Why Prayer Builds a Powerful Christian Life | Season 03, Episode 06 | Simple Truth Podcast

The strongest Christians that you and I know have one habit in common. They pray. They're not strong because they have easy lives or fewer problems. They're strong because prayer keeps them connected to God. Unfortunately, many Christians struggle with prayer. Have you ever struggled with prayer? I know I have. Maybe you didn't know where to start or what to say. Or you felt like God was so far away and he wasn't listening. I've been there. I had those same questions. But the Bible gives us real answers. Prayer is not a religious routine. It's how you and I connect with God. How we hear from God and how we could receive peace and strength that we need for everyday life. In this episode of the Simple Truth Podcast, we're going to open up the Bible. We're going to see what prayer is, why it's essential, and how you could build a powerful Christian life through prayer. So, let's get into it in this episode of the Simple Truth. Welcome to the Simple Truth Podcast, where we open the Bible to uncover simple, biblical, and essential truths that can transform your life. And now, here's your host, Ted Ross. Hi, my name is Ted Ross and this is the Simple Truth Podcast. Your home for biblical truth clearly taught and freely given. I'm super excited about season 3, episode 6. We discuss why prayer builds a powerful Christian life. So, let's get into it. Why does this episode matter? Well, first of all, God wants you to pray, right? But here's the problem. Many Christians, they know that they should pray, but they don't know what prayer is, why it matters, or exactly how to do it. And because of that, many Christians miss out on the benefits of prayer. And prayer, it's not optional. It's essential. It's essential for a relationship with God. And it brings peace. It brings strength. It brings direction in your life. In this episode, you'll see in the Bible what prayer really is, why it matters so much, and what God does in you through prayer. Because a powerful prayer life is a powerful Christian life. So, let's see why prayer is unique among the five disciplines for Christian growth. So, this season, season 3, we've been focused on the five disciplines of Christian growth. Five habits worth repeating. as you'll remember, practices that God uses to build your relationship with him and to grow as a Christian. So when we look at the five disciplines for Christian growth, we see reading the Bible out loud, meditating on the word of God, fasting, right? Those were the episodes that we've already covered. And when you think about what those three disciplines do in your life, they prepare your heart for the relationship with God. reading the Bible out loud, meditating and internalizing God's word, fasting so that you're humbling your soul. These three disciplines prepare your heart for the relationship of God. But these next two that we're going to cover, praying without ceasing and seeking to be led by the spirit, these two disciplines are the relationship itself. So while the first three that we've been covering are about preparation of your heart, these next two are about the relationship. And that is why prayer is one of the unique disciplines among the five disciplines that we're going to get into. Prayer is unique because it is foundational to your relationship with God. So prayer actually builds a powerful Christian life. Prayer is God's way for you to communicate and relate to him. Okay, let me say that again. It's through prayer that God even ordained as the method for you to communicate with God and for you to relate to God. Just like any other relationship, communication with God is essential. Through a healthy prayer life, you speak with God. You listen to God and you actually align your heart with his will. In other words, you fellowship with him. Fellowship is a word that often gets thrown around. Really, the modern expression is to hang out. You hang out with God, which by the way is exactly the relationship that God wants. As we've seen in scripture and we're going to be seeing in scripture in this episode, without prayer, without that fellowship, without hanging out with God, your relationship with God, it drifts, right? Distance grows, strength fades, and that connection becomes lost. It's much like a distant relative or a friend. Many of us have had a distant relative, somebody who, you know, maybe we don't speak to often at all and then 5 years, 10 years, 15 years goes by. And when you meet that relative or you see that friend again, first of all, so many things have happened and you never were caught up or in touch. So huge surprises occur when you start talking to them. And second, they're completely different. We all know what it's like to have probably a distant relative or a distant friend. You do not want to have a distant relationship with God. That's why we make prayer a daily discipline, a daily habit. Because building that relationship with God and maintaining a close relationship with God, it is essential to true Christian success. In season 3, episode 1, we talked about what it means to be a successful Christian. And prayer is an important part of that. So then, what is prayer? That leads us into our very first simple truth. Prayer is talking to and listening to God. That's the simplicity of prayer. A simple definition. So, let's take a look. We're going to look at Jeremiah 33:3. That's all threes, folks. Three threes. Jeremiah 33:3. And here we're going to see that when you pray to God, God answers you. And on top of that, God enlightens you. Okay. Jeremiah 33:3. Scripture says, "Oh, by the way, all Bible verses are from the New King James Version, so feel free to follow along." Jeremiah 33:3, quote, "Call to me, God says, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know." That is a good word. Call to me, God says. That means pray, summon me, cry out to me. What a powerful statement. You could summon God. You can call out to God, God will come. This doesn't imply a casual calling out. Really, it implies sincerely seeking his help and seeking his response. So, call to me, God says, and I, God, in this context, answer. To answer is to respond, to reply, to give an answer. And he says he will show you great things. That is to declare, to make known, to reveal to you great things, significant things, powerful things, impressive things. That's what that word means in the Hebrew. And mighty things. Those are things that are impossible to access without help. Often we would call that hidden. So God is going to reveal to you impressive, powerful things as well as things that you would never come across if God didn't enlighten you to them. things which you do not know, things that you've never understood, never experienced, never come across before. Okay? Prayer is a real conversation. When you call to God, God answers and God reveals. Thank you, God. Let's take a look at another verse. Let's go to Philippians 4:es 6 and 7. A famous set of verses about prayer. And in this one, really what we're going to see in Philippians 4:6 is to not carry our worries alone. God invites us to literally bring everything to him in prayer, he wants to hear about it. Philippians 4:6, quote, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." Thank you, God. So it says be anxious for nothing. Anxious is to be worried. It's to be distracted by. It's to be pulled apart by care. So Paul by the spirit is saying don't be pulled apart by care. Don't be distracted and don't be worried for anything. But in everything, all things by prayer. Prayer is talking to and listening to God in the Greek. And supplication. Supplication is to make specific requests for help. So he says, "Don't be anxious or distracted. Instead, talk to God. Listen to God. And make specific requests to God and do so with thanksgiving. Do it with gratitude. Do it with thankfulness." Why do you do it with thankfulness? It shows faith. When you're grateful to God for the things he's done, and you're thankful to God, then you're showing that you believe who God is and you know what he can do in your life. We're going to talk a little more about thankfulness later in this episode. It says, "Let your requests be made known to God. Let your petitions, let your asks, those things that you ask for." Prayer is talking to God. And he's talking to God as we see in Philippians 4:6 about everything and making your requests known to God. God literally asks for it. Philippians 4:7. And here what we're going to see that as you bring everything to God through prayer, he gives you peace that guards your heart and your mind. Philippians 4:7, quote, "And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." That word peace, it's rest. It's inward calm. The rest of God, the inward calm of God, which surpasses, it exceeds, it goes beyond the normal. It exceeds all understanding. That's human reasoning. The ability to explain this piece. It surpasses what your mind can think. It surpasses your expectations. Heck, it surpasses what is normal around you. That's the kind of peace you and I want. And it comes from not being anxious, from praying, from supplicating, from giving thanksgiving to God. It says that that peace will guard, it will protect, it will watch over us like a soldier on duty. I want that peace. It will guard your heart, which is your inner self. We've discussed this before. your soul, which includes your will and your intellect and your emotions and your spirit. It's that inner part of you, the heart. You can't see it. And it'll also guard your mind, your thoughts, your mental activity. And it does so through Christ Jesus. Prayer has many benefits for you. That's what we're seeing in here. Quite often, we think that God is commanding us to do something because it's good for God. Quite on the contrary, God will be just fine. He's self-sufficient. He doesn't need you and me, but he wants to have a relationship with you and me. He cares desperately about it. That's why he sent Jesus Christ to die to reconcile you and me back to him. So when we pray, it has benefits for us, including peace, inner calm, and reassurance through the daily challenges of life. By the way, people spend large amounts of money to try to buy peace, buy inner calm, buy reassurance, and we can do it at no cost through prayer to a loving God. Thank you, Jesus. Let's take a look at Psalm 62:8. And here we're going to see that God invites you and I to come to him in prayer and to pour out all of our inner thoughts because God is a safe place to run in times of trouble. Psalm 62:8, quote, "Trust in him at all times, you people. Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us." Trust that means to rely on, have confidence in, feel secure in God. And do that at all times. That means every moment, every season, every circumstance. Sometimes you're going to want to trust in God. Sometimes you're not going to want to trust in God. And you know why? Do you have a will in your soul? You have a will because you can purpose yourself to do things you don't want to do. You don't need to be driven by your emotions. That's another part of you. And emotions are valuable. There's a benefit and there's a purpose to emotions. But if you don't feel like giving God honor, you don't feel like trusting in God. That's the perfect time to take your will and to tell yourself like it says in the psalm bless the Lord oh my soul and for and all that is within me bless his holy name you tell yourself and you purpose to trust in God at all times because it is the truth that's why you do it says pour out your heart pray spill out freely empty completely your heart your inner self your thoughts your wants your choices all that stuff inside of you pour it out before God in God's presence, face to face with him. What a powerful term. Pour out your heart before him in God's presence, face to face with God. That's what you're doing when you're in prayer because God is a refuge for us. That's a shelter, a protection, a safe place to run. We run to all sorts of shelters in life. Too often when we have a challenge, when we have a problem, we run to a significant other or we run to a parent or we run to a psychologist or we run to some other person when we really should start by running to God. And you know what? I understand where a lot of people run into challenges, but I see quite often in my life as a Christian that they often run to all sorts of things before they even consider running to God and running to him in prayer. Prayer, talking to listening to God is how you run to your safe place. So let's take a moment. Okay. God wants us to talk to him, to listen to him, and to even pour out our heart, our inner self to God. But when should we pray? And how often should I be praying? Right? The Bible's answer is actually simple with this question. The answer is always. Let's take a look at that. So, here's our next simple truth. You should be continually praying to God. Mind blown. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. What we're going to see here in these verses is that God wants you to talk to and listen to him continuously and persistently. And so, we're really going to get into what this means. 1 Thessalonians 5:16. The scripture says, "Rejoice always." Verse 17, "Pray without ceasing." I'm going to say that one more time. 1 Thessalonians 5:17, pray without ceasing. Okay? Rejoice always. Be glad. Be joyful. That's what that word means. Do it always at all times in every circumstance. That's where it gets a little trickier. When I'm happy, it's easy for me to rejoice. But when I'm having challenges, it's harder for me to rejoice. But God says, "Hey, be glad, be joyful, and do it at all times and do it under every circumstance." And then in verse 17, it says, "Pray." That's to speak, to address God. Approach him in prayer. That's what that word means. And do that without ceasing, continuously, persistently, uninterrupted. It implies a consistency to it, not sporadic bursts. So certainly what God is describing here is don't pray on a Monday and then come back to me in a month or so. Continuously pray to God. Persistently pray to God and do so without interruption. You may be asking yourself a question, but Ted, I've got to eat. I've got to sleep. How could I possibly do these things continuously? We're going to talk about in our next episode when we talk about how to pray. But the instruction is quite simple. God wants uninterrupted, continuous and persistent relationship with him. He wants a consistent relationship of talking to God and listening to God. And that, my friends, is a mindblowing concept. A successful Christian life, and we're going to look at more verses, a successful Christian life, it includes an ongoing conversation with God through prayer. So that's why we make it a habit aka a discipline. 1 Thessalonians 5:18, quote, "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." We pray and we show appreciation to God because he's working in us. There are things that we've seen God do and we can thank God for and there's things that we aren't seeing God do and he's still doing it and we thank God for that, too. We're going to talk a little more about thankfulness in a minute. So, it says in everything. That word means all things, in every situation, in every circumstance, give thanks, express gratitude, express thankfulness, express an appreciation to God. This isn't always easy, folks. I can speak for that firsthand, but there's a reason why God instructs us to do this. And it says, "For this in everything giving thanks, for this is the will of God." in Christ Jesus for you. The will of God means it's God's desire. It's God's purpose. It's God's intention for you and for me. Giving thanks, it shifts our focus from our problems to God, which is exactly where it needs to be. Gratitude, it's not based on a situation. It's based on committing ourselves to God and trusting him in every situation. So, why should you always be thankful to God? As I was putting together all of these verses and I was putting together this information and getting ready to deliver this message, I was asking myself, it kept nagging at me. People are going to ask themselves, why do I always need to be thankful? There's certainly some people who it's natural for them to be thankful and to give God praise. But for many people, I include myself, it took time to come to an understanding of why I should do that. Why should I be thankful in all things? There are many reasons to push yourself to be thankful to God. And I put that wording there on purpose. If you're someone who's naturally gives God thanks and gives God's praise, God bless you. For many of us, it is not easy to There are times where we feel thankful and there's times where we do not. So, there are many reasons to push yourself. Again, that's to bring yourself under submission, bring yourself under discipline to thank God because God clearly instructs us to do that throughout the Bible. First of all, and I wasn't going to spend the entire time on this topic, but I think we have to hit some of these important ones. First of all, God already does much more than you see. I'm going to repeat that God has been doing a ton of things that you and I never even see. I'm going to quote Psalm 126:3. Quote, "The Lord has done great things for us, and we are glad." There's a ton of things happening around us, through us, in our past, in our present, in our future that God does that you and I never even see. And for that, we should give thanks. Secondly, God is constantly working in you and me. And he's going to do much more in your life. God has put his hand on you. He has touched you. He has delivered you from things. He has reconciled you. He has blessed you. He has strengthening you. And he is treating you as he would treat a child, which means he's correcting you. And God is going to continue to do this. And for those things, we should be thanking him. I'm going to quote Philippians 1:6. quote being confident of this very thing that he that is God who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Paul was so confident by the spirit of this one thing that God who has started a good work in you and me is going to complete that good work and he's going to do so until the return of Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord. Number three, no matter what, God loves us and God accepts us. And he does this through the gospel. Did you hear me? No matter what's happening in your life, one thing you can take to the bank, God loves you and God accepts you. And he showed that clearly through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I'm going to quote Romans 5:8. quote, "But God demonstrates his own love towards us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We were doing nothing for God when he sent Jesus Christ to go through a brutal execution to die, to be buried. And on the third day, the grave could not hold him." And when he rose from the dead, he delivered us from everything that would hinder us. and he has reconciled us and he's done a ton of things that we're going to discuss. We're going to cover much of this in our upcoming season on the gospel. No matter what, God loves you and accepts you. And that is another reason to be thankful. These are just a few of many reasons. If you can remind yourself of what God has done in your life, what God is doing in your life, and how much God loves you, your thankfulness will make your prayers powerful. So be thankful, bind gratitude, pray without ceasing, and be persistent. And that's what leads us into our next. Here's a question or a statement that often comes to me. People say, "But Ted, I've prayed already and nothing is happening. What do you have to say about it?" I'll tell you about the Jesus's parable of the persistent widow. Let's take a look at that. Luke 18 verse 1. What we're going to see here is that what should we do when we feel like God is not answering our prayers? We should keep at it. Luke 18:1, let's see the words of Jesus. Then he, that's Jesus, spoke a parable to them. This is his disciples. That men ought always to pray and not lose heart. So Jesus spoke a parable. What's a parable? It's a comparison. It's an illustration. It's a spiritual truth that's alongside an everyday experience. He says that men always at all times continually consistently ought that means it's necessary or required something that God expects they ought to pray that's to speak to God to approach him in prayer and not lose heart. Notice the contrast. You and I should pray as in talk to and listen to God and not lose heart. To lose heart is to grow weary. It's to become discouraged. It's to give up. It implies a person who starts strong, grows weary, and then quits. We are instructed not to do that. Consistent prayer to God. Do that. Don't be discouraged. And let's see why. Luke 18:2. And here we're going to see Jesus begins the parable describing a judge who's got no respect for God, no concern for people. And it highlights just how unjust and unresponsive this judge was. Luke 18:2 saying, quote, "There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man." A judge is exactly what you think it is. It's a person who decides legal cases, a person who administers justice. It says, "This judge did not fear God. This judge didn't respect, revere, or stand in awe of God and didn't regard man. This this judge didn't even respect or show any consideration for other people, for any human beings. This was a tough person. This was a jerk for lack of a better term. Jesus intentionally describes a very corrupt, very indifferent judge in this parable. And Jesus does that because this judge is a contrast to our God who was honest and caring and loving. So he's showing this terrible character of a judge. In other words, if persistent prayer is going to move a judge into action, how much more will persistent prayer of a just and living God get him to move when we pray? That's the setup that Jesus is doing here in Luke 18:3. We're going to see that Jesus now introduces a helpless widow who persistently comes to the judge for justice. Luke 18:3. Now there was a widow in that city and she came to him. That's the judge saying, "Get justice for me for my adversary." A widow, it's a woman whose husband died. It implies someone who's very vulnerable, someone who needs assistance. And she comes to the judge and says, "Get me justice. Grant me justice. Defend me against wrongdoing." We never see exactly what the wrongdoing is, but it could be someone who brought a claim or someone who is trying to defraud her. There's a whole list of things that could be happening for what's happening to this widow. And she says, "Get justice from my adversary, my opponent, this person who's accusing me, this person who's bringing claims against me." Prayer means continually bringing our needs to God and trusting that he will act on our behalf. Luke 18:4. And here we're going to see that the judge initially refuses to help the widow, revealing just how selfish he is. But that sets up another contrast between him and God. Luke 18:4. And he would not for a while, but afterward he said within himself, "Though I do not fear God, nor regard man." So this judge would not. He refused. He was unwilling to help this widow. For a while, for a period of time, it was a delayed response. This widow, by the way, you and I are the widow in this parable. Folks, this widow kept coming to this wicked judge and kept getting a delayed response. And this judge said with it himself, he reasoned internally. He looked at his own interest. Even a selfish judge relented at the widow's request or the widow's prayers. Luke 18:5, the judge finally is going to then grant the widow justice, not because he cares, but because her persistent requests, her prayers wore him down. Luke 18:5. Yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming, she weies me. This widow troubles me. The judge says, "It causes me trouble. It's continually disturbing me. I will avenge her. I'll defend this widow. I'll vindicate her. I will bring justice for her since she is wronged." And it says, "Lest by her continual coming, her repeated and persistent approaching to me," he says, "I will grow weary. She will wear me down. She will beat me down. She will exhaust me." Persistent continuous prayer. It keeps bringing our needs to God until his justice and his help are revealed in our life. Luke 18:6. In here, we should carefully consider the judge's words because they reveal an important lesson about God and how we should pray. Luke 18:6, then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said." Jesus says, "Here, listen carefully. Pay attention. Understand what this unrighteous, what this morally wrong judge, this person who decides legal cases, hear what that person says." What Jesus is saying is pay attention to the unjust judge's reasoning. Because if persistence can move an unjust judge, how much more will your persistence get God to respond to his people who are coming to him in prayer? Okay. Luke 18:7. And shall not God avenge his own elect who cry out day and night to him, though he bears long with them. It says, "Shall not God avenge?" That's to grant justice, to defend, to deliver us, who are wronged. His own elect. Elect are those people who are chosen by God. God's people. That's you and me who cry out, who call out loudly, who have an urgent appeal for help, who pray day and night continually, persistently, without giving up. Though he bears long, though he be they be patient, delays judgment, and endures patiently. continuous prayer. Trust that God hears us and responds in his perfect timing. Okay, here we're going to see in this final verse of Luke chapter 18 that God will bring justice for us quickly. But Jesus is going to challenge us to remain faithful and be persistent in prayer while we wait. Luke 18:8, quote, I tell you, this is Jesus talking, that he will avenge them speedily. He's talking about God and his elect who cry out to him day and night, who pray to him persistently. Then Jesus says, "Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he really find faith on the earth?" What a powerful saying. It says, "I tell you that God will avenge. He will grant justice. He will deliver. He will defend God's elect speedily. He'll do it quickly without unnecessary delay." He says, "Nevertheless, when the son of man, that's Jesus, talking about himself, the Messiah and the future judge of the world, when he comes, will he really find faith? Will he discover or observe faith, trust, belief, confidence in God on the earth?" Persistent prayer, it's evidence of you and me having genuine faith. Part of the reason why is because if we didn't believe God heard or if we didn't believe God would do anything, we wouldn't keep going to him. When Jesus returns, he asks this really important question. Will he find persistent prayer? Will he find faith on the earth? It's time for you and me to level up. Let's take a moment. Okay. Prayer. It's talking and listening to God. Okay. How exactly do I do that though? And I should pray continuously without ceasing. How do I do that? I'm glad you asked. We have dedicated the entire next episode to how to pray. It's going to be how to build a powerful prayer life season 3 episode 7. But first, let's discuss some key benefits of prayer. First of all, prayer connects you to God. Second, prayer aligns you with God's will, which is critical to getting prayers answered. Third, prayer brings peace and reassurance. That brings us to our next simple truth. Prayer connects you to God. Okay, we're going to go to John 15:es 4-6. In John 15:4, we're going to see that you must stay connected to Jesus because spiritual life, power, and fruitfulness, that all comes from a connection and a relationship with God. John 15:4, quote, "Abide in me," that's Jesus talking, "and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it," that's the branch, "bides in the vine." Neither can you, that's you and me, unless you abide in me. And that's Jesus Christ. Okay? So Jesus says abide, that means to remain, to stay, to continue, to dwell closely together. Jesus says, "Let's dwell together. Let's stay together. Let's remain together." Okay? Abide in me, Jesus says, "And I in you as the branch." The branch is a limb. It's an offshoot. It's you and me on the vine of Jesus. A branch cannot bear fruit. It can't produce fruit or bring results unless it abides in the vine. When we talk about a vine, we literally mean a vine, specifically a grape vine. These were very common in Israel. Jesus was describing something that everyone there knew about. There were grape vines all over the place. Abiding in the vine requires connection and prayer is that connection. John 15:5. Here Jesus is going to take one step further by making it unmistakably clear that apart from Jesus Christ, you and I can do nothing. John 15:5, quote, "I am the vine. You are the branches. Jesus is making it clear. He who abides in me and I in him bears much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing. Jesus says, okay, let's get into this. I am the vine. For Jesus to say he's the vine, he's describing himself as the grape vine. The vine that supplies life to the branches. The branches, that's us. We are offshoots of the vine representing the vine and producing fruit because we're connected to it. Remember as branches we represent the vine itself and we produce fruit because we are connected to that vine. Abide again. So when he says he who abides in me and I in him that's to remain to dwell together closely. If you abide in him you bear much fruit. To bear much fruit is to produce or to bring forth results. He says, "For without me, you can do nothing." That means not one thing. You have no ability apart from the source. That branch does nothing unless it is connected to the vine. Let's see what that connection looks like. So, for those of you on YouTube, you can see a beautiful, beautiful grape vine with large delicious grapes right on there. I can't tell you if these are the grapes you eat or the grapes that you make wine out of, but those are gorgeous grapes. So, you have a strong vine with a strong branch making a very large, two large clusters of grapes that look absolutely healthy. Now, let's take a look of what it means to be a disconnected branch. A branch that's withering. A branch that shows a very poor connection to the vine. For those of you who are listening to this on audio, imagine a shriveled up vine. It's browning. It's branches starting to brown out. The leaves are starting to wither. And it clearly looks like it's about to die. And the third image is a dead branch. This is got no life on it at all. It's a hard piece of wood. It produces no fruit. It actually adds no value to anybody. You can tell when you are shriveling, folks. for Jesus to say that you should abide in him and for us to talk about prayer as the method and the the fellowship method and the connection to God. Then it's quite clear that when you are being disconnected to God, you can literally feel and see yourself going from a healthy robust branch that's connected to the vine into a shriveling up branch and potentially to a dead one. You can tell when you are shriveling. And that is a clear reminder to you to get back into connection and to connect back to God which you do so through prayer. So what is fruit in the Bible? I always felt like fruit was confusing to me when I was a young Christian. I know what fruit is, but why does the Bible keep talking about fruit? So what exactly is fruit in the Bible? And that's important. Fruit is the byproduct of a plant. So a lemon is the result of a lemon tree. If you have a lemon tree and it's doing what it naturally does, it creates lemons. Fruit is the natural result or the outcome of a plant maturing. Okay? Fruit is the natural result or it's the outcome. Fruit also shows health or it shows sickness of the plant. If a plant is having significant issues, its fruit will have problems. If a plant is doing well then the fruit will be doing very well. Fruit creates new generations of plants right fruit creates repro you know reproduction. So when we think about what fruit means for a plant it's the result of that plant. It shows the health or sickness of that plant and it also is used to reproduce as in fruit creates other plants like it. So good fruit is character or it's actions that reflects God's nature. So good fruit shows God's character as well as God's actions. So good fruit is a byproduct of conversion. It's the results from a changed life. When someone repents from wrong and does right, they then start bearing good fruit. They start representing God's character and they start doing actions that reflects God's nature. So good fruit includes showing Christlike character. It's having peace. It's showing love. It's blessing others as well as performing works that glorify God. So you're doing actions that reflect God's nature because that nature is in you and it starts manifesting outside of you and you do all sorts of good works that are for God's glory. By their fruit, by their byproduct, you shall know them. Jesus says in Matthew 7:17-20. So if you're curious about really what fruit is, when the Bible talks about fruit, it's talking about the byproduct. It's talking about the results of a person, of a plant, right? So bearing good fruit means that you are connected to the vine. You are showing God's character and you are doing actions that reflect that nature that's inside of you. Abiding in Christ means bearing good fruit. But what about disconnecting from the vine? And that's where we see John 15:6. So in here, those who don't remain connected lose spiritual life and fruitfulness. John 15:6. If anyone does not abide in me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered. I'm going to repeat that. If anyone does not abide in me, as in they're a branch, but they're disconnected from the vine, he is cast out as a branch and is withered and they gather them and throw them into the fire and they are burned. If anyone does not abide in me, Jesus says, he's cast out. He's cast away. He's removed and withered. That means to dry up, to lose life, to become spiritually unproductive. We cannot live a life disconnected from Jesus Christ. This is a reminder of why it is important to talk to God, to listen to God, to pray, to have a relationship with God. And it says here, "And they gather them and they throw them those disconnected branches that wither away into the fire. Those branches don't fulfill their purpose and those branches face judgment." That's what Jesus is saying. Just as a branch withers when it's disconnected from a vine, you and I lose spiritual life and power when we're disconnected from God. We must pray. We don't want to be this disconnected branch. That's not us. Which brings us to our next simple truth. Prayer aligns you with God's will. So, we looked at how prayer connects you to God. Now, we're going to look at how prayer aligns you with God's will. Let's go to 1 John 5 14 and 15. And here we're going to see that God hears and answers prayers that align with his will. 1 John 5:14. Quote, "Now this is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us." Okay, this is the confidence. Confidence is boldness. It's assurance. It's to speak openly. So this is the confidence. This is the boldness or the assurance that we have in him that if we ask anything to ask is to request to petition to make a request to an authority in this case God. If we ask anything according to his will according to means to be in agreement with to be in conformity to his will. That's God's desire God's purpose. God's determined plan. It says that he God hears us. To hear means he hears attentively. He listens to. He responds to what is said. When our prayers align with God's will, you and I can be confident that God hears us and he responds to those prayers. Reading the Bible and talking to and listening to God, right? Prayer, those are great ways to align with his will. First John 5:15. And here we're going to see since we know that God hears our prayers according to his will, we can be confident when we approach God with those requests. First John 5:15, quote, "And if we know that he hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of him." Okay? So we know that he hears us, that God hears attentively, that he listens, that he responds to what is being said, that whatever we ask, that means whatever you request, whatever you're petitioning, whatever request you're making to the authority, which is God, you know with certainty, you understand, you could be assured that you have the petitions, those are the requests that you have asked of God. Prayer becomes powerful when our requests align with God's will. Let's see an example of Jesus aligning with God's will in prayer. Okay. Luke 22:41. And here we see Jesus intentionally stepping away to pray. Right? He shows that prayer is a primary method for you and I to seek God and to align our actions with God's will. Luke 22:41 quote and he Jesus was withdrawn from them that's the disciples about a stone's throw about as far as you could throw a stone and it says he Jesus knelt down he took a knee and he prayed so withdrawn it says he was withdrawn he pulled away he separated from the disciples for a purpose and he knelt down that means he got on his knees Jesus got on his knees here in Luke 22 he showed humility. It implies a submission, a reverence. Remember, we we focus on Jesus as son of God, which he definitely is. But he's also son of man, right? He's 100% person. So, he went ahead and as son of man, he took a knee before God the Father, right? The humility he showed and the example that he shows for you and me and he prayed. That means he spoke to God. He approached him in prayer. Amen. Before facing the cross, Jesus humbled himself before God the Father and he prayed. Luke 22:42. And here we're going to see that Jesus shows us that powerful prayer. It's not demanding our will from God, but it's surrendering our will to God. Luke 22:42 saying, quote, "Father, if it is your will, take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done." He said, "Father, if this is your will, if this is your desire, if this is your purpose, if this is your determined plan, then please take away this cup. Remove it. This cup, carry it away, take it aside." And the cup is figuratively the suffering that's appointed for him. He wasn't talking about a literal cup. He was talking about this cup of suffering. He says, "If this is your will, remove take away this terrible suffering that is in store for me at the crucifixion. Nevertheless, thank you Jesus for your humility and for your strength. Nevertheless, however, yet he says, not my will, but yours be done. Let your will happen. Let it take place. Let it come into effect. When you pray and you surrender to God, you position yourself for his answer and for his power. Then let's see what happens. Luke 22 verse 43. The father didn't take the cup away from Jesus, but instead he strengthened Jesus to fulfill Jesus's purpose. Okay? So Luke 22:43, then an angel appeared to him. That's Jesus from heaven strengthening him. An angel, it's a messenger sent from God. Appeared, became visible, became seen. That's literally what it means. And came and empowered, that strengthened, he empowered. He gave Jesus the ability to endure supernatural strength, supernatural empowerment to sustain him to go through the death, burial, and resurrection. When you and I surrender to God's will in prayer, he directs us and he provides us the strength we need to walk out our purpose in life. Which brings us to our next simple truth. Prayer brings you peace and reassurance. So we saw that prayer connects us and so we saw that prayer aligns us with God's will. And now we will see that prayer brings us peace and reassurance which as I mentioned in the beginning of this episode people will spend a fortune of money to try to buy their way into peace and reassurance. And yet in the name of Jesus Christ God can give you peace and reassurance. And it comes through prayer and through fellowship with him. Let's take a look at Isaiah 26:E3. In Isaiah 26:3, we're going to see that prayer keeps our focus on God. And that focus produces peace and confidence in our daily life. Isaiah 26:3, quote, "You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts you." You, that is God, right? will keep, he will guard, he will watch over, he will protect carefully him that is you and I who pray to him in perfect peace. That's wholeness, total well-being, wellness, whose mind, if our mind, if our inner thoughts, uh it literally means where your mind typically goes, right? The idea is that if we make prayer a discipline, if we're praying daily, if we're praying continuously, if we're praying always at all times like the scriptures were describing, then our mind is now typically going on to God. We're typically thinking about God. We're typically meditating on God whose mind is stayed, whose mind leans on, rests on, is supported by God because he trusts in God. We rely on God. We feel secure in God. We are confident in God. When you focus on God in prayer, he gives you peace and he gives you confidence. Let's take a look at Psalm 34:4. Prayer brings peace and rescue because God responds to his people. Psalm 34:4, quote, "I sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me from all my fears." For the psalmist to say, I sought the Lord. That means to diligently inquire, to earnestly seek the Lord and he heard me. He answered me. He responded to me. He gave attention to me. And he delivered me. That's to rescue you from danger. It's to snatch you away from trouble. And he delivered the psalmist from all his fears. His fears were the things that gave him terror, that gave him dread, the things that caused alarm. When fear or anxiety rises in your life, prayer turns your heart toward God and connects you with the one who hears you, comforts you, and can deliver you. So, let's take a moment. A powerful Christian life begins with a strong relationship with God. And that relationship is built through daily fellowship with God. Prayer is essential to that fellowship because it is literally how we communicate and relate to God. Remember, prayer is talking to and listening to God. It's bringing our thoughts to God, our desires, our questions, and our appreciation, right? Our gratefulness, our thanksgiving to him. Prayer builds a powerful Christian life by drawing you close to God, connecting you with God, aligning you with God's will, which by the way gets your prayers answered and gives you strength and reassurance to fulfill your purpose in life. Remember Jesus, he withdrew himself. He separated himself and he prayed to God and he said, "Nevertheless, not my will but your will be done." And God strengthened him to do his purpose. So we can be sure you and I Christians need to pray daily. Okay. So we know that Christians should pray. But how do we pray? Join us for the next episode. How to build a powerful prayer life. Thank you for listening to this episode of the Simple Truth Podcast. Today we saw that prayer is not just something you do to check it off your list for the day. It's how you stay connected to God, how you stay aligned with God. A powerful Christian life, it begins with a strong relationship with God. And it's prayer that actually builds that relationship. So when we talk with God, when we listen to God and get to know him better, we start to see our prayers answered because we are lining up with his will and we are accessing his power. As we saw in the Bible, God is serious about this. Try him out. Talk to him honestly. Open up your heart to him and listen for his voice. Every Christian should make prayer a part of their daily life. So, it's not a question of if you should pray, but really a question of how you should pray. And we're going to cover that in our very next episode. How to build a powerful prayer life. We'll look at the different types of prayer in the Bible. what you should do during prayer, what you shouldn't do during prayer, and why some prayers aren't answered. If this episode helps you, then please like it, subscribe, and share it with someone else who wants a strong prayer life. I pray God bless you, God keep you, and God draw you closer into a deeper relationship with him through prayer. Until next time, thank you for listening to the Simple Truth Podcast. For additional episodes, visit us at www.simpletruth.org.