so we wouldn’t get hurt, then we would love Him … but not for the right reasons. His Will be done. His Will is free will, and in this free will we have suffering brought on us—by us. It was the only way for us to be able to love Him because of Who He is, rather than what He does for us in the now. Sometimes it is a blessing not yet realized when the Almighty seems silent. Praise Him for it.
Sometimes we ask, but do not receive, because we do not ask for His Will. I have had many prayers where He said no, and I am so glad now that He did. I am sure you have, too. We pray for a certain girlfriend or a certain car, a meal or a cure, but in the end of it all, the wife He has later is the best of all, the feet or wheel chair He gave works and needs to work, and though the meal of food might not be the food you want, and the cure from the sickness would not keep you from dying, when He gives us His Spirit, we see the true gift of Yah is hope. This is the cure. HalleluYah! … HalleluYah.
My wife, Jasmine, had a car accident awhile back. The car rolled, landed on its top, and all the windows broke. The top of the car caved in and there was glass everywhere. Yahoweh kept her safe. There was so much glass all over in the car I could hardly see the material in which the glass was embedded, even where she sat. She crawled out of the squashed broken window with not so much as a nick, cut, or ache. Some say luck. I know better. However, even if she had died, I am glad I have been blessed with such an honorable woman like Jasmine. Her tender spirit reminds me of Yahoweh’s great love, and I am glad for her heart. Yet, did He answer our prayer for her safety, or did He answer His own? Again, His Will is that we have free will, and with it we chose sin, and so we shall die. No amount of prayer will stop this. We will have suffering. We all shall die
Thinking of her, I am reminded that my grandmother made quilts with old bits of clothes not good enough to go to people in need. Underneath each quilt she worked on, high aloft the quilt stands of light tan wood, I laid as a child. The patchy material and the zig-zaged seams were a mess. It was not until I grew that I was able to see the top of the quilt to see how beautiful it was. It was much the same with her paintings, which she painted from heart. I saw a canvas wet with odd colors atop a dark brown easel. Until I saw the other side, the picture, I thought it a mess. Like the brush of Yahoweh, like His mending work, we, as children, see the other side of the canvas, or the patchy quilt. My grandma gave many quilts to families who had lost their homes to a fire, truckloads of clothes to orphans, and goodies to all, but my Saviour gives more than I can explain. Yet, it doesn’t always seem so grand, until we are still. Be silent and be still. And someday you will grow and see the picture. It is beautiful. So beautiful. Though to be sure I have never seen it clearly, as the tears blur the wonder of it all every time He picks me up to see.
Indeed, I have many reasons to be thankful, but how can we express our tender appreciation? “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in all circumstances give thanks, for this is the desire of Elohim in Messiah Yahoshuah for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Let us consider the desire of Yahoweh, as we pray prayers of thanks without ceasing.
While I do have memorized prayers for certain things, there is an even better memorization: the memory of often saying, “Thanks,” and, “Blessed be He.” Yet, when should we “give thanks” or “blessings”? According to Jewish tradition a person should recite one hundred Barukh Atah (blessings come from: pronounced Baw-ruek ah-tah) each day. I do not do that as often as I ought to; yet, one hundred simply does not seem sufficient. How many could we say if we said a praiseful, “Thank you,” in our heart unceasingly? Think of all the times each and every hour our life calls for us to proclaim, “Barukh Atah Yahoweh.” In little to big things, we have forgotten how to say, “Thank you.” We have forgotten how to pray. Let us then remember to say, “Barukh Atah Yahoweh,” for clothes so we are not nude, for the privilege of seeing a sunset, for meeting someone, for not meeting someone, for thunder and rain, for Israel, an anniversary, for the mitzvah of standing in the presence of the elderly, for the mitzvah of loving your wife, for the mitzvah of a restful and peaceful Sabbath, for every chance we approach to fulfill a mitzvah of Yahoweh. Also, for hearing a lion roar, a meadowlark sing, a child laugh, and a woman weep, for what would grace your heart and ears if the lion was tame, or the bird without song, or the babe without joy, or the woman without heart. Yes, let us make, “Barukh Atah Yahoweh,” such a part of our lives that whenever a good or bad thing happens, His Love is the first thing our heart places on our tongue.
Hebrew is the language in which the covenant with Yahoweh was formed—the language of Biblical thought. All languages are laden with implications of that language’s culture and religion. When you translate a Hebrew word, you lose subtle shadings of Jewish thought and add ideas that are pagan. For example, the English word “commandment” implies an order forced upon us by a stern and punishing deity, while the Hebrew word “mitzvah” (mitz-vah) implies an honor and privilege given to us, a good deed that we are eager to undertake because we love the Father. However, praying in Hebrew is not more important than understanding why you are praying, and to Whom.
Note: Who blesses whom? How can the creation bestow a blessing upon the Creator? The Hebrew word “barukh” does not describe what we do to Elohim, rather it describes Yahoweh as the source of all blessings, and we have honor to lift them up to Him.
The Hebrew word for prayer is “tefilah,” meaning to judge oneself … not others. Blessings are very common in Scripture, and are easy to recognize as they all start with the word barukh (blessed or praised). The word barukh is derived from the Hebrew root Bet-Resh-Kaf, meaning “knee,” and refers to the practice of showing respect by kneeling. Hence, prayer is kneeling in judgment of oneself unto Yahoweh. There are several places in Jewish writings (the Bible) where this gesture is performed, most of them at a time when a prayer is being recited. Sadly, many Jews today do not kneel. The only reason I have heard behind this is because the Christians started to do so, and the Jews did not want to be like the pagans. This makes me weep. I truly wish … no, I truly pray, that someday I will see more than a handful of Christians pray while kneeling, and see the Jewish people do the same. It is sad to know that Christianity is still so far away from the Gospel that we have not yet become a light unto Israel. How many centuries have we forfeited? In truth, though, until we humbly accept their testimony, then we have no hope in sharing their Messiah. I pray for Israel. I pray for the church. I hope you all will, too. It will only be by His Ruach, and by our accepting Him alone, that this will change. I am not sure why Christianity frowns so heavily on anything concerning the Biblical Jewish faith. Mention celebrating Passover instead of Easter, and most Christians will fight against the notion without any thought of the Saviour asking that we keep Passover in remembrance of Him. I am not going to pretend to understand this. I don’t. I know it appears I am going off subject here, but I feel very strongly that this is interlinked. This is so important that an entire book could not convey its importance, and thus, I place it here in my Letter to you on prayer, because prayer is at the heart of spiritual battles. I pray for Israel. I pray for the church. I hope you all will, too.
Just be on guard so that you do not pray as a show. It’s not hard to fall into this trap. Thus, I suggest to find a time in the day, unbeknownst to anyone else, to be alone to pray.
Another good practice is to pray over your wife and children after you have eaten what Yahoweh has provided for you. (Do not forget your head, O wife and children. After the head of the house prays for each of you, you in turn should each pray for him. It is one of the greatest blessings of a large family, if not the greatest.) Consider the ability to pray for your family a great honor and joy. Make it a habit to pray for your children and wife after every meal (Deuteronomy 8:10) and every morning and every night. This is indeed more prayer than I have ever seen in a family before. Still … it is not enough (1 Thessalonians 5:17). However, this is a good start. (If you do not have a family yet, then pray with your girlfriend, parents, study partners, and friends; if you are truly alone then pray to not be alone.)
Prayer is by far one of the greatest gifts we could ever have. Our first thought in the morning, even before we get out of bed, ought to be prayer, thanking Yahoweh for the rest and our breath. So no matter where you are, look with your heart and know that if every moment is deserving of praise to HaBaRa, then let us pray without ceasing. I urge you all to forget counting how many “Barukh Atah” you say each day. Make them countable only to Yahoweh!
Alas, many pray only when they feel inspired to. I know I once did. This attitude overlooks that prayer increases our awareness of the Creator and the role that He plays in our life. If we only pray when we feel inspired, that is when we are already aware of Him, thus, we will not increase our awareness of Yahoweh. If you wait until inspiration strikes, you will not have the relationship you need to pray. Before you start praying regularly, prayer is difficult, but with time it blossoms into what only His Spirit can share.
Often when people stop using prayer as a means of begging, prayers just stop altogether. This is because many of us have become conditioned to love our self and what He can do for us, forgetting that He is a Friend. Be vigilant and pray more often than you have before! For Yahoweh be praised. After all, consider all that He has already done. Ten life times would not be enough time to say, “Thank you,” for all that He has done and given, but that’s no reason not to start anyway.
Praise Yah for all the miracles we do not even know about, and for all the massive amounts of safety we do have! It only seems sparse at times. Put your faith in Him, and you will begin to see as you have never seen before! That isn’t a sales gimmick or some new fangled speech. I am sincere, and, in time, I pray you will find a spectacular relationship, friendship, with Yahoweh the Almighty … not a vending machine.
However, concerning the Torah, if you do not listen to my weeping and heed the Father, then what good will your prayers do? “He who turns away his ear from hearing the Torah, even his prayer is an abomination.” (Proverbs 28:9). The prayer of a righteous man avails much. We know this by Scripture. Am I righteous? He Who is in me is. Will you listen to His cry, not only in your heart, but also in His Word?
I hear often, “I am praying the lord will show me what to do.” yet, I seldom hear, “I am reading the Scriptures to learn what Yahoweh has called me to do.” I am not too sure He is going to reveal a plan to people who ignore His Grand Plan. And the little stuff, well, it’s little, and His plan is that we have free will.
“And having seen the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, as sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His taught ones, ‘The harvest truly is great, but the workers are few. Pray then that the Master of the harvest would send out workers to His harvest.’” (Matthew 9:36-38). “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months, and the harvest comes’? See, I say to you, lift up your eyes and see the fields, for they are white for harvest—already!” (John 4:35). What happens when a harvest is left out in the field too long? It withers and dies. It is lost. Souls are withering all around us. See the need? It is up to us to go and do what Yahoweh has sent us to do, to be workers and prayers. There are billions of people that need Yahoshuah’s love. The harvest is ready, and the prayers need to be sent. The harvest is at its peak, and it is an honor to be a part of it. Our labour is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58) so let us do our part to pray and work in His harvest field. Who knows, this may be the last crop.
When quality time is spent in prayer and reading the Word with Him, you get to that point where you begin to know His voice. I recognize my mom’s because we have been close for a long time. My brother can just look at me a certain way and I know what he is saying because of time spent together. Don’t get frustrated because last week you spent time with Yahoweh and didn’t hear anything with your heart. It takesmuch time.The more quality time spent in your prayers and reading of the Word, the more you will begin to know the voice of the Good Shepherd. “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them everlasting life, and they shall by no means ever perish, and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.” (John 10:27-28).
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter through the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up by another way, that one is a thief and a robber. But he who enters through the door is the shepherd of the sheep. The doorkeeper opens for him, and the sheep hear his voice. And he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he has brought out his own sheep, he goes before them. And the sheep follow him, because they know his voice. And they shall by no means follow a stranger, but shall flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.” (John 10:1-5).
Generally, people who say they aren’t hearing His voice, aren’t reading their Bible (His voice). We should not even know the voice of strangers! It’s the same thing as failing a class at school because you never attended the lectures. Frankly, if the only place you ever hear His voice was in the Bible, and you are reading on a daily basis and being obedient to what Yahoweh says, you would do just fine, but even then the Holy Spirit will whisper if you ask for Him, when His whisper is to be breathed.
Note: When people pray, and others who are there with folded hands, start saying things like, “Oh yes, lord jesus, yes, yes jesus, oh yes lord jesus, yes.” it is done because they are trying to produce a spiritual overtone by mere mood, instead of praying meekly in the rather novel idea of quietly listening to the Holy Spirit. Yahoweh is not silent—but some keep eyes closed and ears covered while jabbering loudly, and then say, “He never speaks to me.”Or even worse, “He has told me to not obey Him.”
Why do we close our eyes and fold our hands during prayer? Perhaps it is to keep from distraction, but the only time we close our eyes is when we go to sleep and start to dream. I feel walking with your eyes open while praying with unfolded hands is fine, as well as folded hands and closed eyes, so long as the heart and mind are awake and alert. Be still in your prayers so that you can sense His voice whispering in your heart like a fine mist before a storm. Whether you speak in Hebrew or any language, He hears your heart. Do you hear His (John 10:1-5)?
“and My people upon whom My Name is called, shall humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I shall hear from the Heavens, and forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14). If we just say a prayer? No. But if we do indeed humble ourselves like Job was humble, or like Hadassah, who was humble even before the king Xerxes; if in our prayer we seek His face (if we seek to know the Powerful Yahoweh), then, He will hear from Heaven, and perform great and wondrous signs. He will indeed forgive our sin, and in forgiveness is a healing that no medicine can produce, so much so that His mercy shown to us will even heal the land. But are our prayers humble enough to be before His face?
“And he said to me, ‘Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and to humble yourself before your Elohim, your words were heard, and I have come because of your words. But the head of the rule of Persia withstood me twenty-one days. And see, Michael, one of the chief heads, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the sovereigns of Persia. And I have come to make you understand what is to befall your people in the latter days. For the vision is yet for days to come.’” (Daniel 10:12-14). Here we see an angel was delivering a prophecy, but he was not doing so to an arrogant man calling himself a father, rabbi, or pastor, but to one who was humble. The spiritual war is real, and one angel (a messenger of Yahoweh) waged battle with the head ruler of Persia, whom many believe was a fallen angel, or demon, to deliver that answer. Are your prayers for a new sports car being blocked by some boogieman? Doubtful. Are your prayers for wisdom and understanding being delayed by the head demon of the writer of false doctrines? This may well be.
Side note concerning humility: I know I have said it before, but I feel a small repeat is in order. We can teach (Hebrews 5:12) only if we have learned enough to know that only the Words of the Saviour can teach. We must allow His words to be what we speak, and stop trying to make our words His own by the means of doctrines. Only Yahoweh is a Great Teacher. Only His Words can turn hearts. We are just sharers. Our own words do not teach, but they do have the power to lead people to the Word Who can. We must be humble in ministry, and even more so in prayer. Think on the Messiah and His humility. How did He pray? He did not ask for money, and as we now know from the Scripture shared in my letter to you called “Who is He,” that He did not even ask for His life to be spared from the cross. Praise Yah!
Do not forget this! Whether it is a prayer at night, or saying, “I love you.” to your wife, don’t forget what it truly means! When you say your prayer, this one, or your own, remember to pay close attention to what you say, and to listen to the Words He has already given us. The Rabbi’s prayer is a guideline that the Messiah gave His disciples. Let us keep His prayer upon heart, and apply His teachingsabout praying prayers. Let us keep our own words few and coated in humility and love.
“Our Father Who art in Heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come
Thy will be done
On Earth as it is in Heaven
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive all those who are indebted to us
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil
For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever
May it be.”
-The Rabbi
Prince of Peace, Mighty Warrior, Great Saviour Yahoweh in the highest … teach me Thy way of Heaven by coming close to me. Grace me with the contentment of Bread and the Shalom of forgiveness. Thank You for the gift of fleeing to Your Word. O Elohim of Abraham, and of Hadassah, I long for Your desire. Guide me with Your Holy Spirit for Your glory, my Dear Father, so I might praise You in all times of fire and Shalom. … HalleluYah for prayer!
“Do not worry at all, but in every matter, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to Elohim.” (Philippians 4:6).
Be Blessed and be a Blessing
Shalom
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Additional Scripture References:
Psalms 1:2, 63:6, 77:12, 119:148