Today we continue our series entitled, “The Benefits of Prayer and Fasting,” with an emphasis on “The Power of Prayer.” I trust the fire in your belly for prayer has been rekindled by now. The Father wants you to pray and so do I, but I also want your prayer life to be effective. That being the case, you must understand what some of the hindrances to prayer are. I call these “Blessing Blockers.” For the Blessing of God to flow freely in your life, your heart must be free of all Blessing Blockers.
So what does this mean to you today? I will give you my thoughts around two key Blessing Blockers you must avoid: doubt and unforgiveness.
1. Doubt: James said, “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.” (James 1:6,7 KJV)
a) Our text teaches us that when we ask God for something, we must ask Him in faith, not wavering (or doubting). James teaches that the person who wavers “will not receive anything” from the Lord. The Message Bible paraphrase of this passage reads: “Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way.”
b) Without question, doubt hinders our prayer life. Doubt strips you of the confidence the Father expects you to operate in. Faith is all about confidence. When you mix faith with doubt, your faith becomes powerless.
c) Faith is a critical component to prayer. If your prayers are not based in faith, they will be ineffective. And even if you pray in-faith, you will then have to wait in-faith as well. Most prayers are not answered immediately. Most of the time there is a space between the prayer and the completion of it. In that space, satan will put the pressure on you to give up on what you are believing God for. He will do all he can to get you to doubt the manifestation of God’s promise. If you allow doubt in your heart, your doubt will lead to fear and fear will lead to a faith-failure. This is why Jesus said that men should always to pray and not give up (Luke 18:1). Doubt leads to giving up. Doubt is a Blessing Blocker.
2. Unforgiveness: Jesus said, “Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions. [But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions.”] (Mark 11:25,26).
a) In Mark 11:25,26 Jesus was teaching about the faith of God… the faith that can speak to a mountain and see the mountain move. In the previous verse (v.24) Jesus said, “Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” That’s the part we like to quote, but we often leave off the part about forgiveness. Jesus went on to say, “Whenever you stand praying, forgive.” Jesus made it clear that if you do not forgive, you will be sowing bad seeds, seeds of unforgiveness, and these bad seeds will cause a bad harvest. The Father Himself will allow you to reap what you sow and He will not forgive you. Since Jesus was talking about prayer, the implication is that unforgiveness will hinder your prayer life.
b) Unforgiveness, bitterness, holding grudges, and etc. are Blessing Blockers. These things will negatively impact your prayer life. The Father expects you to release others of their transgressions against you, just like He released you from your transgressions against Him.
c) In the model prayer that many call the “Our Father,” Jesus said that we ought to pray, “Forgive us our sins (or tresspasses), as we have forgiven those who sin (or trespass) against us” (Mat 6:12). The point here is that we are to ask the Father to forgive us as IN THE SAME WAY we forgive others. What’s the insinuation? It is that IF we DO NOT forgive, we shall NOT be forgiven and if we are not forgiven it WILL negatively impact our prayer life. Unforgiveness is a Blessing Blocker.
3. You have make a concerted effort to remove every Blessing Blocker from your life. You don’t want anything to hinder your prayers. If you have been convicted of anything this morning, be quick to repent, so you can remove the Blessing Blockers immediately and get on the road to experiencing God’s best.
Closing Confession:
Father, this is a season of expectation for me. Your Word teaches me to remove every Blessing Blocker and I declare that I do. I deal with my doubts. I get Your Word down in my heart to the point where I am fully persuaded that Your Word will manifest in my life. Never again will I allow doubt to hinder my prayers. And in the area of unforgiveness, I thank You for helping me to develop in Your love. You loved me enough to forgive me, and I declare, by faith, that I develop in Your love to the point where I am able to completely forgive others. I will not allow what others have done to me in the past to derail me from my future. I release the root of bitterness, anger, resentment and wrath. I forgive, I let go, and I move forward! Living this way, 2018 shall be my best year so far! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
